We've all heard it: "All that time you've wasted playing fake guitar could have been spent learning how to make real music!" Surprise: fake guitars and real music are no longer mutually exclusive: Guitar Hero World Tour not only plans to deliver rock, but it expects you to create your own and send it back, too.

Guitar Hero III proved that Neversoft could maintain the franchise; now, it's time to innovate. In our first look at what used to be called Guitar Hero 4, the words "Rock Band" were never uttered, but its presence was clearly felt, as Guitar Hero World Tour is, for all intents and purposes, Rock Band 2.It expands to include vocalists and drummers in a similar multiplayer co-op mode, while adding features Rock Band left out. Yes, you can play band career mode online with your friends. Yes, your four-person band can battle another four-person band over Xbox-Live — whether all the members of those bands are in the same room or scattered online. Yes, you can create one character and use them to play any instrument. Player creation is more in depth is more in-depth here, giving you Tony Hawk-style control over your avatar's age, facial features, and stage presence. In career mode, you no longer have to play the songlist in order; you’ll have some non-linear freedom to pick and choose gigs by answering “player wanted” ads at the music store. And if you find yourself overwhelmed (or bored) on your current skill level, there’s no need to start over — just adjust your difficulty before the next song.

Nobody needs to reinvent the microphone, but Neversoft and RedOctane have come up with their own take on drums: a sixpiece kit composed of a snare, a hi-hat cymbal, a crash/ride cymbal, two toms, and a kick drum. Influenced by (and prototyped on) a high-end Roland electronic drum kit, the drums feature soft silicone pads, so they’re not only essentially noiseless, but more receptive to subtle movements as well. The drums are MIDIbased, and thus can track velocity — the game detects when you’re playing hard or soft, and the drum sounds that play back match your intensity. And oh, by the way — the drums are wireless.

But that’s just countering the competition. Outside of tweaking its own shortcomings (the controversial Battle Mode returns for online play, where it was a big hit, but it won’t clutter career mode), GHWT’s biggest bombshell is a stunningly deep music-creation mode. Sneak into the Music Studio to easily activate a four-track recorder that records your own original compositions on guitar, bass, and drums (you can record a MIDI melody track, but voice recordings are too big). Choose your predefined musical scale and mash away at those buttons — even use the guitar controller as a drum machine if you like. Advanced modes like GHMix let you automatically fix your mistakes, snap everything to the same beat, create custom loops, and then cut, paste, and arrange original songs, which can be as long as five minutes. When you’re done, play your masterpiece in GHTunes — the game automatically generates note charts for all four difficulties — and then upload your work to watch the Xbox Live community rock out to and rate your efforts. No more whining: if you want a specific song in Guitar Hero World Tour, get off your ass and make it. All it takes is talent and time.

With such deep interactivity, GHWT may look imposing for anyone who just wants to take their air-guitar fantasies to the next level. But remember that all the creation stuff is optional — and even if a small section of the 360 audience dedicates its free time to creating original songs (or re-creating unlicensed tracks — hellooo, AC/DC!), those wannabe producers will keep wannabe rockers swimming in content for months and years to come.