Kotaku: guitar hero 3

Auto Guitar Hero Confirms Humanity's Worthlessness

Mark Wilson — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 12:00:00 MDT

We've seen various Guitar Hero mods to help interested parties artificially enhance their game, but the systems are imperfect and lack that 100% flawless automation that can confirm, yes, we're wasting away our lives by mastering properly timed button presses. But this Auto Guitar Hero mod subverts our work ethic with ease. Streaming the Wii's composite output directly into the guitar, software can detect precise timing on each button press, guaranteeing perfect accuracy every time. Oh, and you know there's gonna be video:

In the future, robotic slaves will play all of our video games for us. And it will be awesome.

Project Page [Air Guitar Hero via DCEmu]

No Doubt About Guitar Hero 3

Mike Fahey — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 10:20:14 MST

Finally I get to post a giant picture of Gwen Stefani's face! Activision has just released a track pack featuring songs from No Doubt's diamond-selling album, Tragic Kingdom. The three songs, as originally performed by Gwen and crew, are "Don't Speak", "Excuse Me Mr.", and "Sunday Morning". Not exactly my favorites. Personally I would have preferred to see "Spiderwebs" up there, but I suppose it doesn't really lend itself to the game. Still, giant Gwen Stefani face! That's worth something, right? The pack is available right now via Xbox Live for 500 Microsoft points and should be up shortly on PSN for whatever that translates to in real money.

Mariah Carey Guitar Heroes It Up

Brian Crecente — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 09:00:56 MST

Guitar Hero 3 makes a guest appearance on Mariah Carey's video for Touch My Body. It's buried about a minute and two seconds into this short about the beauty and a geek. Yes, it's used to accent how nerdy someone is. Nice to know that Mariah is on top of current popular trends. That was sarcasm.

Guitar Hero i Mariah Carey [Polygamia, thanks Piotr]

Pre-Teen Guitar Hero Wails on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Brian Crecente — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:00:29 MST

Wow, this writers' strike needs to end, like now. It's one thing for Ellen DeGeneres to highlight her love of Guitar Hero by jamming through a song on her show. But now she's roping in kids from YouTube to play a video game.

At least that's what I thought before watching the video, but I totally changed my mind after seeing 12-year-old Kevin Shen wailing on expert in the video. I think it's wonderful that Ellen is giving such positive press to video games and Shen, he got to stand in front of an audience of screaming women and pretend to play guitar. Pretty kick ass.

Zero Punctuation Rocks Guitar Hero III, Asserts Heterosexuality

Mark Wilson — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 12:40:49 MST

Every week I fear watching Zero Punctuation. It's true. My tiny mind can't comprehend how "Yahtzee" can maintain the hilarity from week to week, let alone his not-so-subtle poignancy regarding the factors that make a decent game fall short of its potential. So far my fears have been unrequited, and now that I've enjoyed his latest review of Guitar Hero III, I will sleep soundly...until next week...if by "soundly" you mean waking in cold sweats with images of oral to anal barbed wire flossing.

[theescapist]

Some Guitar Hero Bundles Lack The Bundle

Mark Wilson — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 13:20:58 MST

Apparently some Guitar Hero III bundles are missing the game. As reported by our sister site The Consumerist, an EB Games employee looked on as his manager opened every Xbox 360 GH3 bundle box they had following a customer complaint, finding that none of them had the game inside.

The kicker? Due to EB Games policy, the customer couldn't return the product (even in light of certain evidence). Shame on EB Games? Yeah, but bigger shame on the customer for giving in. Unless, of course, the guy was lying and the missing games were just an incredible coincidence. Buyers beware. Open GH3 in the store or suffer from a potentially lethal mix of bad luck and assholedom.

Open Guitar Hero III Inside The Store, Some Boxes May Be Empty [via gaygamer]

Rock Band Vs. Guitar Hero 3, Difficulty

Mark Wilson — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:20:36 MST

GamesRadar put Rock Band and Guitar Hero through the paces on their shared songs "When You Were Young" by The Killers, "Sabotage" by Beastie Boys and "Cherub Rock" by The Smashing Pumpkins. You can judge the clip for yourself, but it's clear that Guitar Hero grabs the difficulty award—at least in pure notes on the screen (their accuracy has also become more lenient, so it's tough to tell). But, in my humble opinion, Cherub Rock looks a lot more fun in Rock Band, with the melody looking more like you're actually playing it. To each his own, I guess. But what do you think?

