6 fingered Man Banned from Guitar Hero Tournament

Twenty-one years ago Alex Domer was born with hexadactyly. It doesn’t mean he’s got dinosaur wings, it means he’s got six fingers on each hand.

He’s lived a normal life, and most of the time his condition goes unnoticed. However, yesterday he became a victim of discrimination when he was barred from entering a Guitar Hero tournament being held at the Universal Studios park in Orlando

“It hasn’t been so bad living with six fingers,” said Domer. “Occasionally I’ll get the ‘You killed my father’ jokes, but that wasn’t bad. Now, because of my birth defect I’m being accused of having an unfair advantage. It’s ridiculous.”

Domer has won three previous Guitar Hero tournaments which have helped him work his way through college. “It still takes skill to win these tournaments. It’s not just because of the extra fingers,” said Domer, but tournament organizers don’t see it that way.

Dominic Oltman, who set up the tournament for Universal said, “Having six fingers gives Mr. Domer an unfair advantage. While other players have to shift their fingers between the five buttons, he can just leave his fingers in place. We had to take action for the integrity of the tournament.”

Many entrants in the tournament feel the ban is justified. “Guys with six fingers already get enough advantages in this world. They get better jobs because they can type faster. They’re more attractive to the ladies. They can count to twelve before everybody else. It’s just not fair,” said professional video gamer, Eddie Hedger.

The ACLU is looking into filing a discrimination suit on behalf of Domer. Derrick Harney, a lawyer for the ACLU, said, “This case is very similar to the suit we filed on behalf of Johnny “Four Legs” Chang who was banned from a Dance Dance Revolution tournament in 2001. That suit was settled out of court, and should give us leverage for a settlement in this case.”

Oltman said the tournament will go on as planned on Saturday. The winner will receive $5,000 and a limited edition Guitar Hero controller signed by members of Aerosmith.
By Brian Briggs of BBSpot

DJ Hero confirmed by Activision

So, it looks like the Guitar Hero has convinced Activision that the concept does have legs; and additional expansion into this space is good and, of course, the sales numbers don’t lie. We had been hearing rumblings about another kind of “hero” that the company had been working on and CEO Bobby Kotick confirmed while at the Davos World Economic Forum that the company has a new title called DJ Hero on tap for later this year.

According to what we have been able to uncover, DJ Hero will ship with a turntable accessory that will allow you to spin discs on and mix with. The game will be able to be played competitively and is expected to be released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 later this year.

The interest in peripheral-oriented titles has been driven in part by the success of such titles as Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and pretty much everything on the Nintendo Wii platform. While in the past titles that either featured or required the purchase of expensive gaming controllers or input devices that drove the cost of the title up were rejected by the buying public, it seems that today’s gamers are looking to embrace something different.

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Making a Living Playing Guitar Hero Live

Anyone can pretend to be a rock star thanks to games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero, but now, for some, it’s becoming reality.

In bars, weddings, and even concert halls groups of talented video gamers are making a living off their talents. At Moe’s Bar in Springfield, tens of people come to see Evan Gertz and his band Dried Zombie perform the hits on Rock Band.

“We finished the game on the highest level and we wondered ‘what next?’ Barry said we should take the band on the road, and I thought he was crazy, but when we started getting gigs, it was a dream come true,” said Gertz.

Gertz said he knows that it’s breaking the license agreement and probably the copyright of the bands, but “this is rock and roll. We break all the rules.”

The “bands” have gotten the attention of the RIAA, which as has already filed a lawsuit against several of these bands citing billions in lost revenue.

Gertz is just happy to be doing what he loves. “I never thought that my skills in video games would get me anywhere, but look at me now. Suck it Mom!” said Gertz.

Another success story is Valerie Gibson, who couldn’t find any work as a real musician, but now does gigs at local bars and coffee houses with her Guitar Hero band Asthma Puppies. “They just put the game up on all the TVs and we rock on out with a bunch of covers. Well actually they’re the originals,” said Gibson.

It’s a win-win situation for the crowd. “I get to hear some good music, not some crappy cover band, and they put on a good show,” said local beer drinker Frank Richards.

Not everyone is please by the new trend. Many music purists, who already decry the lack of musical talent in today’s popular bands, see this as one more step towards the end of music. “These people can’t sing, can’t play a real instrument, and have no talent whatsoever. They’re just good at a game. What’s next, lip-synching on Saturday Night Live?”
By Brian Briggs