Guitar Hero Live

 Xbox One
Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
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  1. Destructoid
    Oct 20, 2015
    95
    I love the new controller design, the FMV portions work far better than they should, and Guitar Hero TV hooked me with its channel concept.
  2. Worth Playing
    Nov 2, 2015
    90
    Guitar Hero Live is basically a return to its guitar-only roots, which is what made the original games great.
  3. Game Rant
    Oct 26, 2015
    90
    However, there’s still plenty to the game that make it worth recommending to anyone who’s ever enjoyed holding a plastic instrument in their hands. Make no mistake, Guitar Hero is back — and, thanks to the smart changes made to gameplay and presentation, it’s more satisfying than ever before.
  5. MondoXbox
    Oct 26, 2015
    90
    A real revolution in its genre, thanks to the new guitar and the video streaming GH TV service capable of keeping us glued to the controller song after song after song. We've got a very different experience from the past here, but it's fresh, highly satisfying and varied.
  6. GamingTrend
    Oct 20, 2015
    90
    Guitar Hero Live gives us an offline first-person rock-and-roll fantasy, but it’s Guitar Hero TV that gives this series new life. The new guitar gives veterans new challenges while breaking down the barrier to entry for new players. While the on-disc tracks are, in my opinon, throwaway, Guitar Hero TV should keep players busy for a long time to come.
  7. GameCrate
    Oct 23, 2015
    88
    Overall, Guitar Hero Live is a huge jump forward for the music game genre while at the same time abandoning some of the things we loved about music games. If you can get past some of the things that are gone and embrace the new ideas, you'll have a great time playing fantasy rock star.
  8. GamesBeat
    Oct 26, 2015
    87
    Although Rock Band still has the bigger catalog, more instruments, and backward compatibility, Guitar Hero Live is progressive, nimble, and, well, lively. The new guitar and GHTV system get me truly excited about playing rhythm titles again.
  9. Gaming Age
    Oct 22, 2015
    83
    The Guitar Hero franchise has resurrected itself.
  10. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    Dec 8, 2015
    80
    A Bowie-esque reinvention. [Christmas 2015, p.75]
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  11. Brash Games
    Nov 17, 2015
    80
    I love the new Guitar Hero experience, but more specifically I love Guitar Hero TV mode, which more than makes up for the forgettable Live mode.
  12. The Daily Dot
    Nov 2, 2015
    80
    If skill challenge is your motivation, Guitar Hero Live will demand much more of you by default. If you’re looking for a party game consider the regulars on your guest list and their level of frustration tolerance.
  13. Digitally Downloaded
    Oct 27, 2015
    80
    The most impressive thing to me about Guitar Hero Live is the way the developers have breathed new life into a series that became notorious for doing the same thing over and over again.
  14. Shacknews
    Oct 20, 2015
    80
    FreeStyleGames has taken only the most fundamental pieces of what Harmonix and Neversoft introduced and instead put their own unique stamp on Guitar Hero Live. In many ways, it's for the better, especially in GHTV. In fact, GHTV might even have some players wondering why that wasn't the whole game. It certainly makes the live action concert element feel superfluous.
  15. IGN
    Oct 20, 2015
    79
    The new guitar makes a tangible improvement to how you experience each and every riff and lick, and GHTV provides an almost irresistible service for enjoying tracks you love while discovering new ones, with absolutely nothing hidden behind a paywall.
  16. 4P.de
    Oct 23, 2015
    78
    The live concept is fresh and surprisingly well implemented, the new controller brings a new spin to rhythm games and with GHTV you have two channels of 24/7-songchoice. But the attached microtransactions are too omnipresent.
  17. NZGamer
    Nov 3, 2015
    75
    A great evolution to the controller, but lacks the fun of the originals.
  18. Xbox Achievements
    Oct 20, 2015
    75
    Guitar Hero Live is maybe a change too far for the Guitar Hero revival. It’s two facets, Guitar Hero Live and Guitar Hero TV, are wonderfully crafted and superbly engaging, but the fun factor seems to have been zapped from it somewhat. Maybe it’s a little too serious, maybe it’s hard to accept change, but that spark that we felt when we played Guitar Hero II for the first time… it’s just not there.
  19. Pure Xbox
    Nov 2, 2015
    70
    It isn't as fully-featured as we'd have expected it to be off the bat, but being able to jump in and spin through a selection from the 200+ tracks (with lots more to come, we're told) for an hour while earning rewards and upgrades is pure addiction.
  20. We Got This Covered
    Oct 25, 2015
    70
    All of Guitar Hero Live's numerous changes result in a mixed bag of a revival, but one that rhythm game fans should still try out.
  21. ZTGD
    Oct 20, 2015
    70
    A lot of the issues with GHTV is that it is confusing to understand how it works within the game. Players are used to just buying songs a la carte. The new six button setup will also throw players for a loop. Again, I totally respect the new direction, but the familiar tones of its competitor really draw me to prefer that offering. Plus I can play what songs I want, when I want.
  22. AusGamers
    Oct 26, 2015
    65
    Guitar Hero Live has just taken itself too seriously, and that concept is at pure odds with what the franchise used to be about. Don’t get me wrong, there is fun here, there’s multiplayer, hero powers and a decent list of songs, but the idea that these might eventually have you forking over more cash should make you trepidatious at least.