We match them note-for-note. Who rocks the hardest? [gamesradar]

GHIII Wii Only Offers Mono Sound

Mark Wilson — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 11:40:45 MST

The consumer is officially prepared for the Wii graphics letdown, and if a you buy a game on the Wii that's uglier than the PS3/360 version, you wouldn't be surprised. But when Guitar Hero III is found to only play mono sound on the Wii (as opposed to the box-advertised stereo and Dolby Pro Logic II options), heads turn. According to one affected forum member on the Guitar Hero site, Activision is "looking into it right now," and the implication is that some horrible software problem is preventing users from playing a music game in its full spectrum—not that the Wii is incapable of the task.

No surround sound? [via opposablethumbs]

South Park Teases Guitar Hero

Mark Wilson — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 12:20:19 MST

Many of you have probably already watched South Park's Guitar Hero episode that aired last night, but we enjoyed this very telling clip that compares playing real guitar to playing the hyperbolic air guitar that we know better as the GH controller. Because we understand where those kids are coming from. Back in our band days, we'd have loved some positive reinforcement for nailing our trombone solo. Alas, the real world is not garnished with the crack that is a high score.

Hit the jump for an entry from South Park's production blog about the experience of making the episode.

...tonight's episode is a sobering experience. After watching it come together I feel like maybe we flew a little too close to the nerdy sun with Guitar Hero. Maybe we should take a step back and look at the dark side of being a Guitar Hero:
More often than not, a dude who pulls out a guitar looks and behaves like a total douche. We've all seen it before: some jerk trying to impress the ladies with his badass skills banging out Coldplay as hard as he can. Ugh.

Well, imagine that douche . . . now take away the guitar and replace it with a plastic video game controller. We're even worse than that loser, because we're pretending to be him, all the while tapping our feet and clicking our fingers with the same proud idiocy that the real-life jerk performs with.

So true. And so horrifyingly wonderful.

Mike McMahan, Production Assistant: The Long And Nerdy Road [southparkblog]

Guitar Hero 3 DLC Leaked?

Mark Wilson — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 12:20:46 MDT

One good soul playing close attention to the leaderboards has noticed a few songs that aren't in the standard Guitar Hero III track list. So what's this mean? DLC for everyone*!! Specifically, users have spotted three more songs from both the Foo Fighters and Velvet Revolver. But the biggest surprise may be that boss battle tracks are listed as well, so it will be interesting to see how the content is dealt with from a purchaser's standpoint. Hit the jump for a complete list.

*"everyone" most probably refers only to those who pay to be part of this privileged group.

Foo Fighters
* "All My Life"
* "This is a Call"
* "The Pretender"

Velvet Revolver

* "Slither"
* "She Builds Quick Machines"
* "Messages"

Boss Battles

* "Tom Morello Guitar Battle"
* "Slash Guitar Battle"
* "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"

FUTURE DLC LEAKED!!! PIC INSIDE!! [via opposablethumbs]

Frankenreview, Guitar Hero III (Xbox 360)

Mark Wilson — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 12:00:04 MDT

A war is brewing. Just as Man fights over the superiority of various football teams, cars, female hair colors and brand of fiber supplement, so too will Man fight over whether Guitar Hero is a better series than Rock Band.

While Rock Band won't be on store shelves for a few weeks, we do have at least 50% of the equation to ignite the flame wars. So hit the jump for our Frankenreview of the Harmonixless Guitar Hero III—all the answers to all of life's problems in five short paragraphs.

PlanetXbox360
Some veterans of the series may think that the buttons on their new guitar are sticking but that is actually a gameplay feature that Neversoft included to help new gamers feel comfortable in the series. The time limit to hit the correct key has been increased by what feels like a good bit of time, now hitting those impossible guitar solos is much easier. At first I felt like the game was too easy but the developers helped offset this issue by amping up the actual song difficulty.

