DJ Hero to Support Guitar and Mic

The more information about DJ Hero that comes out, the more I am starting to like the game.

DJ Hero not only has it’s own cool little game play controller, but in certain modes you will be able to add the stylings of a Guitar and mic!

In order to create a more realistic DJing experience as well as add some fun for your friends, in DJ Hero Co-op mode you will be able to have friends on the Guitar and Microphone letting people ceate rock and roll remixes in the comfort of your living room.

Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits Song List

The final countdown has begun – get ready, boys and girls, because Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits is coming to a console near you on June 24th. You’ve got less than a month to prepare yourself for the onslaught of some of the most famous (and infamous!) tracks from Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.

We’ve finally rounded up the full tracklisting of what’s in store for you… 48 master recordings, Band Career mode, 8-player Battle of the Bands (two full bands competing head-to-head online), and of course, your favourite tracks transported from single-instrument to a full guitar/bass/drums/vocals extravaganza.

Guitar Hero
* Blue Öyster Cult – Godzilla
* Boston – More Than A Feeling
* Deep Purple – Smoke On The Water
* Franz Ferdinand – Take Me Out
* Helmet – Unsung (Live)
* Incubus – Stellar
* Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – I Love Rock N’ Roll
* Ozzy Osbourne – Bark At The Moon
* Pantera – Cowboys From Hell (Live)
* Queen – Killer Queen
* Queens Of The Stone Age – No One Knows
* The Donnas – Take It Off
* The Exies – Hey You
* White Zombie – Thunder Kiss ’65

Guitar Hero II
* Alice In Chains – Them Bones
* Avenged Sevenfold – Beast And The Harlot
* Danzig – Mother
* Foo Fighters – Monkey Wrench
* Iron Maiden – The Trooper
* Jane’s Addiction – Stop!
* Kansas – Carry On Wayward Son
* Lamb Of God – Laid To Rest
* Lynyrd Skynyrd – Free Bird
* Mötley Crüe- Shout At The Devil
* Nirvana – Heart-Shaped Box
* Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name
* Reverend Horton Heat – Psychobilly Freakout
* Rush – YYZ
* Stone Temple Pilots – Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart
* The Police – Message In A Bottle
* The Sword – Freya
* Warrant – Cherry Pie
* Wolfmother – Woman

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
* AFI – Miss Murder
* DragonForce – Through The Fire And Flames
* Heart – Barracuda
* Kiss – Rock And Roll All Nite
* Living Colour – Cult Of Personality
* Pat Benatar – Hit Me With Your Best Shot
* Priestess – Lay Down
* Slayer – Raining Blood

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith
* Aerosmith – Back In The Saddle

Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s
* Anthrax – Caught In A Mosh
* Extreme – Play With Me
* Judas Priest – Electric Eye
* Poison – Nothin’ But A Good Time
* Ratt – Round and Round
* Twisted Sister – I Wanna Rock

As if that set list wasn’t enough, you’ll also be able to rock around the world, experiencing eight new venues based on various international locations – such as the Grand Canyon, the Amazon jungle and even the polar ice caps!

Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits is currently putting the finishing touches in place, and should be out – in Australia – on June 24th for PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360. Stay tuned!

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.

Through the Fire and Flames 100% Expert

Guitar Hero 3: Through the Fire and Flames 100% Expert

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

Guitar Hero Metallica Setlist

The setlist for the upcoming Guitar Hero: Metallica has been released. Like Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it includes bands which influenced Metallica, as well as a heavy dose of their own tracks. The game hits stores March 29th. Here is the Guitar Hero Metallica track list:

Metallica Tracks:
All Nightmare Long
Battery
Creeping Death
Disposable Heroes
Dyers Eve
Enter Sandman
Fade To Black
Fight Fire With Fire
For Whom The Bell Tolls
Frantic
Fuel
Hit The Lights
King Nothing
Master of Puppets
Mercyful Fate (Medley)
No Leaf Clover
Nothing Else Matters
One
Orion
Sad But True
Seek And Destroy
The Memory Remains
The Shortest Straw
The Thing That Should Not Be
The Unforgiven
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
Wherever I May Roam
Whiplash

Other Tracks
Alice In Chains — “No Excuses”
Bob Seger — “Turn The Page”
Corrosion of Conformity — “Albatross”
Diamond Head — “Am I Evil?”
Foo Fighters — “Stacked Actors”
Judas Priest — “Hell Bent For Leather”
Kyuss — “Demon Cleaner”
Lynyrd Skynyrd — “Tuesdays Gone”
Machine Head — “Beautiful Mourning”
Mastodon — “Blood And Thunder”
Mercyful Fate — “Evil”
Michael Schenker Group — “Armed and Ready”
Motorhead — “Ace of Spades”
Queen — “Stone Cold Crazy”
Samhain — “Mother of Mercy”
Slayer — “War Ensemble”
Social Distortion — “Mommy’s Little Monster”
Suicidal Tendencies — “War Inside My Head”
System of a Down — “Toxicity”
The Sword — “Black River”
Thin Lizzy — “The Boys Are Back in Town”

Can’t wait, this is going to rock!!!

