The Critics Agree
The critics agree that Guitar Hero 5 is Neversoft's best Guitar Hero effort since taking over the series:
"Though it can sometimes feel that the series is in a perpetual state of catch-up with Rock Band, Guitar Hero 5 strikes back with a considerable set of new features and improvements that truly count. The band experience is cohesive and party play is at its most effortless yet." -- Gametrailers
"Overall, Guitar Hero 5 is an improved experience this year, without a doubt the best of Activision's full-band games to date. " -- Nick Chester, Destructoid
"Many people thought Guitar Hero 5 was going to be just another set of songs, after spending hours with the retail build we found out that the exact opposite was true – this game will hit fans with a totally fresh experience, one that is worth every penny of the upgrade cost." -- Eric Bush, PlanetXbox360
The Critics Disagree
However, other critics disagree about some of the presentation and character choices in the game:
"For good measure, Activision threw in several superstars. Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, Garbage's Shirley Mansion and the Man In Black himself, Johnny Cash, all become unlocked over the course of the game. If that isn't enough, Xbox 360 owners can play as their custom Avatars. They're smaller than other characters on stage, but they perform so well, you probably won't care." -- Robert Workman, GameDaily
"It doesn't, however, change fundamental issues that have long-plagued Neversoft and remain an issue in Guitar Hero 5, such as a poorly laid out interface that takes far too long for you to decipher basic gameplay needs, such as whether or not you're going to fail." -- Patrick Klepek, G4TV
"However, forcing Johnny Cash to cavort around onstage with the now playable Live Avatars is just humiliating. (By the way, perhaps it would have been better to leave Kurt Cobain out of the game entirely if you were going to be so tacky as to allow players to have him jumping up and down like an idiot to a Blink 182 song as a playable character. Seriously gross.)" -- Matt Helgeson, Game Informer
The Word on Twitter
"Currently using Guitar Hero 5 on my Xbox 360 as a jukebox. Letting it play in the background while I work." -- @michaelkwan
"What am i doing? sweating my fucking ass off. playing guitar hero 5. i own." -- omfgruben
"hooray for 4 player guitar hero 5 this evening!!! and being able to play guitar as well as others!!" -- nakakage
