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Gaming has hit a bit of a slump in terms of design and innovation. Endless sequels plague the release calendar, and will kill the industry. This isn't the first time that something like this has happened, but I welcome the fallout and eventual recovery that will come.
A few months ago, Activision made the announcement that they will be bringing the Guitar Hero franchise to an end. Today, we learn that you can never take down a rock-n-roll star. Check out the post to hear when you may get another installment.
It's still hard to imagine a world without Guitar Hero. For a time it was one of the most profitable series the gaming world had ever seen. It gave a reason to have parties centered on playing a video game. Check out this article to read a fitting farewell.
Despite raking in 4.45 billion dollars last quarter, $418 million of which was pure profit, the company is planning to let nearly 500 employees go, most of them related to the music game genre. They are dissolving 7 Studios, a developer they only purchased last April.
"Nickelback represents the new face of modern rock, always pushing the envelope with their generally badass sound and gravelly vocals. They’re probably the only band around today that you’d never accuse of being unoriginal or formulaic, so their inclusion in Guitar Hero is practically destined. It’s also clear from looking at them that these dudes bag a lot of pelt."
"With more sequels to both the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchise that we can shake a rusty spoon at, its time to take a long, hard look at these games and see where they are lacking. Both franchises are prone to releasing sequels which don’t introduce enough new features in them, but Guitar Hero in particular seems to churn out new games more often than most. Music games are becoming more and more like the FIFA music game, with a new iteration having to be released every year for seemingly l..."
"Target, Toys R Us and Best Buy are all offering deals this week meant to get shoppers to make multiple purchases. Meanwhile, K-Mart is offering a hot deal on Mafia II releasing this week and a similar deal on Red Dead Redemption."
As inevitable as the sun rising tomorrow, a new Guitar Hero game has been announced. Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock will be the sixth iteration in the series, not counting band games and spin offs such as Band Hero and DJ Hero. A release date has also been placed at September 21st, and more information will presumably be released at E3.
To me, Guitar Hero is a guilty pleasure - I have five of them and I've rented/played two more. I'm not sure I'll get Warriors of Rock, but I'll keep an eye ...
"A thrifty gamer is a happy gamer so we've scoured the Sunday ads to find the best video game deals for this week from local stores for the Playstation 3, PSP, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and PC for the week of May 23, 2010."
"Red Dead Redemption wannabe owners should keep an eye out on their local Toys R Us this Tuesday as they will have a $25 Gift Card available with purchase of the game. However, the deal is time limited and you have to be a Rewards R Us member. K-Mart and Amazon also are offering Gift Cards for this game."
"Two hot racing demos are now available with today's update of the PSN Store. Split/Second for the PS3 takes you for a spin around a track that's rigged to explode to take out your competitors while ModNation Racers for the PSP is a highly customizable kart racer."
"Activision just continues finding new ways to go from the popular publisher that stayed the course and rose to number one, to being the big jerk that is too big for their own britches as my grandpa would say. Since becoming the number publisher, Activision has done everything possible to piss off gamers."
Through February 27th Best Buy and BestBuy.com is once again discounted several popular games to $39.99. With free shipping, some of the games are at the best available price since Christmas. Games eligible including Left 4 Dead 2, Dragon Age: Origins, Army of Two: 40th Day, Call of Duty 4 Game of The Year Edition and Guitar Hero 5. Also available Divinity II: Ego Draconis for $30.
"According to sources at both Activision and Neversoft, after the developer completes work on technically-unannounced-but-we-all-know-its-coming Guitar Hero 6, the publisher will hand the groundbreaking franchise over to Vicarious Visions. Vicarious Visions has some history with the Guitar Hero franchise, having worked on the Wii ports of every GH console game since Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. The studio works on the Nintendo DS Guitar Hero: On Tour series as well."
""Ever since the dawn of man people have figured out that if you make something successful, and then make some similar to that first thing that it will also make millions of dollars. This is the basic premise behind all movie and video game franchises, and it has been happening since the beginning of both forms of entertainment. Sometimes it works great (Star Wars IV-VI) and sometimes it's a complete disaster (Star Wars I-III); because of this fact we decided to go back and pick what we believ..."
"Every day for the twelve days of Christmas Electronic Theatre has been and will be bringing you the very best videogame titles of 2009 and advising you on what you should be looking out for in the January sales should you be brave enough to vender out in the cold weather. Today we look back at the slightly warmer climes of September 2009."
Black Friday is right around the corner gamers and AnalogHype has the Ultimate Gamer's Black Friday guide to help you navigate through the madness. The guide includes the stores to get consoles, games, and tips on how to survive the event with some money left in your pocket.
