Get Out Your Leather Pants and Rock The 80s

Author's Rating:

Pros: Great tunes, another fun addition to the Guitar Hero line-up.

Cons: Fewer items to purchase. Songs grow old over time.

The Bottom Line: 
Worth owning if you are a diehard Guitar Hero addict, but it is easier to beat.

Author's Review
Many of us are now finding our favorite tunes--the ones that take us back to high school--played on the classic rock stations. While this can made you feel old, there is a newer game out there for the PS2 that offers the chance to feel young at heart while enjoying a blast from your musical past. Guitar Hero Rocks the 80s is another addition to the Guitar Hero game series, and it is a lot of fun, though I feel easier than Guitar Hero 2.

Tracks on Guitar Hero Rocks the 80s are divided into six categories:

Opening Licks includes:

1. Metal Health -- Quiet Riot
2. We Got The Beat -- The GoGos
3. I Ran -- Flock of Seagulls
4. Balls to the Wall - Accept
5. 18 and Life -- Skid Row (Encore)

Amp Warmers includes:

6. No One Like You -- Scorpions
7. Shakin' -- Eddie Money
8. Heat of the Moment -- Asia
9. Radar Love -- White Lion's cover of the Golden Earring tune
10. Because It's Midnight -- Limozeen (Encore)

String Snappers includes:

11. Holy Diver -- Dio
12. Turning Japanese -- The Vapors
13. Hold On Loosely -- 38 Special
14. The Warrior -- Scandal
15. I Wanna Rock -- Twisted Sister (Encore)

Return of the Shred includes:

16. What I Like About You -- The Romantics
17. Synchronicity II -- The Police
18. Ballroom Blitz -- Krokus' cover of Sweet's song.
19. Only A Lad -- Oingo Boingo
20. Round and Round -- Ratt (Encore)

Relentless Rifts includes:

21. Ain't Nothing But A Good Time -- Poison
22. Lonely Is The Night -- Billy Squier
23. Bathroom Wall -- Faster Pussycat
24. Los Angeles -- X
25. Wrathchild -- Iron Maiden (Encore)

Furious Fretwork includes:

26. Electric Eye -- Judas Priest
27. Police Truck -- Dead Kennedys
28. Seventeen -- Winger
29. Caught In A Mosh -- Anthrax
30. Play With Me -- Extreme (Encore)

Obviously, there are a lot of the hairbands included, but a few surprises like "I Ran" that did actually have some decent guitar. Thirty songs in all do keep you busy, but what surprised me is that I was able to beat the game at medium within two days. I've yet to beat Guitar Hero 2. "Play With Me" is by far the hardest, and that took a few tries to get it down. My son's yet to beat it on expert.

There are fewer guitars and characters to win, so those who enjoy buying new items will find there is less offered. While that wasn't bothersome to me, it definitely annoyed my teenaged son.