I don't know how I missed this, but there have been a slew of major announcements regarding the upcoming release of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and lemme tell ya, this shit is serious. Apparently even Lars Ulrich got the memo about GH being an incredible (and lucrative) game, because Metallica's classic "One" has been confirmed to be a part of the set-list for the fall release. ("Enter Sandman" will be appearing on Rock Band.)

I know, right???? Metallica! Doing something...cool! It's a GH-lover's wet dream, and (I think) an important movement on their part towards being a little more fan-friendly these days. Thanks for licensing your songs to a third-party, guys! Thanks. Okay, but that's not the end of it -- get a tissue handy, boys and girls, cause you're about to wet yourself -- in that good way. We've also got tracks from Heart ("Barracuda"!!!), which is not only awesome for us rock n' roll chicks, but the "Crazy on You" solo might have been the toughest in all of GH2.

Other highly-anticipated songs (many of which are master tracks this time around, not cover versions) include "Even Flow" (yes!), "Suck My Kiss" (an excellent RHCP choice), "Cult of Personality" (ummmm hello LIVING COLOUR was made for GH), and other tracks from Smashing Pumpkins, Stone Roses, Slayer, The Strokes, Black Sabbath, and GN'R. The video capture above, courtesy of ScoreHero, showcases both the gameplay and the INSANITY of attempting a DragonForce song on expert.

The new battle mode is also going to take this game into the stratosphere: you can launch attacks against your opponent that include "broken string," "amp overload," and "steal power" -- can you imagine what this is going to do to your domestic life??

Full track listing after the jump.

Still no word on what sort of bonus tracks will be included: we're hoping that the developers will continue their trend of including songs by lesser-known bands like The Slip, Freezepop, All That Remains - and who doesn't think "Jordan" is a kick-ass track? Downloadable content is definitely the wave of the future when it comes to the GH franchise, and it would be great if the developers continued to support unknown and independent artists through online song packs.

If you want to start getting your battle chops ready now, you can also check out the Sacred Fools website for announcements regarding their upcoming Guitar Hero competitions.

Track List:
"3's and 7's" – Queens of the Stone Age
"Barracuda" – Heart
"Cherub Rock" – Smashing Pumpkins
"Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll" – Blue Öyster Cult
"Cult of Personality" – Living Colour
"Even Flow" – Pearl Jam
"Go That Far" – Bret Michaels Band
"Knights of Cydonia" – Muse
"La Grange" – ZZ Top
"Lay Down" – Priestess
"The Metal" – Tenacious D
"Miss Murder" – AFI
"Mississippi Queen" – Mountain
"My Name Is Jonas" – Weezer
"The Number of the Beast" – Iron Maiden
"One" – Metallica
"Paint It, Black" – The Rolling Stones
"Paranoid" – Black Sabbath
"Raining Blood" – Slayer
"Reptilia" – The Strokes
"Rock and Roll All Nite" – Kiss
"Rock You Like a Hurricane" – Scorpions
"Sabotage" – Beastie Boys
"School's Out" – Alice Cooper
"She Bangs the Drums" – The Stone Roses
"She Builds Quick Machines" – Velvet Revolver
"Slow Ride" – Foghat
"Suck My Kiss" – Red Hot Chili Peppers
"Talk Dirty to Me" - Poison
"Through the Fire and Flames" – DragonForce
"Welcome to the Jungle" – Guns N' Roses