Sublime joins Guitar Hero: World Tour, Activision confirms previous acts, details

by Alexander Sliwinski { May 22nd 2008 at 10:45AM }

Activision made Guitar Hero: ~~Rock Band Edition~~ World Tour official today, confirming the details leaked from the current issue of Game Informer. World Tour will feature an all-master track cast, filled with previously named acts like Van Halen, Linkin Park, and The Eagles, plus today's confirmation of Sublime and "many more." The announcement also highlights the "Music Studio" mode (create-a-song), which allows players to "compose, record, edit and share music," and the 8-player "Battle of the Bands" mode.

World Tour will also feature so-called "new state of the art wireless instruments" (as sorta seen yesterday), meaning mom won't trip over the coil of wires when she walks in front of the TV and totally destroys the rock mojo; and the still curious, but ambitious sounding promise to add "significantly more localized downloadable music than ever before on all of the next-generation consoles." Yep, that includes the Wii version (developed by Vicarious Visions). Activision confirms that World Tour will be the "first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii" -- just make sure your SD card is inserted.

Gallery: Guitar Hero: World Tour

Tags: activision, breakingnews, budcat, gh-iv, gh4, ghwt, guitar-hero, guitar-hero-iv, guitar-hero-world-tour, neversoft, vicarious-visions

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

PojoMofo @ May 22nd 2008 10:50AM

Sublime??? Holy Hell!!!!!

That just made this somewhat relevant again.

murph @ May 22nd 2008 10:56AM

Yup, I REALLY don't want two sets of plastic drums in my living room, but VH and Sublime masters is going to make that decision alot tougher to stick to. Congrats Activision, I have officially changed my interest from "no f*cking way" to "on the fence, need more info".

muddyhelmit @ May 22nd 2008 1:06PM

"Sublime = sold" for me. I hope it is more than just 1 song. If it has the whole album "40oz to Freedom" then I'll be happy to throw down another $100 for more hardware (even though I own 3 guitars, drum kit, and mic already).

Mike @ May 22nd 2008 3:25PM

Sublime. 'nuff said.

Tiptup300 @ May 22nd 2008 4:47PM

Please note, probably only one song. Still not quite worth it.

Phi Nguyen @ May 22nd 2008 5:45PM

Hey guys, I really like Sublime as well, but can you imagine how boring it would be to play their songs on Guitar Hero? Ska is not known for it's difficult guitar riffs.

Shadow El @ May 22nd 2008 6:52PM

The hornless version of Date Rape, possibly? Or maybe Santeria?

Both aren't solely composed of the normal ska-fare upstroke patterns, and both also contain guitar solos.

baby sea tuna @ May 22nd 2008 10:55AM

Wow, 3 in a row! Can't we just combine all of these Guitar Hero posts into one, so none of us have to repeat how much better Rock Band is in every comments section?

copa @ May 22nd 2008 10:57AM

Neversoft had a pretty simple mission. Do a knockoff of GH2, and add a couple of bells and whistles. They totally fucked it up.

Now, Neversoft has been given a new mission. Do a knockoff of Rock Band, and add a couple of bells and whistles. It seems that some fans with short-term memory are getting excited about this.

I'm guessing that we see a lot of these bands (Sublime, Dream Theater, Eagles) pop up on Rock Band DLC long before GH:World Tour gets released.

E.J. @ May 22nd 2008 2:49PM

Don't count on the Eagles and Linkin Park or any GH4 stuff going on Rock Band DLC. For all we know, their properties are probably exclusive to GH4. Activision is the type of company that will ensure that no one steals their thunder again.

And everybody knows that music industry managers aren't exactly the sharpest tools in the shed and signed contracts that said "Guitar Hero = money" forgetting that "more platforms = MORE money".

Jomolungma @ May 22nd 2008 5:04PM

Here's how it will go - Activision will announce that GH IV will officially be released on X/X/08. About 2-4 weeks before X/X/08, HMX will announce that Rockband II will be coming out in Spring 09 and it will have complete backwards compat with their DLC library PLUS have all of GH IV's new features and then some. At that point, nobody who owns Rockband will buy GH IV except those that want to specifically play Sublime and/or Van Halen.

jsn @ May 22nd 2008 11:01AM

I'm not going to shell out $200+ for ANOTHER one of these games for a few bands and a gimmicky "create-a-song" feature... Rock Band has and will continue to get plenty of big named bands and they already have my money. It's going to take a lot more to get me back to the guitar hero side.

I fully expect Harmonix to release patches to enable much of the online features that have been hinted at for GHWT as well.

HarDCoRe ManSTuFF tomato STyLE @ May 22nd 2008 11:02AM

"Activision confirms that World Tour will be the "first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii" -- just make sure your SD card is inserted."

and that might friends is the nail in the coffin for Mr. gimped rock band on wii sales............

baby sea tuna @ May 22nd 2008 11:18AM

IF they can manage to make the average Wii owner (i.e. my mom, your little sister, people who don't read gaming sites or Activision's press releases) aware of this before they drop ~$200 on RB when it comes out *next month*. And that, my friend, is a HUGE if!