This week's The Bender comes full force with everybody present and surprisingly attentive to all your gaming news, insight, theory, entertainment, and anything else we can pretend to do. Check out quote for show notes. Listen live/stream through iTunes here or download the mp3 directly here
"The Guitar Hero music library continues to evolve and expand as November brings a great collection of new and classic tracks from some of rock’s best-loved artists. Fans can download tracks from artists including Lenny Kravitz and KISS and – for the first time - they can import tracks directly from Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero into their Guitar Hero music library."
Ah it's that time of year again, when you're going to be browsing websites or running to the mall for last-minute gift-giving. I mean, really, who does Christmas shopping before the week of? Pfft.
So here's part one of our annual holiday guide. In these pages you'll find hardware and video game gift ideas. Basically we look at our reviews from 2009 and gather them up if our staff liked the products. If you're wondering why we haven't included any of the major upcoming titles, keep in ...
Here is all the rumored, confirmed, and upcoming content for the Playstation Network. This week, Infernal Pool and LocoRoco: Midnight Carnival hit the PSN.
The NPD Group has released their hardware and software numbers for the month of September, representing sales for the United States for the five week period of August 30th to October 3rd.
Notables this month:
Hardware numbers:
NDS: 524.2k (104.84k per week)
PS3: 491.8k (98.36k per week)
WII: 462.8k (92.56k per week)
360: 352.6k (70.52k per week)
PSP: 190....
"With Guitar Hero 5 managing to stave-off the hefty competition, taking the top spot in the UK retail chart during it’s week of release, the team here at Electronic Theatre decided it would be appropriate to run through the highlights of that extensive tracklist. But rather than simply deliver you a complete list of every track included, or a rundown of the greatest chart successes, it was decided that with my extensive knowledge of music, and rather opinionated view, that I would deliver to y..."
The newest episode of The Bender here for you to take on your daily walk, morning drive, or even as background noise as you play your games. Intern Perry is out covering VGXPO stuff, so Mike and James fight over the good and bad of Arkham Asylum, and the new Intern Richard joins in as we hate on IGN and Activision for many reasons. We got all the other news of the week covered, so listen and enjoy. Listen live / stream through iTunes or download the mp3 directly here
All Age Gaming's Danny Yee takes a look at the latest game in the Guitar Hero series, Guitar Hero 5. With a massive track list, does Guitar Hero 5 offer anything new over the past Guitar Hero offerings? Read our full review to find out.
"Well it seems that another year has almost gone by and Activision/Neversoft have provided gamers with yet another entry in the ever-growing Guitar Hero franchise.
With the latest iteration–Guitar Hero 5–features a diverse track list of 92 songs and some new nifty features while continuing to be challenging yet accessible to the casual gamer.
Off the get go, the first thing you’ll notice is that Guitar Hero 5’s presentation is toned down and more musical in the sense that, unlike Guitar ..."
"Yes we heave and haw about another Guitar Hero being released every few months, because it’s generally the same game with a $60 sticker price for a setlist that could have just been DLC. I understand that, but with all the changes, tweaks, and upgrades Neversoft has made to the latest installment of Guitar Hero — I urge you to hear me out! Many of the finishing touches placed on the game make it a complete package worth a measly three Andrew Jacksons."
Bobby Kotick's logic has spread to Daniel Rosensweig, CEO of Guitar Hero.
20% of households with consoles own the game. And the GH CEO wants to go after the remaining 80%? Truly it doesn't mean that 80% do not quite like rhythm games or don't have the coordination/rhythm needed.
Until we see a better game (singular here, not plural; as in ONE game, just like Rock band), Guitar Hero will always be seen as saturated.
Open the pool up for others while you're at it. Rhythm Heaven over...
All Age Gaming's Phong Nguyen bring's us the 11th AAG "The Week That Was". This week he discusses the announced Xbox 360 console bundles, the possibility of adult content on the PS3, the impending Wii price cut and more!
"Activision Publishing, Inc. today announced that the latest installment of the #1 music-based videogame franchise, Guitar Hero 5 has topped the weekly sales charts in the UK. For the week ending September 12th, Guitar Hero 5 debuted in the #1 position in units across all platforms, despite being available at retail for only two days during the reporting period, according to Charttrack."
"Italy has been announced as ultimate victor of the Guitar Hero 5 ‘Jump In Jump Out’ Challenge, cementing a new world record for the largest number of participants to play in a single Guitar Hero session over a 24-hour period. 594 people turned up at the Italian event, to be part of the record-setting activity, celebrating the European release of Guitar Hero 5."