Yahoo
The new guitar (we tried the wireless Les Paul that comes with the 360) feels a lot sturdier, with crisp precise controls and a suitably tense whammy bar. The detachable face plate will allow for some slick customization for people who aren't content with stickers. And being able to detach the neck will make it much easier to bring your controller to a friend's house...Give us this solidly built wireless guitar, Activision, and we won't begrudge you the extra profit.

OpposableThumbs
This is the first Guitar Hero game to venture online, and it's about time. While the face-offs and battles I've been able to participate in have been fun and largely lag-free, you're forced to search for your own games: the quick match option that is supposed to allow you to jump into a game quickly is completely broken....Also keep in mind that the co-op career mode, complete with exclusive unlockable songs, is offline only. That means that if you want to play these songs (and you will), you'll need a friend with a second guitar and time to unlock them with you.
GamesSpot
It's...disappointing that Activision has finally decided to corporate up the Guitar Hero experience with a fair amount of lame product placement and dynamic in-game advertising. It's one thing to get branded guitars and get Guitar Center to sponsor your in-game shop— it's quite another to have several of the game's environments feature billboards that display ads dynamically, and logos for Pontiac and Axe Body Spray that pop up all over the place. It even goes so far as to have Axe-sponsored guitars you can buy in-game, and Axe-sponsored go-go dancers prancing about the stage while you play. Gross.

GamesRadar
By going real with the songs, next-gen with the graphics and online with the gameplay, it leaves the wishlist relatively barren. At the same time, it's not delivering us much new on the gameplay front, and in fact lags a bit in terms of smart strumming mechanics.
The most noticeable difference to me in Guitar Hero III (and Rock Band, for that matter) has to be the hefty amounts of original studio dubs. I never had issues with playing covers before I'd experienced something better. And now it's really hard to go back.

GHIII Target Bundle Offers Double Trouble (Second Guitar)

Mark Wilson — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 16:00:55 MDT

We're not sure how this news slipped by us, but we wanted to let potential PS2 Guitar Hero III buyers know about yet another exclusive GHIII bundle on the market. While Wal-mart may be offering GHIII with a wired controller, Target is offering a Dueling Axe Pack version packaged with not one but two SG controllers for $110 (or $100 this week). While the guitars are wired, tethering you to your PS2 like a rocker on a heroin drip, it's not a bad deal if you haven't owned a Guitar Hero game before and wanted the option to play with a buddy. Yes, we did just say heroin and buddy within the same breath.

Exclusive Target Guitar Hero III Bundle With Two Wired Guitars [gamelife]

The Guitar Hero Recharge Kit

fdemarco — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 11:00:00 MDT

For all you Guitar Hero III rockers who are ready to shred with those fancy wireless guitars, Red Octane is releasing their first party Guitar Hero Recharge Kit. The kit, available only on Red Octane's website, will recharge the batteries on your 360 or PS3 wireless GH guitar so you can keep on rockin' all through the night (Sorry Wii, no recharge for you). It is available for pre-order now and will begin shipping Oct. 30. Look for the sub standard Mad Catz version soon at a store near you.

Guitar Hero III Single Recharge Kit [Red Octane]

Guitar Hero Site Up, High Scores Top 27 Mill

Brian Crecente — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 17:00:29 MDT

Wow, the Guitar Hero site went live earlier today and already it's packed with the sort of scores I'll never be able to achieve. The top Xbox 360 Rocker tops the charts at more than 27 million as of this writing.

The site also shows the top song of the week, automatically tracking which game songs get played the most, as well as Online Tournaments, Local Events and of course tons of forums. It looks like a pretty robust site.

Guitar Hero

GH3 CD Comes With Three Game Songs

Brian Crecente — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 09:00:26 MDT

The upcoming release of the Guitar Hero 3 soundtrack on CD will come packed with a code that will give you three new songs for the game, Activision said today.

The soundtrack will include "key songs" and not the entire set list. The three extra game songs are "Carcinogen Crush" from AFI (from an EP due in December), "Tina" from Flyleaf and a remix of Marilyn Manson's "Putting Holes In Happiness" by Nick Zinner from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Hit the jump for the nitty-gritty.

