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Sublime joins Guitar Hero: World Tour, Activision confirms previous acts, details
Activision made Guitar Hero: Rock Band Edition World Tour official today, confirming the details leaked from the current issue of Game Informer. World Tour will feature an all-master track cast, filled with previously named acts like Van Halen, Linkin Park, and The Eagles, plus today's confirmation of Sublime and "many more." The announcement also highlights the "Music Studio" mode (create-a-song), which allows players to "compose, record, edit and share music," and the 8-player "Battle of the Bands" mode.World Tour will also feature so-called "new state of the art wireless instruments" (as sorta seen yesterday), meaning mom won't trip over the coil of wires when she walks in front of the TV and totally destroys the rock mojo; and the still curious, but ambitious sounding promise to add "significantly more localized downloadable music than ever before on all of the next-generation consoles." Yep, that includes the Wii version (developed by Vicarious Visions). Activision confirms that World Tour will be the "first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii" -- just make sure your SD card is inserted. %Gallery-23477%
See first screens from Guitar Hero: World Tour
We don't have a lot to go on at the moment, but from what we can tell, these new screens from Guitar Hero: World Tour represent a slightly more grown-up look for the series, straying from the silly rock clichés of Guitar Hero III. It's still not quite at a Rock Band level of realism, but we imagine fans of the series probably aren't ready for that.In fact, though we've wished Guitar Hero's look would grow up for a while now, the stylized characters and settings are one of the main things that are setting it apart from its competition, a distinction that, with the addition of drums and vocals to World Tour, is becoming increasingly difficult to make. %Gallery-23477%
Guitar Hero: World Tour trailer touts impressive features which are probably not in the Wii version
Look, we'll give credit where it's due, and Activision definitely deserves a "wuddup" for including Wi-Fi-compatibility in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. But, with all of the things Rock Band is leaving out of the Wii version, we're fearing a rather bad precedent will be set and a lot of the new features presented in this teaser trailer will be absent from the Wii port of the game. Until then, we'll just have to wait and see, we suppose.
Guitar Hero IV's new axe spotted: Activision goes indie
Now that we know what Guitar Hero IV's drums will look like, it seems Activision is saying "We don't need no stinkin' replicas!" for the game's guitar controller design. Spotted in Guitar Hero: World Tour's debut trailer, the new axe appears to be a black or cherry non-Gibson, non-Fender, non-anything instrument of random design. We're not surprised, as Activision is surely gun-shy after all those lawsuits and what-not.
Guitar Hero World Tour officially unveiled
Guitar Hero World Tour was just officially unveiled with this new promotional video. It looks like the guys at RedOctane are really going to war with Rock Band reinventing the series by adding in"the most realistic drums" and microphone support. The drum set for Guitar Hero (does something sound funny with this sentence?) will include two extra cymbals on top of the regular drum pads and bass pedal found in the Rock Band one.World Tour also has apparently taken hold of the idea to "record and release your own single" and will integrate user-created content into the game. At least this is one innovation to be found in World Tour that Rock Band hasn't already covered. Forgive us if we're being cynical, but the idea that Guitar Hero wants to further divide the market along with Konami makes us wonder if any of these new titles will be successful. World Tour and Konami's band game will both hit retailers sometime in Fall 2008. It'll be most fun to watch these two clones cannibalize each other.
Guitar Hero World Tour is officially official
Finally, after what seems like months of magazine scans confirming its existence, Activision just officially announced the next true installment in the Guitar Hero franchise (you don't count Aerosmith), originally dubbed Guitar Hero IV, will now officially be known as Guitar Hero World Tour.As expected, World Tour will add singing and drum playing to the mix, featuring what they call the best drum set peripheral EVAR, a reworked guitar peripheral and Acti promising that all peripherals will be wireless as well. With features like a Band Career Mode, online integration and the ability to record and share music, Activision is also touting World Tour's track list which they admit will be the largest list of any GH game featuring bands like Van Halen, Linkin Park, The Eagles and Sublime.So, now that it's official and we have some concrete deets, do you think World Tour will give Rock Band some competition and will you be checking out World Tour later this year?