"There is a big hub bub on the net right now over the use of Kurt Cobain’s likeness as an unlockable character in Guitar Hero 5. This means Cobain can be the front man of your band while you perform the hits of Flava Flav and Bon Jovi.
While that may not initially seem like a big deal- gamers love unlockable characters- anyone familiar with Cobain’s work will get a creepy vibe upon watching this video of Cobain’s doppleganger in action."
"Five live downloadable tracks from the 1969 concert by The Rolling Stones will be digitally released for Guitar Hero 5, to coincide with ABKCO’s 40th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set release of GET YER YA-YA’S OUT. In Europe, from launch day through January 6th, 2010, Satisfaction (Live), Under My Thumb (Live) and I’m Free (Live) will be released as singles exclusively via Xbox LIVE Marketplace for Xbox 360. Two additional live tracks, Prodigal Son (Live) and You Gotta Move (Live) will also be avai..."
Recently it was announced that Kurt Cobain will in Guitar Hero 5. While many people thought this was tacky, many assumed that the developers gained the rights to do this. Well as it turned out, it seems like they didn't. Courtney Love has revealed on her twitter (the only way people get news now) that she is planning on suing over this.
"To celebrate the launch of the latest instalment of the global music gaming phenomenon, Activision is staging a European 'jump in, jump out' Guinness World Records attempt for the most players playing Guitar Hero 5 on one console in a 24-hour period. British pop sensation Pixie Lott is launching the UK heat of the competition and will be one of the first participants to take part in Britain’s endeavour to beat its European cousins in the Guinness World Records attempt."
"Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. (AMEX/TSX: MCZ), a leading worldwide third-party interactive entertainment accessory provider, today announced the shipping of the Rock Band Wireless Wooden Fender Stratocaster replica guitar for use with the Microsoft® Xbox 360 videogame console.
Compatible with Rock Band™, Rock Band™ 2, the up coming The Beatles™: Rock Band™ game, alongside other music and rhythm games, the Rock Band Wireless Wooden Fender Stratocaster guitar controller is a true 1:1 replic..."
"In another example of how Guitar Hero 5 allows gamers to rock any way they want, leading instrument, equipment and footwear brands are lending their virtual products to bring more customisation and authenticity to players’ in-game characters."
A list of the top games you should look into while making your September gaming purchases. With every system offering a solid game this month, you'll definitely be buying a couple games this month for one of your favorite systems.
Man would I be depressed if I was a fan of Guitar Hero.
Which I am. Now I'm sad that such a stupid advert, which focuses on playboy rather than the game, has surfaced on television.
Similar 'sexy' Guitar Hero commercials have featured Heidi Klum in her underwear and basketball coaches in their underwear.
Activision have announced that Grunge Rock Pioneer and Icon Kurt Cobain will make his video game debut this September in Guitar Hero 5. Some may feel that this is a bad move, but only time will tell if there is any backlash from this decision.
"Although an “early September” release date had already been suggested, Electronic Theatre can today reveal that Guitar Hero 5 will launch in the UK on September 11th, 2009, on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and PlayStation 2. The game will be available as the typical solus disc release, as well as with a Guitar Controller packed-in. The Guitar Controller included is currently suggested to be that which was previously included with Guitar Hero World Tour."
"Activision has today revealed the next real-world star set to make an appearance on the forthcoming Guitar Hero 5; the multi-talented Matt Bellamy will bring his trademark falsetto and intense guitar shredding to the virtual stage as an in-game playable rocker. In addition to his likeness, the frontman and guitarist of UK alternative band MUSE is bringing one of the band’s most popular singles, Plug in Baby, to the massive eighty-five song on-disc set list."
"The Career Mode featured in Guitar Hero 5 reflects this demographic by following in the footsteps laid by it’s predecessors while addressing many of the issues affecting the experience when incorporating additional players. Progression is more reliant on the collecting of Career Stars rather than simply completing the songs in the prescribed order, and each player involved can earn stars for their performance associated with their GamerTag. Taking home their own earnings will lead to further ..."
"Five live downloadable tracks from the 1969 concert by The Rolling Stones will be digitally released for Guitar Hero 5, to coincide with ABKCO ‘s 40th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set release of GET YER YA-YA’S OUT. In Europe, from launch day through January 6th, 2010, Satisfaction (Live), Under My Thumb (Live) and I’m Free (Live) will be released as singles exclusively via Xbox LIVE Marketplace for Xbox 360. Two additional live tracks, Prodigal Son (Live) and You Gotta Move (Live) will also be ava..."