MORE THAN A VIDEOGAME SOUNDTRACK - GUITAR HERO® III: LEGENDS OF ROCK COMPANION PACK BREAKS THROUGH WITH PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED SONGS EXCLUSIVE TO XBOX 360

SANTA MONICA, CA - October 16, 2007 - Music and videogames take the next step in the digital revolution with expansion songs included with a game's soundtrack CD for the first time. Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock Companion Pack (Interscope Records), to be released on October 23, 2007, features not only the key songs on Activision's Guitar Hero III: Legends Of Rock, available October 28, 2007, but also exclusive access to more gameplay with three previously unreleased expansion songs to play with Guitar Hero III: Legends Of Rock for Xbox 360.

Included in each Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Companion Pack is a unique code users may input at www.interscope.com/guitarherocode to receive a unique Xbox Live code. Users may then input the Xbox Live code into their Xbox 360 console when logged into Xbox Live, to download the expansion songs. Xbox Live codes are expected to be available when Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock launches on October 28.

The three expansion tracks are "Carcinogen Crush" from AFI (from an EP due in December), "Tina" from Flyleaf and a remix of Marilyn Manson's "Putting Holes In Happiness" by Nick Zinner from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The latter two recordings also are heard on the soundtrack CD, along with AFI's "Miss Murder," Sonic Youth's "Kool Thing," Queens Of The Stone Age's "3's And 7's," Smashing Pumpkins' "Cherub Rock," Velvet Revolver's "Slither," Living Colour's "Cult Of Personality," Rise Against's "Prayer Of The Refugee," the Guitar Hero rendition of "Devil Went Down To Georgia" by Steve Ouimette and the game's intro by Slash, who is also a character in the game.

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock will include explosive new content and features including a multiplayer action-inspired battle mode, grueling boss battles, a host of exclusive unlockable content and visually stunning rock venues. Expanded online multiplayer game modes will also allow axe-shredders worldwide to compete head-to-head for true legendary rock status. While continuing to retain all the key features from their prior legendary performances, fresh downloadable content will be offered on multiple platforms, and players can now shred to a killer set list from many of the most popular rock songs ever recorded.

For the first time ever, Guitar Hero fans will also be able to thrash and burn with new wireless guitar controllers available for each platform, including exclusive Gibson Guitar's Les Paul model for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Wii TM home video game system from Nintendo, and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. PlayStation®2 gamers will also get to shred on a new exclusive shape, Gibson's Kramer guitar, popularized by hard rockers and known for its body design, pickups, electronics and construction for furious finger fretting.

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, published by RedOctane® and developed by Neversoft, is rated 'T' for Teen by the ESRB. For more information about the Guitar Hero franchise, please visit the dedicated community site: www.guitarhero.com.

Guitar Hero Community Site Announced

Brian Crecente — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 08:00:27 MDT

Activision is launching a new community site for Guitar Hero that will let you earn groupies, find friends and enter tournaments.

After the game launches on Oct. 28, player will be able to create or join a group on the site to compare scores along with tracking and finding friends. The press release isn't exactly crystal clear, but it sounds like the site might be a bit like Bungie's Halo 3 site, meaning that it could track scores, which is a fantastic idea for Guitar Hero 3.

ACTIVISION OFFERS FANS BACKSTAGE PASS TO NEW OFFICIAL GUITAR HERO® COMMUNITY WEBSITE

Fans Register Stage Names and Receive Exclusive Info, Assets, Integrated Online Player Stats, and Sneak Peak at Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock

Sunnyvale, CA - October 11, 2007 - Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI), in partnership with Agora Games, a leading provider of online community development and in-game data collection, announced today that a new dedicated Guitar Hero community teaser website has launched, and fans can now visit www.GuitarHero.com to get a Backstage Pass to obtain insider information, news announcements, exclusive behind the scenes footage of Slash and other in-game talent, gameplay videos, and screenshots. Aspiring axe-shredders will also have the ability to pre-order and hear snippets from the set list of the highly anticipated title, Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock.

Fans who are first to sign up will have the exciting opportunity to create their own account and claim their stage name, which will be their unique identity on the official Guitar Hero community site, scoreboards, and forums. After the game launches on October 28, 2007, players will be able to go "on tour" by creating or joining a group to compare scores, and compete online in global head to head tournaments with other tour groups, along with the opportunity to establish new friendships and connect with other passionate Guitar Hero fans from around the world. They can also build a "rock radius" to opt-in and see friends, tour group members and players to connect with online through a global map.

