Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is the third release in the Guitar Hero series of music video games. This game is the first in the series to be developed by Neversoft, and was distributed by RedOctane and Activision. The game was released on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360 game consoles, and also for Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh personal computers.

Guitar Hero III features 73 songs on the game's media; this includes the 39 single-player songs, three "Boss Battle" songs, six co-op career exclusive songs, and 25 bonus songs. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions support downloadable content in the form of new songs for the game. As of September 12, 2008, there are 59 songs available as downloadable content for both platforms, bringing the total number of available songs for these versions to 132. Four downloadable songs were only available for a limited time. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions each had an exclusive song.

Game disc songs Main setlist Guitar Hero III features 73 songs spread across both the Solo and Co-Op Career modes. These songs are arranged in eight sequential tiers based on their relative difficulty. The player(s) must complete some or all of the songs in one tier (based on the career difficulty selected), including the Encore, to access the next one. During the Solo Career mode, the player will also encounter three Boss Battles, a new mode introduced in Guitar Hero III, at the ends of three tiers as listed below, prior to performing the Encore song. The player must attempt the Boss Battle three times, but after the third time the player has the option of passing the Boss Battle in order to continue progression in the game. However, this option is only available for the first two boss battles (Slash and Tom Morello). In Co-Op Career mode, the players only perform the first six tiers, do not encounter any Boss Battles, and have different Encore songs from the Solo Career mode.

Once a tier is open at any difficulty level, all songs except the Encores and Boss Battle songs become available for all other game modes; the Encore songs become available once they are completed. The three Boss Battle songs are not playable outside of Solo Career mode. However, these songs were available as free downloadable content for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game. All songs (except Boss Battles) can be unlocked for all modes through special cheat codes for the game, as to, for example, allow a solo player to access the Co-Op Encore songs without having to play through Co-Op mode.

Being based on the same engine as the seventh generation versions of Guitar Hero III, Guitar Hero Arcade features a set of 50 songs chosen from the main, bonus and downloadable content lists.

Year Song title Artist GenreMaster recording? Solo tier Co-op tier 2007 "3's & 7's" Queens of the Stone Age Hard Rock 7.37. Live in Japan 5.35. Jailhouse Rock 2007 "Anarchy in the U.K." Sex Pistols Punk 4.24. European Invasion 3.33. Over Night Success 1977 "Barracuda" Heart Classic Rock 2.42. Your First Real Gig 1.11. Getting a Band Together 2004 "Before I Forget" Slipknot Alternative Metal 7.17. Live in Japan – 1970 "Black Magic Woman" Santana Blues Rock 6.16. Hottest Band on Earth 4.24. Getting the Band Back Together 1992 "Black Sunshine" White Zombie Groove Metal 6.36. Hottest Band on Earth 5.25. Jailhouse Rock 1996 "Bulls on Parade" Rage Against the Machine Rap Rock 2.62. Your First Real GigEncore 1.31. Getting a Band Together 1993 "Cherub Rock" Smashing PumpkinsThe Smashing Pumpkins Alternative Rock 6.26. Hottest Band on Earth 4.44. Getting the Band Back Together 1972 "Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll" Blue Öyster Cult Classic Rock – 4.54. Getting the Band Back TogetherEncore 1990 "Cliffs of Dover" Eric Johnson Rock 8.28. Battle for Your Soul – 2007 "Cult of Personality" Living Colour Hard Rock 7.57. Live in JapanEncore 6.46. Battle for Your Souls 2007 "Devil Went Down to Georgia""The Devil Went Down to Georgia" Steve Ouimette(Inspired by The Charlie Daniels Band) Southern Rock 8.58. Battle for Your SoulBoss Battle – 1991 "Even Flow" Pearl Jam Grunge 4.54. European Invasion Encore – 2007 "Guitar Battle vs. Slash" Slash Rock 5.55. Big House BluesBoss Battle – 2007 "Guitar Battle vs. Tom Morello" Tom Morello Rock 2.42. Your First Real GigBoss Battle – 2004 "Helicopter" Bloc Party Indie Rock – 5.55. Jailhouse RockEncore 1980 "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" Pat Benatar Classic Rock 1.31. Starting Out Small – 1980 "Holiday in Cambodia" Dead Kennedys Hardcore Punk 5.15. Big House Blues 4.14. Getting the Band Back Together 2006 "Knights of Cydonia" Muse Alternative Rock 7.47. Live in Japan 6.16. Battle for Your Souls 1990 "Kool Thing" Sonic Youth Alternative Rock 4.34. European Invasion 2.22. We Just Wanna Be Famous 1973 "La Grange" ZZ Top Blues Rock 5.45. Big House Blues – 2006 "Lay Down"Priestess Hard Rock 3.43. Making the Video 3.43. Over Night Success 2006 "Metal""The Metal" Tenacious D Hard Rock 6.46. Hottest Band on Earth 5.45. Jailhouse Rock 2006 "Miss Murder" AFI Alternative 3.23. Making the Video 2.32. We Just Wanna Be Famous 1970 "Mississippi Queen" Mountain Hard Rock 2.12. Your First Real Gig – 2006 "Monsters"Matchbook Romance Alternative – 6.56. Battle for Your SoulsEncore 1994 "My Name Is Jonas" Weezer Alternative 4.44. European Invasion 5.15. Jailhouse Rock 1982 "Number of the Beast""The Number of the Beast" Iron Maiden Heavy Metal 8.38. Battle for Your Soul 6.36. Battle for Your Souls 1988 "One" Metallica Thrash Metal 8.48. Battle for Your Soul 6.26. Battle for Your Souls 1966 "Paint It Black" Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones Classic Rock 3.53. Making the VideoEncore – 1970 "Paranoid" Black Sabbath Heavy Metal 4.14. European Invasion 3.13. Over Night Success 1983 "Pride and Joy" Stevie Ray Vaughan Blues Rock 6.56. Hottest Band on EarthEncore – 1986 "Raining Blood" Slayer Thrash Metal 8.18. Battle for Your Soul – 2003 "Reptilia" StrokesThe Strokes Indie Rock – 2.52. We Just Wanna Be FamousEncore 1975 "Rock and Roll All Nite" Kiss Classic Rock 1.51. Starting Out SmallEncore – 1984 "Rock You Like a Hurricane" Scorpions Glam Metal 5.25. Big House Blues – 1994 "Sabotage" Beastie Boys Rap Rock – 1.51. Getting a Band Together Encore 1974 "Same Old Song and Dance" Aerosmith Hard Rock 5.35. Big House Blues 4.34. Getting the Band Back Together 1972 "School's Out" Alice Cooper Glam Rock 2.22. Your First Real Gig 2.12. We Just Wanna Be Famous 1970 "Seeker""The Seeker" WhoThe Who Classic Rock 3.33. Making the Video 2.42. We Just Wanna Be Famous 1975 "Slow Ride" Foghat Classic Rock 1.11. Starting Out Small 1.41. Getting a Band Together 1990 "Story of My Life" Social Distortion Punk 1.41. Starting Out Small – 2005 "Stricken" Disturbed Alternative Metal 7.27. Live in Japan – 1991 "Suck My Kiss" Red Hot Chili Peppers Alternative – 3.53. Over Night SuccessEncore 1968 "Sunshine of Your Love" Cream Blues Rock 2.32. Your First Real Gig – 1987 "Talk Dirty to Me" Poison Glam Metal 1.21. Starting Out Small – 1987 "Welcome to the Jungle" Guns N' Roses Hard Rock 5.65. Big House BluesEncore 3.23. Over Night Success 2006 "When You Were Young" KillersThe Killers Alternative 3.13. Making the Video 1.21. Getting a Band Together

