Honestly, if you grew up with a plastic guitar in your hands, you remember the "Great War" of 2008. It was Rock Band 2 versus Guitar Hero World Tour. Everyone had an opinion. But looking back, the songs in Guitar Hero World Tour really did something different. It wasn't just a tracklist; it was a massive, 86-song statement that Activision wasn't going to let Harmonix own the "full band" space without a fight.
The game was a huge pivot. Before this, Guitar Hero was just... well, guitar. Suddenly, you had a drum kit with actual elevated cymbals and a microphone. To fill that kind of stage, you needed a setlist that felt like a stadium tour, not a dive bar gig.
The Heavy Hitters: 86 Master Recordings
One thing you’ve gotta respect is that every single one of the 86 songs in Guitar Hero World Tour was a master recording. No more of those "as made famous by" covers that sounded like a talented wedding band. When you played "Beat It," you were hearing Michael Jackson and Eddie Van Halen's actual studio magic.
The variety was kind of insane. You’d go from the pop-punk energy of Blink-182's "Dammit" to the absolute prog-rock nightmare of Tool. Seriously, getting Tool on a rhythm game was a massive deal back then. They gave the developers three tracks—"Parabola," "Schism," and "Vicarious"—and even had a custom-designed venue that looked like one of their trippy music videos.
A Mix of Legends and "Who is That?"
The setlist was basically a crash course in rock history. You had the absolute essentials:
📖 Related: Why the Connections Hint December 1 Puzzle is Driving Everyone Crazy
- The Eagles: "Hotel California" (The solo is still a finger-twister)
- Jimi Hendrix: "Purple Haze (Live)" and "The Wind Cries Mary"
- Van Halen: "Hot for Teacher" (That opening drum fill? Pure chaos)
- Metallica: "Trapped Under Ice"
But then you had these weird, cool curveballs. I remember "Vinternoll2" by Kent or "Nuvole E Lenzuola" by Negramaro. It felt like Neversoft was trying to make the game feel "World Tour" by actually including, you know, the world. Some people hated the "filler," but honestly, it gave the game a different texture than just playing the same ten radio hits.
Hardest Songs in Guitar Hero World Tour: The Hand-Crampers
Let's talk about the songs that made you want to throw the guitar through the TV. If you were playing on Expert, there were a few "wall" songs.
"Satch Boogie" by Joe Satriani is usually at the top of the list. It’s the final encore for a reason. The "Solo F" section is basically a test of whether your nervous system can keep up with your brain. It uses these slider notes—those clear gems where you’re supposed to just tap the touch strip on the newer controllers—but most of us just mashed the frets and hoped for the best.
Then there’s "B.Y.O.B." by System of a Down. The rhythm is so erratic. It jumps from these heavy, chugging riffs to frantic strumming in a way that breaks your focus if you blink. And we can't forget "Hot for Teacher." If you were the drummer in the group, that song was basically a cardio workout. The double-bass pedal work was a rude awakening for anyone who thought they were "good" at fake drums.
👉 See also: Why the Burger King Pokémon Poké Ball Recall Changed Everything
The GHTunes Factor: Infinite Songs?
One of the biggest selling points was the Music Studio. The idea was that the songs in Guitar Hero World Tour wouldn't just be what was on the disc. You could make your own.
In reality? It was... a mixed bag.
Basically, it sounded like MIDI music. You couldn't record vocals because of copyright and, well, storage limits. You’d go onto GHTunes (the sharing service) and find 400 versions of "Super Mario Theme" or "Through the Fire and Flames" recreated with synth beeps. It was charming, but it didn't exactly replace the core soundtrack. Still, the fact that you could even try to compose a song using a plastic guitar was a wild technical feat for 2008.
The Export Problem (And Why It Matters Now)
If you’re trying to play these songs today, it’s a bit of a headache. Back in the day, you could "export" about 35 of the 86 tracks into later games like Guitar Hero 5 or Warriors of Rock. But due to licensing—which is basically the villain of the rhythm game genre—most of those licenses have expired.
✨ Don't miss: Why the 4th of July baseball Google Doodle 2019 is still the best game they’ve ever made
You can't just go to the Xbox or PlayStation store and buy the DLC anymore. Most of the Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, and Metallica tracks are "delisted." This is why physical copies of the disc are still weirdly valuable to collectors. If you want to play "Pull Me Under" by Dream Theater or "Everlong" by Foo Fighters on the original engine, you’ve gotta have the actual World Tour disc.
How to Experience the Setlist Today
If you’re feeling nostalgic and want to revisit the songs in Guitar Hero World Tour, you have a few realistic paths.
- Dust off the PS3/Xbox 360: This is the most authentic way. Find a copy of the game at a local thrift store. Just be warned: those old drum kits are notoriously fragile. The "red pad" on the World Tour kit was famous for dying after three weeks of heavy play.
- Clone Hero: This is what most of the community does now. It’s a fan-made PC game where you can import the charts (the note patterns) from almost every rhythm game ever made. You can find the entire World Tour setlist online, and it runs beautifully on modern hardware with a simple USB adapter for your old controllers.
- The Wii Version: Honestly? Not bad. It had a "Freestyle" mode where you could use the Mii characters. If you don't have a high-end PC or an old console, the Wii version is usually the cheapest to find.
The setlist for World Tour was a weird, ambitious, beautiful mess. It tried to be everything to everyone—classic rock, metal, indie, and international pop. While Guitar Hero III might have the more "iconic" difficulty spikes, World Tour feels like the peak of the "plastic instrument" era's ambition.
If you’re looking to get back into it, start by looking for a used guitar controller first; they’re getting harder to find. Once you have the gear, the tracklist is waiting to humble you all over again.
Next Steps: Check your local used game shop for a copy of the World Tour disc, or look into downloading the "setlist pack" for Clone Hero if you're on PC to get that 2008 nostalgia fix without the console setup.