To complete the rock star experience, fans can obtain groupies on the road to stardom while earning the title of Indie to Rock Star to Guitar Hero and shredding their way into the Hall of Fame. Groupies will determine a player's popularity around the Backstage Pass, as well as on the full community site. For a limited time, players can now earn groupies by telling friends about their band and getting them to register on the site to join their tour group.

Lord of Rock and B Roll

Brian Crecente — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 08:01:49 MDT

This new vid is just the thing to start stoking my need to play a little Guitar Hero 3.

Guitar Hero III Controllers

Brian Crecente — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 10:00:43 MDT

Activision just sent over a whole slew of Guitar Hero 3 box art, screens and controller images. Hit the gallery to check out the images, including nice ones of all four GH controllers.

Digital Life Gaming Show Winners

Brian Crecente — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 16:00:40 MDT

Ziff Davis' DigitalLife show is all over, but the awards were just announced today. Among the dozen award winners were two gaming standouts: Guitar Hero III in the Game category and HP Blackbird 002 in the Gaming Hardware category.

Hit the jump for the short break down of why the PC Magazine editors, led by Editor-in-Chief, Lance Ulanoff, picked these two as the top in gaming.

CATEGORY: Game
Winner: Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Company: Activision, www.activision.com
The latest version of this interactive music game features a slew of new songs and an update on the guitar hardware. Any skeptics were quieted after visiting the boisterous GH booth at DigitalLife and witnessing aspiring rockers of all ages jamming out with a smile.

CATEGORY: Gaming Hardware
Winner: HP Blackbird 002
Company: Hewlett-Packard, www.hp.com
The first foray into the gaming market since acquiring Voodoo, HP hit the ground running with the Blackbird. This top-of-the-line system will make any gamer drool with dual nVidia graphics cards, 2GB of RAM, liquid cooling, and a super-cool black case design with a bottom platform stand for ventilation. The chassis is tool-free and highly customizable with lots of spare bays for expansion

Guitar Hero 3 Skins

Brian Crecente — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 11:00:41 MDT

HeroGear.Net, maker of custom Guitar Hero skins, announced today that they are releasing 15 sticker sets for the Guitar Hero 3 controller.

The prices aren't listed on the site yet, but GH2 sets sell for $16, while the pick guards sell for $11 and the Fret Boards sell for $8.

Activision - Rock Band Will Never Be Prom Queen

Mark Wilson — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 13:40:12 MDT

Activision's Will Kassoy has plenty to say about their franchise versus the upcoming Rock Band:

I think some of the early signs we've seen might make [Rock Band] a little more complex than some of the things that make Guitar Hero so great, which is its accessibility and ease of play for everyone...[and] If you go beyond the game industry to just really mass market consumers, people haven't heard about Rock Band yet and the fact that it's only on next-generation platforms is going to be a little bit limiting.

Is it petty jealousy, marketing hoopla or truth? I'm actually leaning towards truth. Rock Band, while shaping up to be incredible (I just withheld about one thousand exclamation points), it will struggle to find mass market appeal at its speculated $200 price point alone. But as for people actually knowing about the game—we have a feeling the MTV partnership will work that end of the equation out if all else fails.

Battle of the Bands: EA vs. Activision: Round 1, Fight! [gamedaily]

Guitar Hero 3 Impressions

Brian Crecente — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 15:20:28 MDT

Neversoft's other big game for the year is Guitar Hero 3. The developers started off their presentation by explaining how it was that a team known for skate games managed to land the guitar-rocking rhythm game. It was, they say, because they were such huge fans of both Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero 2. So much so that their weekly Guitar Hero Fridays often oozed into the rest of the week and slowed product of their current games.

With Guitar Hero 3, the first thing Neversoft did was update the graphics, giving it a crisper, edgier look. They also added online coop and competitive modes and made the controllers wireless, but the biggest change for the game is the inclusion of Battle Mode a head-to-head form of Guitar Hero that features power-ups and attacks.

The way it seemed to work in the demo was that you could earn attacks by filling your meter and then unleash them on your opponent by going into star-power mode.

Attacks included things like cutting a string on your opponents guitar, forcing them to tap a specific fret button repeatedly until the string was "repaired", making their notes display jitter and shake, forcing them to play double notes for a brief period of time or reversing the notes temporarily.

