What can be said about the concept of music based Greatest Hits albums? In some cases they can propel an artist to a new audience. In other cases it's just another product for long time fans to blindly purchase. In the case of video games, things are a little different. For a game like Guitar Hero Smash Hits, both cases could work out for gamers along with everyone else involved in the game. In this new iteration of Guitar Hero, you get a list of great songs from the Guitar Hero series. However, is this just an on disc song pack or is it a needed edition to the franchise?

 

The Guitar Hero series has been around for a longtime and with the recent addition of the full band experience it's time to re-evaluate some of the hit songs that made the series what it is today. In Guitar Hero Smash Hits you can now check out some of the classic Guitar Hero songs with all the new instruments and techniques of the newer Guitar Heroes. Songs are retro fitted to feature the slide which was added during World Tour and some songs have the option of using two drum pedals which was added in Guitar Hero: Metallica. It's a welcome addition to any Guitar Hero collection.
One of the biggest detractors to a Guitar Hero "side project" title is the removal of the song store. While this is an upsetting missing piece to the Guitar Her puzzle, in Smash Hits you're really getting a huge value for your entertainment dollar. The song list in Smash Hits is extremely diverse and touches on every genre of music which makes Guitar Hero such a likable product. So whether you're a returning Guitar Hero fan or you're new to the game this music list is a perfect collection of music. It must be said that it would have been nice to see these songs made available in a downloadable fashion in World Tour, but based on the sticker price of $59.99 it's cheaper to pick up this game then download every song individually.
There's no way to argue that the songs in Smash Hits are great, they've been time tested by the music ommunity and they helped start the rhythm game revolution, but Smash Hits as a game is nothing more than a karaoke machine. The carrier mode of Smash Hits has been stripped down to the point where it simply replaces the quick play option. You no longer unlock any music from the career mode and it does very little to expand on the game. On top of that, Smash Hits really feels like a feeler for the next proper Guitar Hero title. New mechanics are added to the game and some of the graphics look a little better, but unless you're a huge fan of the franchise you'll never notice.
At this point it seems that any Music Rhythm game is nothing more than music on a disc we can interact with as a group or as individuals. It could help some gamers discover new music but with Smash Hits only housing older music this might not be a great vehicular for music exploration. This isn't always a bad thing but that doesn't seem to be the point of Smash Hits. The game feels more like a fan driven title and it only really plays to the idea that fans want to go back and check out older songs from the franchise. However there isn't a song or aspect in the game that makes Smash Hits stand out. It's more or less a cheap, on disc song pack. So if you're looking for more music to play as a band pick it up, but know that I only give Guitar Hero Smash Hits a 7 out of 10.