Kotaku: Guitar Hero

While My Guitar Controller Gently Weeps

Matt Gilgenbach — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST

As both a game developer and a gamer, I am sad to see the guitar controller fading into obscurity. More »

The Greatest Music Game Never Made?

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 07:00:00 EST

The music game boom is done and dusted (r.i.p.), but don't tell Grant Woolard. In his head bangin' head, it still lives on. And it's totally awesome. More »

Welcome Back to Earth, Mars500; Guitar Hero Died While You Were (Not) Gone

Owen Good — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:00:00 EDT

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The six brave non-adventurers of the Mars500 project yesterday emerged from their capsule for the first time in 18 months, finding they had returned to a dystopic Earth where their Guitar Hero skills were utterly useless. More »

Should You Buy Rocksmith? No.

Kirk Hamilton — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EDT

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Today marks the release of Ubisoft's Rocksmith, a music game that may seem a bit on the late end of the Great Music Game Craze of 2009. All the same, it comes with a tantalizing promise: it allows players to plug a real guitar into their game console via a 1/4 inch-to-USB cable and play real notes along with the game. More »

The Worst Music Video Games Ever

Scott Steinberg — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:00:00 EDT

Music games aren't what they used to be, and in some cases, the world is safer for that. Video game expert Scott Steinberg and author of the new digital book "Music Games Rock", tells us what the seven worst music video games of all time are. More »

One of England's Biggest Rock Stars Blames Games for Riots

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 03:00:00 EDT

The reason for a city's youth rioting for days are no doubt complex and many. But, hey, let's blame video games, because that's exactly what rocker Noel Gallagher is doing. More »

Activision Is Getting Sued over a Music Game. Again.

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 01:00:00 EDT

A few years back, it was all the rage for musicians to sue Activision over appearances in Guitar Hero. Courtney Love was doing it, The Romantics were doing it, No Doubt was doing it, even Axl Rose was in on the action. More »

Activision Boss Says DJ Hero Helped Kill Guitar Hero

Luke Plunkett — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 01:30:00 EDT

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I like video games. I like turntables. I like DJ Shadow, I like the Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, the Scratch Perverts. Yet I've thought DJ Hero was a stupid idea from the moment the series was first announced. More »

Ubisoft Reveals a Slew of New Tracks for Rocksmith

Drew Cohen — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:40:00 EDT

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We've already told you about Rocksmith, Ubisoft's foray into the rhythm-and-music game genre. The title brings something new to the table. Unlike Rock Band or Guitar Hero, players of Rocksmith will be challenged to use a real guitar. No, seriously. The French developer promises that the title will come packaged with "a unique quarter-inch USB cable that is the first of its kind, allowing users to plug any real guitar with a quarter-inch jack directly into their favorite console." More »

The Fretlight Guitar Sets a Shining Example for Hopeful Guitar Heroes

Mike Fahey — Mon, 30 May 2011 14:00:00 EDT

With Guitar Hero on extended leave and no new Rock Band title coming out this year, now is the perfect time to trade in our toy guitars for something a bit more substantial. Going from five colorful plastic buttons for six strings with 22 frets each is a daunting task however, especially when music games have trained you to respond to visual cues to guide your playing; you see a green circle, you hold down the corresponding button and strum. A regular guitar won't flash little circles in front your eyes to help you hit the right notes. More »

Cops Catch Killer Using Bugged Xbox Game

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 06 May 2011 01:30:00 EDT

A teenager has been arrested in Saskatoon, Canada, after he was caught giving a murder confession. How was he caught? The cops bugged an Xbox 360 game. More »

Leaked Activision Memo: There's Just No 'Appetite' For Guitar Hero Now, But It May Rise From Its Grave

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:40:00 EDT

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Publisher Activision put its Guitar Hero business on ice earlier this year, signaling the end of a genre that was once white hot, but quickly flamed out. Why did Activision just bail on this formerly billion dollar business instead of taking it in a radical new direction? More »

Activision Explains How Call Of Duty Will Escape Guitar Hero's Fate

Mike Fahey — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:40:00 EDT

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Guitar Hero was once a shining star of a video game franchise, with each yearly installment generating more excitement than the last. Now the series is on indefinite hold. An internal Activision memo obtained by Giant Bomb poses a compelling question. "Isn't Call of Duty today just like Guitar Hero was a few years back?" More »

Guitar Hero Isn't Dead, It's Just Resting

Mike Fahey — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:20:00 EDT

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You can't keep a good franchise down, and you can't keep Guitar Hero down either. Activision may have killed off this year's Guitar Hero game, but as Activision's Dan Winters explains to GameIndustry.biz, there's always next year. More »

Ubisoft Did Not Get The Memo That Guitar Hero Was Dead

Luke Plunkett — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 03:30:00 EDT

Rock Band is between publishers. Guitar Hero is taking a long sleep. In short, the "expensive plastic instrument" music game bubble has finally burst. Which isn't stopping Ubisoft from releasing one! More »

Billion-Dollar Expectations Caused Activision to 'Abuse' Guitar Hero, Says Ex-Publisher

Owen Good — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 13:00:00 EST

The ex-CEO of Guitar Hero's original publisher, RedOctane, has weighed in on Activision's decision to close down the franchise, completing the cycle of reaction. Kelly Sumner says the publisher "abused" the franchise and had unrealistic expectations for it. More »

The Day Guitar Hero Died

Owen Good — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 20:30:00 EST

I'll never forget where I was when I heard that a plane had crashed in an Iowa cornfield, with Izzy Sparks, Johnny Napalm, and Lars Ümlaüt aboard. More »

DJ Hero, Guitar Hero Downloads Dry Up

Michael McWhertor — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 19:30:00 EST