Awards & Rankings

27
#27 Best Xbox One Game of 2015
47
#47 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2015
29
#29 Most Shared Xbox One Game of 2015

User Reviews

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User Score
4.9

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 79 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 79
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 79
  3. Negative: 36 out of 79
  1. marklodi
    Oct 21, 2015
    4
    Very disappointed in this game. For me, it's the learning curve from the previous 5-button style to this hybrid. I've heard from others thatVery disappointed in this game. For me, it's the learning curve from the previous 5-button style to this hybrid. I've heard from others that it IS doable, but the frustration set in immediately. First, there is no auto-calibration. Just a metronome sound hitting a bell you move with your strum bar. Then the game, after a very bare-bones tutorial, immediately throws you into a 3 song performance that quickly makes you feel worthless and a failure if you can't adapt. No positive feedback, no help, no easing you into something different after dozens of years of previous GH/RB controls locked in your brain. Even for brand new plastic guitar players, this is a brutal welcome. Also dislike the USB-nature of the controller, taking away one of only three spots on the XB1. Plus, if it's not practically line of sight, you'll get drops, so if you placed the dongle in one of the two rear USB ports, try the side port instead. And then be ready to swap out it for your charging cable or hard wired controller whenever you switch to the game. Why they couldn't go XB1 wireless like Rock Band did, I have no idea. Finally, though I never got to it, I conceptually have issues with the fact - other than the tracks that came on the disc - you NEVER own the content and have to pay to RENT time with your favorite tracks. But again, I did not actually get to that point, so I won't count it against the game. In closing, seriously consider your level of handling frustration, as - in my opinion - this is a seriously difficult game to get into with horrible tutorial. If you have preset conditioning with previous GH/RB games and their controller scheme - especially if you are playing the newly release Rock Band 4 - be prepared for a heck of a shock to the system. For me, the frustration did not justify the $100 price tag.… Full Review »
  2. radzman
    Oct 21, 2015
    4
    Overall, this new entry in the Guitar Hero franchise is not worth the money. i was a big fan of Guitar Hero and Rock Band back in 2009 and iOverall, this new entry in the Guitar Hero franchise is not worth the money. i was a big fan of Guitar Hero and Rock Band back in 2009 and i still play Rock band 3 and GH: WoR frequently. this game does not feel like a Guitar Hero game, More an overproduced music video which just happens to have a Rhythm game mashed into it. the controls aren't as good as they look and it's relatively hard to calibrate lag for some TVs. The gameplay is quite repetitive and the soundtrack isn't going to please fans of the old GH series. I can understand that the developers were trying to appeal to a new generation of players but in doing so, they've left all previous fans in the shadows. if you've never played a previous Guitar Hero or Rock Band game, This is the game for you. Not for me.… Full Review »
  3. Sonicfishcake42
    Oct 24, 2015
    3
    This would have got a top score from me if it wasn't for the reasons I'll mention below. Firstly I'll go over the good points of the game. TheThis would have got a top score from me if it wasn't for the reasons I'll mention below. Firstly I'll go over the good points of the game. The campaign is simply fantastic - Far better than any guitar hero to date. It makes the old guitar heroes look like a cartoon joke. I mean they have honestly impressed me with it! The tracklist from the campaign has some good tracks, mostly mediocre at best tracks and a great amount of terrible songs... But this is purely down to personal preference.

    Now onto the negative... You will complete the story in a few hours and unlock the tracklist... The issue is the great tracks and the fan favourites are all contained within Guitar hero TV mode. Basically this is a predominantly pay-to-play mode where you unlock tokens to play a song you want... You earn 3 tokens by leveling up... I've played the game for about 24 hours in total and I'm level 10... so 30 free-plays. You can of course buy with real money track plays which in my opinion is FAR too expensive, The whole point of guitar hero for me is practice practice practice trying to get high scores on the songs you love.... This is a very costly business and the paywall completely removes that element of the game. If you don't want to buy free-plays then you can buy a 24 hour access pass for £5 which allows you chose what songs you would like to play.... £5 per day to play what ever tracks you want is stupid considering you pay £250 for the complete package and then have to pay £5 per day to freely play the tracks you want - Seems horrendous doesn't it?!

    You will never be able to buy specific songs or tracklists, you will never own them and you will never be able to keep them and play them when you want... You have to have tokens to play them which you pay for unless you unlock them (at a quite slow rate)

    HOWEVER - the game does have a mode that's like MTV which plays random songs from the tracklist in specific genres, the execution of this is fantastic however keeping on top of which genre your favourite song is likely to be in is a big hassle. You have to check the schedule and come back and play the genre in hope your track comes up... Which at 30 minutes per genre it is probably not going to.

    It's great for a few hours but then you realise that you just want to play the songs you like which you can't without using tokens :(

    all in all this game would have got a 9/10 or 10/10 if it wasn't pay-to-play. The new controls take a bit of getting used to but it's worth it. The campaign is awesome and the MTV-style mode is great.. The tracklist is fantastic but expensive if you would like to play.

    I am so honestly so disappointed, I wouldn't have bought this if i'd have known about the pay-to-play aspect. I've bought a 24hour access pass to play songs for £5, as soon as that runs out I'm taking this game back and buying rockband. I cannot stand pay-to-play when you have to buy the game in the first place... And £250 for the full package and you have to pay again is absolutely disgusting. I've been a fan of guitar hero for a decade but I will never buy another GH again unless this paywall is completely removed. You have lost a fan GH, never again.

    I honestly mean this when I say it... This game is fantastic, it's the best GH to date.... But paying to play the songs you want is disgusting. Like I said, you've lost me and i'm sure hundreds of thousands of other customers.

    Be warned guys - I wish I'd have known before buying this. I hope ASDA will take it back.    … Full Review »
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