The Battle Mode looked impressive while watching the developers play it, but I can't help but wonder how much fun it will be when someone like me (who screws up if someone says his name in mid song) plays it.

Slash Playable in Guitar Hero 3

Brian Crecente — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 09:00:32 MDT

Metal Injection reports that Slash of Velvet Revolver and Guns N Roses fame will be a playable character in Guitar Hero 3. To play as Slash, who did motion capture for the game, you have to complete all of the songs in the game and then face him in a one-on-one duel. No idea what sort of cred Metal Injection has and they don't list a source, but it sounds very conceivable.
Slash to Appear as a Character in Guitar Hero 3 Video Game [Metal Injection, via GayGamer]

Guitar Hero 3 Gameplay

Brian Crecente — Thu, 31 May 2007 09:00:46 MDT

Arrogantics was kind enough to post up two new videso from Guitar Hero 3 confirming that the game will look pretty much the same despite the fact that Neversoft is now developing it instead of Harmonix. This first video shows My Name is Jonas. The video on the jump shows Slow Ride.

I think I kinda like the HUD tweaks, though I don't know if they were really necessary. I suppose Neversoft had to do something to make it look like they weren't just stuffing news songs into an old game. Brian Crecente

First Videos of Guitar Hero 3 [Arrogantics, thanks lawl]

Tenacious D, Wireless Hits Next Guitar Hero

Brian Crecente — Wed, 23 May 2007 08:23:08 MDT

The next Guitar Hero will feature wireless controllers, a multiplayer battle mode, a playlist that will include Tenacious D and appearances on the Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Wii and Xbox 360, Activision announced today.

"The development team at Neversoft has been exceptional, and we've been able to incorporate a host of fresh new online and multi-player game play modes, along with exciting content into this version of Guitar Hero that our fans have been asking for. Also, many of the top bands and songs we've tried to get in the past are now on board, and we've definitely got some giant aces in the hole to say the least," said Dusty Welch, head of publishing at RedOctane. "In addition, offering a new line of Gibson wireless guitars for each platform is going to truly add to the authentic rock star experience like no other."

The upcoming game will use Gibson Guitar's Les Paul and Kramer models for the controllers and include several new features including boss battles and online multiplay.

The game's initial list of songs include:
* Paint It Black (by The Rolling Stones)
* Cherub Rock (by Smashing Pumpkins)
* Sabotage (by Beastie Boys)
* The Metal (by Tenacious D)
* My Name is Jonas (by Weezer)
* Knights of Cydonia (by Muse)
* Rock And Roll All Nite (as made famous by Kiss)
* School's Out (as made famous by Alice Cooper)
* Slow Ride (as made famous by Fog Hat)
* Cult of Personality (by Living Colour)
* Barracuda (as made famous by Heart)

Sabotage! Barracuda! My Name is Jonas! The Metal! That's quite an eclectic mix. Brian Crecente

Activision Shreds New Details on Next Guitar Hero(TM) Game
Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Come Out, the Third Installment of Guitar Hero Rocks to a Whole New Level

SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 23, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ — After warming their amps in the basement garage to rocking sold out shows at Stonehenge, fans of Activision, Inc.'s (Nasdaq: ATVI) wildly popular Guitar Hero(TM) franchise will now be able to shred like never before with the next iteration of the game that will be available this fall. The new game will be released on the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system and PLAYSTATION(R)3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360(TM) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, and Wii(TM) video game system from Nintendo.

Turning it up to 11, Guitar Hero fans will channel their inner rock god using Gibson Guitar's Les Paul and Kramer models as the industry standard. In addition, players will experience an incredible number of newly added features and explosive content including a new multiplayer action-inspired battle mode, grueling boss battles, a bevy of exclusive unlockable content and authentic rock venues. Expanded online multiplayer game modes will also allow axe-shredders worldwide to compete head-to-head for true legendary rock status.

While continuing to retain all the key features from their prior legendary performances, fresh downloadable content will be offered on multiple platforms, and players can now shred to a killer set list from many of the gnarliest rock songs ever recorded. Delivering more master tracks than ever before, strategic partnerships have been secured with all the major and independent music record labels and publishers to allow unrivaled access to their deep history of music catalogs, along with supplying artists' original recordings for even greater authenticity.