Gamers who are still on the edge of purchasing Guitar Hero 5 now have a reason to purchase it. If you order within the month of September, gamers will be able to redeem a special code that will entitle them to Guitar Hero: Van Halen absolutely free. Best part is? You'll be getting the game BEFORE it arrives in stores. 130 songs for $59.99 (plus applicable taxes) seems very appealing, wouldn't you say?
It looks like Activision did a number on some gamers and got there panties all in a bunch. To retaliate, many gamers over the internet are considering a boycott of Activision products. Some have started an online petition while others plan on pirating MW2. But as we all know, an online petition wont do much, there only hope is a successful boycott.
In an interview with IGN, the CEO of Vicarious Visions, Karthik Bala, spoke up about the Wii version of Guitar Hero 5. He discussed some of the exclusive features that you can find only on the Wii version of the game, including the focus on party-based gameplay. However, what might interest Wii owners the most might be the fact that they've done away with the need for Friend Codes.
"2nd August 2009 - Welcome readers to this week’s All Age Gaming "The Week That Was".This week we talk more about Games on Demand, slim PS3 rumours and the Wii’s software domination. There weren’t any new game releases for the three major consoles this week, so let’s move straight into the news."
"When Xbox 360 fans take home Guitar Hero 5 on September 1st, 2009, they’ll be able to import their Avatars, choose their instrument and play along with their personalized characters rocking out to any track on the epic eighty five song setlist. Taking full advantage of the latest technology available from Xbox LIVE, gamers can choose their band mates and mix and match their Xbox Avatars with Guitar Hero favourites like Judy Nails, Axel Steel and Lars Ümlaüt, or even rip it up alongside in-gam..."
At last, we finally get to know all of the songs we get to play on Guitar Hero 5. Personal favourites of mine would be Kryptonite, Plug In Baby, Feel Good Inc, Smells Like Teen Spirit and Bullet With Butterfly Wings.
Agree with what songs went in? Have your say now!
The setlist and musical star's just seems to be getting better and better for the Guitar Hero Series. Just in from Activision is this press release show casing yet another rock star set to join the Guitar Hero family.
"Here's the new 24:
• AFI - "Medicate"
• A Perfect Circle - "Judith"
• Billy Idol - "Dancing With Myself"
• Brand New - "Sowing Season (Yeah)"
• Bush - "Comedown"
• The Derek Trucks Band - "Younk Funk"
• Duran Duran - "Hungry Like The Wolf"
• Eagles Of Death Metal - "Wannabe In L.A."
• Gorillaz - "Feel Good Inc."
• Gov't Mule - "Streamline Woman"
• Grand Funk Railroad - "We're An American Band"
• Iron Maiden - "2 Minutes To Midnight"
• King Crimson - "21st Century Schizoid Man"
•..."
"Looking at music games as part of our NPD analysis, Gamasutra has discovered that U.S. Guitar Hero/Rock Band revenues are down 49% year on year, as discounted hardware and over 20 SKUs flood the market.
June 2009 was the second consecutive month without a Rock Band or Guitar Hero title in the top 20 software titles. The last time the software charts went two months without one of these franchises was in September and October 2007, right before the launch of Guitar Hero II on the PlayStatio..."
"The drums themselves look a lot like the old drums except for one key feature: the cymbals, which now look normal, as opposed to something you'd find on an electronic kit from 1986. Course, other people will say they look less like normal drums and more like Rock Band drums, but hey, to each their own.
As far as the 22 new tracks go, it's an eclectic mix, elevated in this writer's humble opinion solely by the inclusion of "Maiden, Mother & Crone".
Attack! Attack! UK - "You And Me"
Bon ..."
Certainly not one of those things that will make or break a game, but definitely a feature that should just be included in most games, Guitar Hero 5 will have avatar support in game. This is quite a bonus as the look of the characters in every previous Guitar Hero game has been pretty terrible.
With Guitar Hero 5 comes a new guitar peripheral. Red Octane and Activision have made some aesthetic changes while reworking the functionality. In the visual section, they've given the guitar a mahogany color for the body along with a white pick guard. They've added some more details by giving the tuning pegs a faux chrome finish.
However, the major change includes a more accurate and responsive touch pad for the guitar. The strum bar has been made more durable and responsive. They've also...
A great episode of The Bender awaits you. James will be buying a new system soon (he has had both a PS3 and Xbox 360, both have broke on him in the past). I ended up trying to show James the benefits of the Xbox 360, while Perry attempts to do the same for the PS3, and Allison swoops into talk about the Wii, but ends up saying pros/cons of the 360 and PS3. Plus we cover game news and the such. Enjoy!