Publisher Activision is getting out of the Hero business. That means no new DJ Hero and Guitar Hero games (at least for 2011), but it also means no new downloadable songs for the games it has already released. More »

The Creators Of Guitar Hero 'Sad To Hear' Of Its Demise

Michael McWhertor — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 17:40:00 EST

Even though their biggest competitor in the rhythm video game genre is now essentially dead, the people who started the Guitar Hero franchise say they were saddened to hear that Activision had put the seminal music game to sleep. More »

Rest In Peace, Guitar Hero

Luke Plunkett — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST

Today, publisher Activision put the Guitar Hero franchise on hold. Maybe forever. For a series that once threatened to become the biggest thing video games had ever seen, it was quite an inglorious end. More »

Activision Just Killed Guitar Hero And True Crime

Michael McWhertor — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 15:40:00 EST

Publisher Activision has just added a few more games and maybe one more development studio to its kill count. A now partially confirmed report says that the mega-publisher has axed the Guitar Hero franchise, killed its True Crime reboot and fired much of Freestyle Games. More »

This Is The Future Of Guitar Hero

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 08:00:00 EST

The current "plastic instruments" phase of the music game scene seems to have run its course. Next up must surely be the genre's logical conclusion: Air Guitar Hero. More »

Axl Rose Sues Guitar Hero Maker For Putting Slash In Its Game

Michael McWhertor — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 19:30:00 EST

Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has finally gotten around to being pissed off about 2007's Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. He's suing publisher Activision for $20 million for including ex-GNR guitarist Slash in the game. More »

The Music Game Is Dead (Long Live The Music Game?)

Luke Plunkett — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 00:00:00 EST

There once was a time when music games were the biggest - and in some cases best - thing to happen to the video game industry. Oh, how those times have changed. More »

MTV Owners Plan to Ditch Rock Band Creators

Brian Crecente — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 09:28:09 EST

Viacom today said they plan to sell the company behind Rock Band, Kinect's Dance Central and the original Guitar Hero. More »

What Good Can Come Of The Meeting of Metallica & Call of Duty: Black Ops?

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 18:00:52 EDT

About a million dollars worth, actually. Activision and Metallica are teaming for a good cause and a selfish one, with the band headlining the publisher's Call of Duty: Black Ops launch party and finding unemployed military vets jobs. More »

Guitar Hero Becomes Synthesizer Hero

Luke Plunkett — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EDT

Confession: I adore Jan Hammer. So a mod turning a plastic guitar into a synthesizer is looking - and sounding - pretty good about now. More »

Review: Power Gig Rise of the SixString

Brian Crecente — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 14:30:00 EDT

Power Gig: Rise of the SixString strives to bridge the gap between pretending to play guitar and playing guitar with a game backed by a instrument manufacturer and an impressive list of previously reticent artists. More »

Activision's Boss Is One Of The Most Influential Men Alive, It Seems

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 01:30:00 EDT

That's according to AskMen, at any rate, who have picked the Activision boss at number 16 on their list of the 49 most influential men. More »

Review: Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 22:30:00 EDT

The once-prolific Guitar Hero series sees just one major release this year. Once upon a time, we could expect publisher Activision to pump out five or more guitar-based games a year. In 2010, there is only Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock. More »

Konami And Harmonix End Legal Spat

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 08:30:00 EDT

In 2008, Konami filed a patent lawsuit against Harmonix (and MTV, and Viacom). More »

We Don't Really WANT To Know What Teen Spirit Smells Like

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 07:30:00 EDT

And rock n' roll was never about snide commentary or caring what other people think. Print campaign from guitar company Sparrow, as seen on Ads of the World, via GameSetWatch. More »

Learn To Shred While You Sleep

Mike Fahey — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EDT

A new Canadian sleep study had students Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, used the power of video game rock to determine the effects of a good night's sleep on motor learning. More »

This Is The Full Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock Setlist

Aulistar Mark — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 12:20:00 EDT

This is the complete setlist of Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock. Ninety-three songs total will come on disc this Fall. More »

See Dozens Of Guitar Hero Controllers Die In A Volcano

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 21:00:00 EDT

The makers of Power Gig: Rise of the SixString, the rhythm game that uses a real electric guitar as its controller, want plastic guitar peripherals to die in a fire—or the molten lava of an active Icelandic volcano. More »

Do You Hate Yourself? Play "Vuvu Hero"

Owen Good — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 18:30:00 EDT

Oh, you thought we were done with vuvuzelas? Hell no, now you can play the bitches in the inevitable "Vuvu Hero" flash game spoof. More »

Guitar Hero: Warriors Of Rock Also Features These 22 Tunes

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 18:40:00 EDT

In addition to more than 20 minutes worth of Rush, the next Guitar Hero will feature these 22 newly revealed songs, ranging from the darn good Blue Oyster Cult's "Burnin' For You" to the ear-searing "Unskinny Bop" by Poison. More »

Guitar Heroes In Brazil

Mike Fahey — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 18:40:00 EDT

Guitar Hero players get down to business at the Brazilian leg of the World Cyber Games this weekend, via Flickr. More »

Guitar Hero Dev Explains Why The Sky Is Falling

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:30:00 EDT

It's one thing when a writer or sales analyst tells you music game sales are down. It's another, all the more disheartening thing to hear it from someone who makes Guitar Hero games for a living. More »

Vuvuzela Hero In Action, In Our Nightmares

Stephen Totilo — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EDT

I've seen Vuvzela Hero jokes for a while. Yes, the World Cup's most annoying musical instrument could be merged with Guitar Hero. The results would be slightly more annoying to my neighbors. Let's finally watch this fakery together and chortle. More »