Activision really isn’t having a good week. They’ve now got a lawsuit in their laps from Gibson (which sounds like a load of crap) and now Harmonix is starting trouble with them. Apparently Activision still owes the former developer royalties to the tune of around $14.5 million for their work in the Guitar Hero series.
Last week I brought you the news that Guitar Hero publisher Activision is really working hard at trying to put user-generated tracks into the game, even if won’t be ready for another 5 years or more. We already knew that Harmonix wants to do the same thing for Rock Band, and from a recent interview with Greg LoPiccolo, their stance hasn’t changed much.
You have to hand it to Harmonix, when it comes to rhythm games, they always seem to be on top of things. While they had success with previous titles, they really changed the industry with Guitar Hero, and kept the momentum going with Guitar Hero 2. When they parted ways with Red Octane they decided it was time to start another revolution with Rock Band, which just landed them a huge $209 million bonus from Viacom.
There are some things that just make a person feel very patriotic. One of the big reasons why I love the US is because we don’t get screwed on release dates like some countries. Sure, Japan got Super Smash Bros. Brawl a month before we did, big deal. That’s nothing to the wait Europe has for most titles. If rumors are to be believed, some European rockers may have to wait until September before getting their Rock Band on.
It’s Tuesday, and that means there are fresh tracks just waiting to be downloaded for Rock Band. Well, that’s if you’re an Xbox 360 owner. My apologies to all of the PS3 rockers out there, you still have to wait an extra two days for your new tracks. While I can’t say that this week’s tracks are some of my favorite tunes, they are all master tracks. This week’s bands are KISS, Faith No More and the B-52’s. Hit the jump for the track listing.
This week has given us some pretty interesting information regarding Rock Band. Unfortunately, most of it has been less than accurate, or at least unconfirmed. We’ve managed to get a little bit of clarification on both the new Mic that was said to be compatible with the Wii and the March DLC that was revealed by OXM.
I’m really not the kind of guy that jumps up, points and says “I told you so.” However, were I that type of person, I would be doing just that. As I pointed out earlier this week, Rock Band will be making its way to the Nintendo Wii.
Are you thirsting for more tracks to rock out on? Well if you’re a Rock Band player, you know that there’ll be no shortage of DLC for some time. What we generally don’t know is what tracks will be released. Thankfully OXM has gotten the scoop on March’s releases. Hit the jump for the full list.
It’s a well-guarded secret that I play Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The previous statement was, in fact, a lie. I play them quite often (Rock Band more than Guitar Hero these days) and find myself buying new downloadable tracks on a regular basis. Apparently I’m not alone, as the games actually pulled in more money last year than all of the (legal) digital music downloads combined.
Remember not too long ago when we told you that Harmonix had finally announced the release of standalone instruments for Rock Band? That was cool, but they neglected to mention any word about a standalone mic. It was widely assumed that they weren’t overly concerned about it, as most any USB mic would work. Well, as it turns out, it’s already on sale, and its packaging holds a mysterious secret.
While it’s not the best picture, that does indeed say “Wii.”
SlashGear Japan