Listen live/stream through iTunes or download the mp3 here.
"Neversoft have released a partial tracklist for the upcoming Guitar Hero 5.
The revealed tracks are:
Band Of Horses - "Cigarettes, Wedding Bands" ?
Beastie Boys - "Gratitude"
Beck - "Gamma Ray"
Billy Squier - "Lonely Is The Night"
Blur - "Song 2"
Bob Dylan - "All Along The Watchtower"
Children Of Bodom - "Done With Everything, Die For Nothing"
Coldplay - "In My Place"
Darkest Hour - "Demon(s)"
David Bowie - "Fame"
Deep Purple - "Woman From Tokyo ('99 Remix)"
Elliott Smith - "L..."
James Walker has had it. This goes past Bobby Kotick's recent dropping Sony support threats. This has been a long time coming. Someone needs to call Bobby out on the things he is doing with what was a company we all could at the very least say used to be "better than EA"
Though it has been known for quite some time now that Led Zeppelin is not going to be putting their songs in a rhythm game anytime soon (yet Puff Daddy is okay to lend the music to), Jimmy Page and Jack White are both letting their views known about these type of games.
Note: Jack White has been featured in a music game before. I'm not referring to the upcoming Guitar Hero 5, but in fact that Disney game "Ultimate Band"
"Don’t act surprised - we all knew Guitar Hero 5 was coming, and most likely we’ll see a tenth installment sometime during all of our respective mid-life crises. Activision revealed the official box art for the fifth installment today, and it’s looking a bit, well, lackluster."
While it's been said that DJ Hero will allow players to use guitar hero guitars, Activision stated that they might allow reverse compatibility. That is, allowing the turntable peripheral from DJ Hero to be used in Guitar Hero. While it may be too late to implement this feature in Guitar Hero 5, Activision are looking into this for future versions.
"Activision have released 5 new screenshots for your viewing pleasure for the latest game that will be released in the Guitar Hero franchise, Guitar Hero 5. With the Guitar Hero series popularity at an all-time high, fans of the series will be eager to get their hands on this when it releases."
"June 2009:
* Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again (DSi) - 6/8/09 ♦
* PROTOTYPE - 6/9/09 ♦ ♦ ♦
* EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis - 6/10/09 ♦ ♦ ♦
* Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 - 6/10/09 ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
* The Conduit - 6/23/09 ♦
* Fight Night Round 4 - 6/25/09 ♦ ♦
* Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood - 6/30/09 ♦ ♦ ♦
* Mushroom Wars - 6/30/09 ♦
July 2009:
* Hannah Montana PSP bundle ♦
* NCAA Football 10 - 7/14/09 ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
* Unbound Saga - 7/16/09 ♦
..."
"This Spring, living room legends will rock any way they want in Guitar Hero® 5. Elevating the Guitar Hero® series to new heights with unmatched social gameplay, an enhanced style, new in-game artists and more rock legends, Guitar Hero 5 features new surprises and challenges that will fire-up long-time fret board fanatics and create a new generation of addicts."
NME has revealed the bands that will be in Guitar Hero 5, including Kiss and Blink-182. There's a little bit of everything in this game, ranging from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers all the way to Gorillaz.
Hit the source for the full list.
"The biggest rumour to hit this week that has some substance behind it is the PS3 Slim; Images surfaced this week of the supposed system on a Chinese manufacturing line, I do have to say that the system looks like a cheap Chinese knock-off that might not totally be up to scratch yet, however the box does look very convincing, too good for a Photoshop job. The new PS3 logo threw me off however, but as it was shown at the end of a trailer the other day it may be true. From the looks of this pict..."
"The other big reveal is that all Guitar Hero: World Tour downloadable tracks will be forward-compatible with Guitar Hero 5. They will also be updated to "include all of the upgrades and enhancements of Guitar Hero 5." However, a "limited number of songs" will not be upgradeable, likely due to rights issues with Rock Band."
"Guitar Hero 5 is the latest installment of the world’s most popular Rhythm-Action videogame. For the first time ever, players can customize the make-up of their band by rocking with any combination of instruments in-game: whether it be two guitars and two drums, or three guitars and a microphone, any combination is possible, allowing players to experience music their own way."
![Box shot of Guitar Hero 5 [North America]](http://i.neoseeker.com/boxshots/R2FtZXMvWGJveF8zNjAvUmh5dGhtXyZfTXVzaWM=/guitar_hero_5_frontcover_small_na0NoX7vFTR09lv.jpg)