The initial list of face-melting awesomeness includes:

* Paint It Black (by The Rolling Stones)
* Cherub Rock (by Smashing Pumpkins)
* Sabotage (by Beastie Boys)
* The Metal (by Tenacious D)
* My Name is Jonas (by Weezer)
* Knights of Cydonia (by Muse)
* Rock And Roll All Nite (as made famous by Kiss)
* School's Out (as made famous by Alice Cooper)
* Slow Ride (as made famous by Fog Hat)
* Cult of Personality (by Living Colour)
* Barracuda (as made famous by Heart)

For the first time ever, Guitar Hero fans will also be able to thrash and burn with new wireless guitar controllers available for each platform. The exclusive Gibson guitars will include innovative features such as removable faceplates that will allow fans to later personalize their guitars and make it their own, and a new button color design that will be integrated for an even greater authentic feel and rock experience. Gibson Guitar's Les Paul model will be the battle axe of choice, and an industry standard for all rock gods on the Xbox 360(TM), PLAYSTATION(R)3 system, and Wii(TM). After much anticipation, PlayStation(R)2 system fans will also be receiving a new exclusive shape as well, the classic Kramer guitar, also a Gibson brand, popularized by hard rockers and known for its body design, pickups, electronics, and construction for furious finger fretting.

"The development team at Neversoft has been exceptional, and we've been able to incorporate a host of fresh new online and multi-player game play modes, along with exciting content into this version of Guitar Hero that our fans have been asking for. Also, many of the top bands and songs we've tried to get in the past are now on board, and we've definitely got some giant aces in the hole to say the least," said Dusty Welch, head of publishing at RedOctane. "In addition, offering a new line of Gibson wireless guitars for each platform is going to truly add to the authentic rock star experience like no other."

The next iteration of Guitar Hero, published by RedOctane(R) and developed by Neversoft, is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information about Guitar Hero, please visit the dedicated community site www.guitarherogame.com.

Wii GH3 Includes Guitar Controller, Online Play

Brian Crecente — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 10:00:10 MDT

It looks like Guitar Hero 3 for the 360, PS3 and Wii will indeed be hitting this fall, unfortunately the Wii version will be using the same guitar-shaped controller you've grown used to.

In an interview with IGN, RedOctan's co-founder and president Kai Huang said that the development team is exploring innovative ways to use the Wii remote, but that the basic controller will be the guitar.

"We are really excited about the Wii game because there are so many options for the Wii remote. However, you will play the game with a guitar peripheral and it will be similar to a guitar you've seen in the past."
He also confirmed that Guitar Hero III on Wii contains features included in other versions of the upcoming game - such as online play and downloadable music.

That's too bad. By the time this one hits I think just about everyone will have played the game. A new type of control would have been kinda neat. Brian Crecente

Guitar Hero III Wii using Guitar Controller [IGN]

Red Octane Responds to GH3 Rumblings

Brian Crecente — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 10:00:20 MDT

I heard back today from Red Octane about the Guitar Hero 3 information buried on their site.

If you recall, there are two references to Guitar Hero 3 coming to the PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 this fall in the companies Knowledge Base on their website.

When I asked Red Octane about it this is what they said:

Thanks for the email and heads up on the link. We aren't able to share any further details at this time unfortunately, though when we're ready to make any official announcement, we'll definitely keep you informed.

Well, that sure as hell isn't a "no comment", it's not even a "it was a mistake". Sounds to me like we should be readying ourselves for more Guitar Hero goodness this holiday. Brian Crecente

Beyond Guitar Hero 2

Brian Crecente — Thu, 17 Aug 2006 14:30:50 MDT

Joystiq is reporting that Red Octane is considering three new sequels to the uber-popular Guitar Hero franchise and they have the logos to prove it.

Their source tells them that Guitar Hero: World Tour, Guitar Hero: Encore and Guitar Hero Axe Grinder are all under consideration. Hit Joy for a list of some of the other names under consideration. I just hope that Red Octane is also thinking about expanding the game to include more than just new songs with every iteration. Come on Bass. Brian Crecente

Guitar Hero: Encore & Guitar Hero 2006 [Joystiq]