Guitar Hero: World Tour trailer promises 'most realistic drums,' other stuff
Well, not as realistic as, you know, actual drums, but apparently the next Guitar Hero will be setting some sort of benchmark in the battle of the fake bands. Judging by the above debut trailer for "Guitar Hero World Tour," the new peripherals are convincing enough to lure hundreds of people into a poorly lit grotto and subject them to a cacophony of plastic instrument flailing. It's out this Fall.
Ted Nugent has a role in Guitar Hero IV
Ted Nugent had something of interest to say regarding fans of the Guitar Hero franchise. During a recent radio interview, The Nuge dropped the bomb that he has been working with the folks behind Guitar Hero IV (he doesn't exactly say it's the fourth installment, but we're pretty sure he isn't talking about Guitar Hero Aerosmith) and will be featured in the game. You can hear it all right here (around 12:30 is when he starts talking about it).He had a lot of things to say about the whole mo-cap process, as well as his inability to actually play the game, despite his ability to set real frets on fire. Our favorite part of the interview? He said he had to do "a variation of Stranglehold." Man, we love that song.In fact, let's go ahead and embed it past the post break. Rock out with us, won't you?
Ted Nugent confirms his appearance in Guitar Hero IV on talk radio show
For a game subtitled "Legends of Rock", Guitar Hero III didn't feature that many real-life six-string virtuosos. Sure, you had Rage's Tom Morello, GnR's Slash and a brief cameo by VH1's latest lothario, Poison frontman Bret Michaels -- but many classic rock aficionados who tried their hand at Activision's shredding simulator were left unsatisfied in terms of quantity (and in the minds of those belonging to the churches of Hendrix and Clapton, quality).Until now, we've yet to hear anything about the roster for the next legit entry in Activision's golden goose franchise (no, we're not nor will we ever count Guitar Hero: Aerosmith), however, that silence was recently broken by the whistle of a flaming arrow through the night air, fired from the heavenly compound bow of the Motor City Madman himself, Ted Nugent. Listen to his radio interview on Detroit's WRIF (about 12:30 in), where he uses all manner of colorful language to describe the mocap process. Now, if they could only get the rest of the Damn Yankees involved, it would definitely ensure a purchase on our end. How 'bout it, Blades?[Thanks, Tyler.]
Konami's Rock Revolution drums revealed
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Harmonix must be beside itself with this last week finding not one but two companies hopping on the developer's coat tails and revealing a pair of drum kits that bear more than a passing resemblance to those used in Rock Band. However, while Guitar Hero IV's kit still carries some basis in reality, the kit revealed by Konami for the company's newly announced Rock Revolution looks to be designed for players with extra appendages or other rhythm enthusiasts who are not quite human.With six face pads of three different sizes, as well as a kick pedal, Konami's kit is certainly the most complex of the three. However, according to MTV Multiplayer blogger Patrick Klepek, the drums carry what sounds like a much more forgiving difficulty curve than those in Rock Band, which while great are almost unapproachable by rhythm game newcomers even on the easiest setting. By contrast, and according to his admittedly brief time with Konami's offering, the game doesn't penalize players for improvising during a song, and also features five difficulty settings with the lower two removing the foot pedal entirely. Still, the question remains as to if there is room enough for another peripheral-heavy rhythm game, not so much in the genre but in our own living rooms.
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith achievement preview
Last night, our homies over at 360sync exclusively posted a preview of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith's achievement in all their achievement glory sans any achievement artwork though ... bummer. So far, they posted 42 of the 49 game achievements with the majority of them being pretty plain Jane, though a whopping 16 of them are secret, so there may be some originality with those. The other seven "mystery" achievements are a mystery for good reason, because they're part of 360sync's giveaway shenanigans. You see, 360sync is giving away a GH:Aero bundle and if you can guess one of the 7 mystery achievements, you'll get an extra entry into their random drawing giveaway. So, make the jump, look over the achievements, make a guess and win us yourself some Aero!
