Multi-instrument Guitar Hero World Tour official

The slap given to the Guitar Hero franchise by Rock Band seems to have left a mark... and it's serving as a wake-up call for the developers. Today, Activision has officially announced its fourth installment of the Guitar Hero saga, not only making the solo guitar a thing of the past but significantly upping the ante on the combo band gaming experience, too.

The list of enhancements in the upcoming Guitar Hero World Tour are extensive. As expected, it's a four-player game like Rock Band, including two guitars, drums, and vocals. But it sounds like the Rock Band instruments are about to look awfully dated in comparison to what GHWT is going to offer. For starters, the drum kit is "authentic," including three drum pads, bass pedal, and two real, raised cymbals. The drum pads can even detect how hard you hit the pads, letting you pound out a solo or softly roll while your singer croons. The guitar gets a redesign as well, and all instruments will be wireless (thank God).

Want to create your own music? GHWT will let you, with a feature called Music Studio. You can jam your own tracks, then  share them with other Guitar Hero players via an online service.

The prerecorded track list hasn't been announced, but Activision promises the sets are "comprised entirely of master recordings from some of the greatest classic and modern rock bands of all-time including Van Halen, Linkin Park, The Eagles, Sublime, and many more," calling it the "largest on-disc set list in a music-rhythm game to-date."

Finally, the game will be available for all consoles: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, and even the PS2. The game is slated for the fall, with an official release date coming soon. I'm already ready to rock!

Check out the full press release, with a little added information on the game, by clicking here