Bonus songs Unlike the previous two games, whose bonus acts mostly comprised bands from the Boston scene (some of which have had members who worked at Harmonix and were involved with the games' development), Guitar Hero III'''s bonus song selection showcases a variety of European bands in addition to American bands signed to independent labels. All but one of the bonus songs are purchased in the in-game store using the virtual money earned through the Career modes of the game. The exception, "Through the Fire and Flames" by DragonForce, is unlocked after the player completes the solo Career mode on any difficulty, and can be played during the credits, though is not required (but the player cannot exit during the sequence). The song cannot be failed while being played during the credits.

Year Song title Artist GenreMaster recording? 1995 "Avalancha" Héroes del Silencio Hard Rock 2006 "Can't Be Saved" Senses Fail Emo 2006 "Closer" Lacuna Coil Alternative Metal 2006 "Don't Hold Back" SleepingThe Sleeping Alternative 2007 "Down 'n Dirty" L.A. Slum Lords Punk 2005 "F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X." Fall of TroyThe Fall of Troy Post-Hardcore 2005 "Generation Rock" Revolverheld Pop Rock 2006 "Go That Far" Bret Michaels Band Hard Rock 1988 "Hier kommt Alex" Toten HosenDie Toten Hosen Punk Rock 2005 "I'm in the Band" HellacoptersHellacopters Hard Rock 2007 "Impulse" Endless SporadicAn Endless Sporadic Progressive Metal 2006 "In Love" Scouts of St. Sebastian Garage Rock 2006 "In the Belly of a Shark" Gallows Post-Hardcore 2007 "Mauvais Garçon" Naast Garage Rock 2007 "Metal Heavy Lady" Lions Hard Rock 2003 "Minus Celsius" Backyard Babies Hard Rock 2006 "My Curse" Killswitch Engage Metalcore 2007 "Nothing for Me Here" Dope Nu Metal 2006 "Prayer of the Refugee" Rise Against Melodic Hardcore 2004 "Radio Song" Superbus Pop Rock 2007 "Ruby" Kaiser Chiefs Indie Rock 1989 "She Bangs the Drums" Stone RosesThe Stone Roses Alternative 2006 "Take This Life" In Flames Melodic Death Metal 2006 "Way it Ends""The Way It Ends" Prototype Progressive Metal 2006 "Through the Fire and Flames" DragonForce Power Metal

Downloadable songs

Both the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 version of Guitar Hero III feature the ability to download additional songs from the consoles' respective online stores; all are master recordings. Most songs must be purchased in "track packs" of three and cannot be purchased individually while only some songs are available as "singles." There are several free songs available. The downloadable songs have been released on the same day on both the Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Store, with five exceptions. Besides the two console-exclusive songs, the three songs from the Companion Pack were not released for the PlayStation 3 until August 7, 2008. The two console-exclusive songs come from console-exclusive games; the "Halo Theme" is from the Halo series and is only available for the Xbox 360 version and "The End Begins" is from the God of War series and is only available for the PlayStation 3 version.