First look at Guitar Hero IV drum set
Thanks to the Game Informer article that broke all the Guitar Hero IV news recently, comes the first photograph of the game's drum set. And after a quick look over, the biggest difference between it and the Rock Band drum set is the addition of the yellow and orange pie wedged "symbols" and use of three other drum pads. Interesting, different and ... well, interesting. We're also informed that the set's durability is top notch as they point out that "this thing is not going to crack". We'll see how durable their drum creation really is after it feels the abusive drumming madness that SuperDunners brings everytime he takes stage. As plastic peripherals shake in fear, we warn you GHIV drums ... be afraid.
Guitar Hero IV drum kit gets pictured, "cymbals" and all
Game Informer is at it once more: after securing the first snapshots of Rock Band's prototype drum set and microphone last summer, the gaming mag has now produced the first image of Guitar Hero IV's kit. Apparently designers wanted this one to resemble an actual electric kit a bit more than the one bundled with RB, most evidenced by the pair of "cymbals" perched atop the trio of circular pads. Upon banging on a "first-run prototype" in the Neversoft offices, Game Informer was fairly impressed with the layout, but we're still left to wonder if these will be compatible with Rock Band (or vice-versa). Another faux drum kit in the den and we'll be struggling to maintain sanity (and a functional relationship).[Via Joystiq]
Game Informer reveals Guitar Hero IV drum kit [update]
Well now, it looks like the June 2008 issue of Game Informer has a little surprise up its sleeve. You got it, this is none other than the drum kit that will be utilized in Guitar Hero IV. Looks kind of weird, if you ask us. But, hey, maybe the thing looks goofy, yet has a great feel to it? We'll have to wait and see.As you can tell, it's different from the Rock Band drum kit in several ways. For one, it would appear the kit only has 3 face drums, with two weird high hat-looking things above the main drums, along with the requisite bass pedal. Will this be an easier drum kit to manage than the one bundled with Rock Band? Update: Whoops, fixed some oversight on our part. Sorry for the mistake.[Via Joystiq]
Game Informer snags first pic of Guitar Hero IV drums
Some of you may have already received the June 2008 issue of Game Informer in the mail, but, for those who haven't, we thought you might enjoy seeing the first image of the new Guitar Hero IV drum kit one subscriber scanned. As you can see, the main difference from the Rock Band kit is that the yellow and orange drums have been turned into two wedge-shaped pieces elevated above the others.Cool as it looks, we still don't have the most important piece of information about the kit: If it will be compatible with Rock Band, or if RB's kit will work with Guitar Hero IV. We like fake instruments as much as the next nerd, but two fake drum kits may just be more than our dens, living rooms and dignity can withstand.[Update: Just so there's no question, you have to click the picture to see the full image. There is totally a foot pedal. Update 7/2/08: Gamestop, owner of Game Informer, has demanded that we remove the small thumbnail showing a piece of the drumkit. Considering the official press shot came out over a month ago (seen above) we've gone ahead and removed the thumbnail. Of course, if you still wanted to read the whole magazine, it's still out there.]
Guitar Hero 4 adds new instruments, turns features up to eleven
The June edition of Game Informer features a lengthy preview of Guitar Hero 4, and one thing is immediately clear: Activision is desperate to out-Rock Band Rock Band. This is most obvious in Guitar Hero 4's adoption of other instruments; as recent rumors suggested, the next installment of Activision's faux-guitar extravaganza will include drums, bass, and vocals.As well as this expanded line-up, you'll be able to create your own tracks (though this doesn't extend to vocals, reportedly due to storage and copyright issues) and design album art. The game will let you upload five of your tracks to 'GH Tunes' (and ten when you achieve certain grades), and it will be possible to share songs in the Wii version. If you're horribly uncreative like us, you'll be able to strum your axe to one of the game's licensed songs, all of which are master tracks, and include the likes of Van Halen, The Eagles, Sublime and angst-mongers Linkin Park.Some big changes, then, but there is a hint dropped by Game Informer that sharing songs in the Wii version of Guitar Hero 4 is "unlikely to be as robust as the PS3 and 360 versions." The magazine doesn't expand on this comment, but it's enough to set alarm bells off in our heads, especially after the gimped Rock Band fiasco.