Chances are, if you buy RB on a sub-par platform (Wii, PS2) DLC is not going to be a deal-breaker for you.

Co @ May 22nd 2008 11:25AM

See but that's just it tuna man,

The average Wii owner isn't whom you describe, but rather the same people that by every Nintendo system a.k.a. die hard Nintendo fanatics.

Co @ May 22nd 2008 11:30AM

BTW, just a general observation:

I love how still today, in May of 2008, there's this small portion of 360/PS3 snub nosers that are in denial over the Wii. It's a "sub par" system some say. It's not a true next gen system others say.

What it really is doing is shitting on your console of choice's sales numbers, and will continue to do so.

baby sea tuna @ May 22nd 2008 11:34AM

No...that was the average GameCube/N64 owner. Sure, we all bought Wiis too, but not 10 million of them (or whatever number they're up to by now.) If you want proof of who the average Wii owner is now, check out pics from the WiiFit NYC launch.

...not that there's anything wrong with that.

baby sea tuna @ May 22nd 2008 11:39AM

I should have clarified, Wii/PS2 are sub-par platforms *for Rock Band*. Lack of DLC, optical 5.1, and Hi-def visuals are the reasons. Nice to see that Activision's addressing one of the problems, but there's no possible way to fix the other 2 without a major hardware overhaul.

PS. Remember, I am a Wii owner as well as a 360/PS3 owner. Granted, the Wii does some things well (I LOOOOVE me some Boom Blox,) but RB/GH ain't one of them.

Co @ May 22nd 2008 11:03AM

Yep, that includes Wii. Activision confirms that World Tour will be the "first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii" -- just make sure your SD card is inserted.

Hmm, sounds like we'll be hearing from Nintendo soon on the storage solution that is the SD Card slot. Hopefully they'll open it up even more and allow USB flash drive support as well.

deaftly @ May 22nd 2008 11:28AM

Knowing Nintendo, like MS, they would force you to buy their own brand of usb HDD and it would prob be much more overpriced then the already overpriced MS HDD.

Co @ May 22nd 2008 11:35AM

I dunno, Deaftly. I was thinking the reason why they haven't opened up the USB for storage support is so they wouldn't want to have to offer up those accessories. They're weird like that. I think they are looking for the quickest, 'hurry up and get this out of our face' type of approach, which is why I think SD Cards will be the only option offered. Oh well, I got a 2 gigger in mine right now waitin on the announcement.

Mr Khan @ May 22nd 2008 7:47PM

My guess is that they will resolve the whole memory solution with file keys. Every downloadable Wii file would come with a 1 Block file key that will only appear as a separate file if you move it off the onboard 1TS-RAM. The key would be immovable and impossible to copy, and tied to the specific console

That's the most convenient solution I could think of that would solve Nintendo's piracy paranoia and the memory expansion issue

saintrobyn @ May 22nd 2008 11:08AM

All I want to know is if the Rock Band drums will be compatible in some way with this game.

I know Activision is out to make money but they have to consider that one of their install bases is people who already have a room full of instruments.

Eternityx @ May 22nd 2008 11:13AM

"first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii" -- just make sure your SD card is inserted.

That just made me cry....tears of happiness..

Teege @ May 22nd 2008 12:37PM

That statement has sealed the deal for me passing on RB for Wii and instead waiting for GH4. I know there are a lot of Wii owners who feel the same way since Harmonix got lazy as completely dissed the Wii.

John @ May 22nd 2008 5:17PM

No, Nintendo Dissed the Wii by not having any kind of HDD option.

Those songs are 20-35 MB each, add that to any VC games you have and your game saves and it adds up pretty quick. You want to keep swapping out SD cards with every song?

Benjamin Breeg @ May 22nd 2008 11:29AM

Man, I'm glad I'm not like the rest of you guys who jumped on the Rock Band-wagon almost immediately.

Now I don't have to whine that "Oh noes, I can't have 2 plastic drumsets in my house!"

Personally, I have two 5-piece real drumsets (google it if you've never heard of one) in my house, one in my room, and one in the living room, so this mini little drumset that actually looks like a cheap electronic set is pretty sweet.

And the DLC on wii+recording your own songs=me purchasing this mothafuckin game.

They just better have some god damn longer Maiden songs. I'm sick of them only doing singles, I want something like Hallowed Be Thy Name or Powerslave.

Benjamin Breeg @ May 22nd 2008 11:36AM

And I do have a 360, I just plan on getting this for the Wii, because my 360's acting like it's about to kick the bucket.

hai2u @ May 22nd 2008 11:39AM

They need to put in The Duelists or Paschendale for reals yo. Im just hoping for Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence by Dream Theater. I just want to see people fail at the end of a 42 minute long song.

Benjamin Breeg @ May 22nd 2008 12:17PM

Hahahaha, that would suck. I don't know though, that'd take up a lot of space. It is Guitar Hero though, you've gotta remember, they'll only put it in the most famous songs, so people will be playing songs they might not like but have heard of before.