Axl Rose Pissed over Guitar Hero using GNRs songs

Axl Rose has partially emerged from hiding, and he’s putting his litigious foot forward. After tossing some threats towards Dr. Pepper, the G N’ R frontman had some less than complimentary things to say about Activision’s Guitar Hero franchise, which Rose accused of using “Sweet Child O’ Mine” and “Welcome to the Jungle” in an unauthorized manner.

Rose said that he had no problem with Guns guitarist Slash appearing in the game and went as far as to say that Slash has the right to perform the songs, but maintained that Activision did not obtain the proper license to use either one of them. Activision, possibly preparing to get in the ring, has not responded publicly to Rose’s allegations.

Shame on Activision for poaching Guns N’ Roses songs in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. That’s band frontman Axl Rose’s testy take in a sprawling missive delivered at band fan site Mygnr.com. According to Rose, Activision used GnR songs inappropriately and without proper authorization. While he’s doesn’t lay out any legal particulars, his “it’ll take some sorting” comment has bloggers in a tizzy.

In the post, Rose explains that former GnR guitarist Slash’s appearance in Activision’s Guitar Hero series doesn’t bother him

…unless it’s being done at my expense…or to keep him associated [with GnR] as in Guitar Hero. Him being Guitar Hero’s fine but not when Activision is using Jungle, having Yahoo use Sweet Child unauthorized, claims no involvement with Slash, his or anyone’s image or VR or anyone or anyone’s music in either camp in promotion or commercials etc. I wasn’t broadsided. I read about it as it moved along but Activision continually denied it right up to the release. That’s some low life chicanery on all their parts.

Yes Slash was in Guns and on Jungle (and the whole I came to him for his riff is as much crap as him saying he brought Locomotive and Coma in as complete songs) and he has rights to perform it but not to be represented in this context in association with Guns. And since they weren’t granted the license it’ll take some sorting.

Universal has Guns under contract but I own the name.

Rose and Slash don’t get along. Haven’t for years. Rose wants Slash to keep his mitts off GnR’s namesake, and Activision to get its song-usage certification papers sorted, apparently.

As if that wasn’t enough, Rose no longer wants to be a Pepper too. The singer and his band are hacked off over a botched deal with Dr. Pepper, wherein the soft drink manufacturer was to offer a free soda to every American if Chinese Democracy, the band’s new album, were released in 2008. The album made it out the door on November 23, but Dr. Pepper’s website reportedly malfunctioned during the 24 hour giveaway period.

Guitar Hero has not peaked

Lagging sales of Guitar Hero: World Tour are not an indication that the $1 billion-plus franchise has “peaked,” said analyst Todd Greenwald with Signal Hill.

“Guitar Hero sell-through a bit soft, but not a disaster,” said Greenwald of Activision’s latest franchise entry, which incorporates microphone, drum and guitar controllers. He said the full band bundle has sold well, but admitted sales of the standalone game and guitar/software kit have been “sluggish” when compared to the record-breaking Guitar Hero III.

However, he refused to believe that the franchise’s popularity has peaked. “Despite this ‘weakness,’ we disagree strongly with those who contend that Guitar Hero is a ‘fad,’ or that the franchise peaked last year with [Guitar Hero III].”

Greenwald added, “For the year, the overall Guitar Hero franchise is up substantially (including extensions like Guitar Hero Aerosmith and Guitar Hero On Tour). North America sales are likely to be up over 20 percent for the year, while Europe could be up nearly 300 percent. Furthermore, the title count will expand materially in 2009, driving further growth with potential titles like GH: Metallica, GH: Jimi Hendrix, DJ Hero and more.”

UBS analyst Ben Schachter recently reported that the Guitar Hero franchise sold 1.7 million units in the U.S. during November, down 25 percent year-on-year. Rival music franchise Rock Band sold a relatively few 629K, although sales were up 65 percent for the busy shopping month.

Greenwald’s comments counter those made by Electronic Entertainment Design and Research analyst Jesse Divnich, who said that franchises like Guitar Hero and Rock Band will have a large, loyal fanbase for the next 10 years, but argued that sales show popularity is reaching its peak.

Guitar Hero Metallica Reveal Trailer

So what if the Metallica edition of Guitar Hero still hasn’t been officially announced? The band itself has been talking about it all willy-nilly; it’s been in Game Informer; there was even a teaser in Guitar Hero World Tour. And now … well, the trailer is out. Not from its publisher, Activision, but on the band’s website.

Perhaps some fine print in the band’s contract stipulates that it gets to handle the PR for the game. Perhaps the mere mention of the game is being considered an “exclusive,” since it’s “unannounced.” Perhaps it’s time for a press release already.

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