Guitar Hero 4 will allow for track creation & more
According to the latest issue of Game Informer, the supposed innovation of Guitar Hero 4 is going to be the creation of custom tracks, among many other things. Coming to us courtesy NeoGAF is the news that the game will include three instruments (but no lyrics), drums, bass, and vocals guitar. Not only that, but GH4 is also going to include a form of file sharing allowing you to share up to 5 different songs (more if you're rated higher) to "GH Tunes" for anyone to download. Included in the download would also be the custom title, creator name, and custom album art. And allowing for even more personalization, the game will also have customizable rockers and instruments. And that's not all either, Neversoft has also confirmed that Van Halen, The Eagles, Linkin Park and Sublime will be making appearances, and that the GH4 controller sports some sort of new input device. With so much change coming to the franchise, and so much emphasis on custom content, is it possible that Guitar Hero can survive in the world of Rock Band?
Rumor: Game Informer talks Guitar Hero IV's drums, create-a-track mode
Here we go again. Every month, someone gets an early copy of a gaming magazine, posts the highlights in a forum post, and we run it as a rumor until we can confirm its veracity. And again, we can't confirm this information, but a Neo GAF poster has claimed to already receive a copy of the latest Game Informer, the cover story being Guitar Hero IV. Here's the alleged information. Guitar Hero IV features the requisite Rock Band features: drums, vocals, bass, guitar and create-a-rocker. Additionally (and most interestingly), there will be the option to create your own song tracks. Although vocals are excluded, all other tracks can be made and uploaded to GH Tunes for sharing and rating. We're not sure how this will apply to songs not in the game, given copyright concerns, but color us intrigued.All songs will reportedly be master tracks, and four bands have been confirmed: Van Halen, Eagles, Linking Park and Van Halen. Is this the "significant leap" mentioned by Activision last week? Until we can obtain a copy to verify, consider this a rumor.
A 'significant leap' for Guitar Hero due this holiday for consoles and DS
Activision is planning to innovate the Guitar Hero franchise. In a conference call yesterday, Publishing CEO Mike Griffith said, "For the holiday, we will provide a significant leap forward in innovation for Guitar Hero worldwide, on all platforms." That includes PlayStation 3, PS2, Xbox 360, Wii and DS. Griffith also said that more information will be provided "in the coming weeks."We wonder if this has anything to do with those recent rumors about Guitar Hero IV going multi-instrumental. Guess we'll find out soon.
Guitar Hero rumored to add peripherals
There are rumors abound that Activision will be adding new instrument peripherals and a microphone to Guitar Hero IV, because of statements made by Activision's CEO Bobby Kotick in a recent interview with Conde Nast Portfolio. Should these bode true, though, we think this is a questionable move by the company. Although Rock Band is widely hailed as the better game, it seems lazy for Activision to turn its franchise into exactly (or at least, almost exactly) the same thing.Let's think of the other negatives. Since Guitar Hero and Rock Band guitars are incompatible with the competing game (thanks to Activision), we can assume that if drums become a part of the GHIV experience, they will be, too. This means that people who want to own both will not only have to deal with a mountain of guitars (supposing they enjoy a good bout of local multiplayer), but also two drum sets cluttering up their homes. Moreover, this blogger has come to think of Guitar Hero as "the poor man's Rock Band," meaning that you don't have to pay an arm and a leg (just an arm) to get it. It's not cheap, but it's cheaper. Should the series turn into Rock Band, however, that will take away its economic edge.Now, there could be good things about this rumored change. If Activision added some unique instruments (maybe a keyboard?), the game could offer something that Rock Band can't. Should it turn into nothing but a clone, though, we can't say we support that.Kotick also mentioned that the game will include a feature that utilizes local bands, but what the CEO meant by this has yet to be clarified.[Via Joystiq]
