With distractions from Facebook and Shoutouts, do University of Wisconsin students really need another excuse to procrastinate from studying for midterms?

Unfortunately — or perhaps quite fortunately — one has arrived, and it comes in the form of some serious shredding. “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock” hit stores for all the major consoles this past Sunday, and it’s incredibly hard to put down.

“Legends of Rock” sports some notable improvements from the previous two installments (“Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s” had a terrible track list and has been conveniently forgotten), but the most important is the soundtrack, which includes more original recordings than before. “Pride and Joy” by Stevie Ray Vaughn, “Evenflow” by Pearl Jam, “The Metal” by Tenacious D and “The Seeker” by The Who are only a few of 70-plus tracks available for players to rock along with. As players attempt to climb to rock legend status from their first gig at a backyard party, they play 42 different songs, earning money to buy additional guitars, bonus tracks (including what will no doubt be known as the hardest song on any of the “Guitar Hero” games) and rock star avatars.

The brand new guitar controller is also improved from the previous games, making the game more fun all around. Resembling a Gibson Les Paul Custom (for the Xbox 360, the console used for this review), the controller is a bit smaller and more comfortable than the guitar for “Guitar Hero II” and the buttons are closer together and more responsive. There are also no wires this time, which allows players to power slide across their living room floors as they please, and the neck of the guitar is detachable, making storage easy. Not to mention it just looks cool.

The guitar isn’t the only part of the game that received an image overhaul. The notes themselves have a new improved look to them as they fly at you on-screen. New animations for the star power meter, rock meter and notifications of correct note streaks make the game all the more exciting. A mockery in the previous games, the animated singer lip-syncs along with the lyrics, and the musicians actually look like they are playing the music.

Also, “Legends of Rock” offers players some new game play options. The single player career features guitar duels with three bosses (two of whom are real-life guitar gods) in a battle mode. A cooperative campaign also allows two players to enjoy the ride to rock stardom, one as the bass player and one as the guitarist.

The cooperative mode also features certain songs not available for play in single player. A new multiplayer battle mode, which allows players to earn power-ups like broken guitar strings or a broken whammy bars to send to their opponents to try and screw them up, is an unfortunate, misguided attempt at trying to make the game more interactive in multiplayer modes. It only accomplishes in diminishing the value of the song that is trying to be played and doesn’t necessarily result in the best player winning the battle.

It is hard to find too much wrong with “Guitar Hero III.” New game developer, Activision, who acquired the license for the series, decided to attach a few new flashy items and a great soundtrack to a proven formula and, in doing so, guaranteed success. Harmonix, the original developer, is hoping to push the envelope with the upcoming “Rock Band,” in which a vocalist, drummer and lead and bass guitar players can all jam together.

But that shouldn’t stop you from running out and grabbing “Guitar Hero III” now. Just be prepared for the drop in your grades and wallet (and some carpal tunnel) that are bound to follow your purchase of this $100 guitar and game bundle.

4 stars out of 5