To many, the success of Guitar Hero has been one of the most pleasant surprises to hit the gaming industry in the past few years. It went from underdog release to super franchise in only two incarnations. Its success has propelled its publisher forward in such a way that it could be argued Guitar Hero is now the "Madden" of Activision.

The added drama for the third incarnation of Guitar Hero is the fact that Harmonix, the game's original developer, is no longer on board. Having been dumped in favor of in-house developer Neversoft, the slighted developer is now in charge of the rival franchise Rock Band. So with the release of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, the question can finally be answered... does Guitar Hero still rock? We take a closer at the real story behind the plastic guitar.

Going straight to platinum
According to the NPD, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock took up six slots in the top 13 titles for October, including three out of the top five slots. It debuted number one across the board as the best selling title on PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 (combining all SKUs). Overall, Guitar Hero III sold 1.4 million copies during the October period, with the PS2 as the highest seller, showing the vitality of the platform after all these years.

On top of this, there's every expectation that the success for Guitar Hero III has only just begun. Guitar Hero II has sold 2.8 million copies in 2007, and that was just over two platforms: PS2 and Xbox 360. There's every reason to believe that, between its four SKUs, Guitar Hero III will sell many more copies than its predecessor. In fact, Michael Pachter recently predicted that the game will sell 7.5 million copies this year.

Slash grabs the spotlight, but Tom Morello and Bret Michaels (above) also appear

"The Guitar Hero franchise has only scratched the surface of its potential since it was previously only available for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment systems and the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft," said Robert Kotick, Chairman and CEO of Activision in a release. "Despite having significantly increased our production capabilities for the holiday, there is still a high likelihood that we will not be able to meet demand for this game on every platform."

I liked you before you sold out, man!
While there were many who actively wondered how the Guitar Hero franchise would fair under the guidance of Neversoft, the sentiment has been that, for the most part, the experience appears intact from previous versions. Colored commands slide down a fretboard on screen and buttons are pushed in time with it, in conjunction with the strum bar: it's a combination that still remains solid to this day.

Along with the fundamental mechanics of Guitar Hero, the game also features a new hit list of songs, including a record number of songs by the original artists, including Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones, Welcome to the Jungle by Guns N' Roses and One by Metallica. There were also some additional game modes added, such as a co-op career, a "battle mode" and the much clamored for online competitive play.

Still, all is not rosy in the land of rock. While most critics say that I>Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock offers a solid experience, the new "battle mode" was often cited as gimmicky and poorly implemented into online play (where players choose their own difficulty level separately). The game was also labeled as too hard by some, and indeed, only the truly dedicated will make it far into Expert or ever hope to complete Dragonforce's Through the Fire and Flames. Guitar Hero III averaged an 86% on GameRankings.com, down from the previous two full incarnations of the game, which averaged over 90%.

"Despite these missteps, Guitar Hero III still warrants your hard-earned cash," says Chris Buffa in his GameDaily review, where he gave Guitar Hero III a "Good" ranking of 8-out-of-10. "It is, after all, a Guitar Hero game, and that alone makes it worth playing. The game works with the Guitar Hero II controller, but we recommend spending the $100 (or $90 for the Wii version) to buy both the game and the new guitar. The new Les Paul can deliver that visceral rock 'n' roll experience better than the other GH controllers. Just make sure you don't break any bones while performing knee-sliding solos on the living room floor."

Will it rock more faces than Rock Band?
Guitar Hero III got wide exposure from Activision, thanks in no small part to kiosks set up in GameStops, Best Buys and other retailers around the nation. The game also got its own TV spot, which ran extensively throughout October. The commercials featured two guys rocking out... when Slash suddenly appears, out of the skin of one of the players! It did a good job of demonstrating the competitive gameplay and also showing off the real "star power" in the game (Slash appears as a boss character during the game's career mode).

Almost immediately after the release of Guitar Hero III, Activision put up downloadable content for fans to buy, with song packs including sets by the Foo Fighters and Velvet Revolver among others. While there's no question that more DLC will be following in the future, it still remains in doubt whether Activision will be able to keep up with MTV Games/Electronic Arts and the torrid pace of weekly content they plan to set for Rock Band. The release of various downloadable songs will set up the inevitable clash for next year of Guitar Hero IV vs. Rock Band 2, which will go a long way in determining which franchise will ultimately have the most success.