I'd say paschendale is an almost definite no. For some reason, nobody ever gives any respect or attention to Maiden's latest 3 albums, even though they're possibly their best work. My guess for the next most likely song is 2 Minutes to Midnight, or maybe if we're lucky, Hallowed Be Thy Name or Fear of the Dark. As for Dream Theater, it's just dumb that neither game has had a DT song yet, but probably the most we could ever expect is Pull Me Under.

hai2u @ May 22nd 2008 12:36PM

Gah.. it's terrible that no one really cares about the recent Maiden albums. Thinking more about it, Rainmaker would be the perfect song for Guitar Hero, but it'll never happen cuz it's not classic Maiden and not a new release. As for Dream Theater, if they ever get a brain and put them in, it'll be Pull Me Under, like you said, or Forsaken or whatever their newest single is at the time.

John @ May 22nd 2008 5:22PM

Man, I'm glad I'm not like the rest of you guys who jumped on the Rock Band-wagon almost immediately.

Now I don't have to whine that "Oh noes, I can't have 2 plastic drumsets in my house!"

Yeah, except have you PLAYED GH3? it's a steaming pile of shit.

And the people crying about having 2 plastic drumsets really have to admit the cool train left the station while they were buying the first one, so they might as well go all in if they still want GH.

Shad0wguy @ May 22nd 2008 11:35AM

"first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii"

That just sold it for me. If they pull that off I will forgive the botched GH3 on the Wii(mono sound thing). looks like I'll be in the market for a new SD card in the fall.

Tone @ May 22nd 2008 11:36AM

Wow, thank you Acti for doing DLC on Wii and not leaving us gimped!

Robotic Earthling @ May 22nd 2008 12:00PM

This looks... extremely promising... especially as a Wii owner. I feel like Rock Band is more deserving of my money though. =/ GH:WT is obviously a huge ripoff of Rock Band, but if they pull it off well...

I'm not deciding anything until I read multiple first hand impressions of this.

Benjamin Breeg @ May 22nd 2008 12:20PM

Well, Rock Band is in turn kind of a rip-off of Guitar Hero (which rips off guitar freaks), all the Drumming arcade games, and all the karaoke video games, it just combines them all.

Every game rips off another. It's nothing to be shamed at, it help move the industry along.

Robotic Earthling @ May 22nd 2008 12:51PM

Eh, you're right. But I was trying to get more at the "it's successful, let's blatantly copy it" idea that's been going around in the industry. And I'm not sure I would call Rock Band a ripoff of Guitar Hero, seeing as Harmonix created both of them. As for copying GuitarFreaks and DrumMania and everything, I'd consider that acceptable since Harmonix nearly reinvented it, though that's just what I think.

It's the fine line between "ripping off" and "taking what's been (quietly) done before and making it better."

John @ May 22nd 2008 5:24PM

I may be wrong, but didn't Harmonix design almost EVERY one of the Bemani games for Konami?

Which was about every music game ever made?

dbeth @ May 22nd 2008 12:35PM

just please make the Les Pauls on the Wii work with this....PLEASE!

All I want to be able to do is buy GH4 and a drum kit...THAT'S IT!

tlozwarlock @ May 22nd 2008 1:22PM

That mohawk guy is totally rocking a BC. Rich Beast-ish guitar. FINALLY a guitar rhythm game that has MY real guitar's body. Yes, silly to want to rock out on a virtual version of my own real six string but still, it'll make the online element fun.

The create a guitar mode should be fun too.

Not seeing how the create a song will work too well...

T @ May 22nd 2008 1:34PM

I will likely get this game as a standalone...for guitar and mic.

If the drums are compatible with RB, then I will likely sell my RB gear and buy the full bundle.

I will not have two drum kits however. Not now. Not ever. No matter how much they tempt me.

Mrblonde @ May 22nd 2008 1:34PM

"first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii"

Ever? This is the second one that will be on it. I wouldn't really say ever.

Hafk @ May 22nd 2008 5:28PM

Forgetting Aerosmith.

Mrblonde @ May 22nd 2008 5:31PM

Ah yeah. But, sense World Tour will be their main benchmark title, I don't think they will have a lot of DLC for Aerosmith. I had forgotten that it was going to be out on wii too.

Zippy5150 @ May 22nd 2008 2:22PM

Activision confirms that World Tour will be the "first game ever in the Guitar Hero franchise to allow in-game downloadable content on Wii"

I seem to recall them swearing up and down that they were looking into DLC for Guitar Hero 3. I'll believe it when I see it.

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/08/wii-guitar-hero-iii-getting-dlc-and-replacement-discs/

SKI @ May 22nd 2008 7:01PM

They figured out how to do it, then realized it would be a good selling point to get the millions of Wii GH3 players to upgrade.

ianoid @ May 22nd 2008 3:03PM

So much downloadable content, you'll forget all the downloadable content you didn't get with Guitar Hero III! Aerosmith edition is just a slap in the downloadable content face. And the fact that they never released 80s in a current (sorry PS2ers) format? Another slap in (alongside, on, at, to) my face. I guess I'll just have to wait to pay $49.95 for Guitar Hero IV Mike Oldfield edition.