Activision announces Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero and DJ Hero for fall

by Jem Alexander { May 7th 2009 at 9:16AM }

Activision continues to "exploit" its Guitar Hero franchise this year with three new full titles coming this autumn. The newly announced Guitar Hero 5 will offer "the ability to drop in and out of songs and change band members, instruments and difficulty levels on the fly." The press release contains no other details regarding the game, but you can bet it'll be pretty similar to Guitar Hero: World Tour.

Band Hero is the second of Activision's Hero trifecta for this fall. Don't be confused, Band Hero is completely separate from Guitar Hero. Except it's very similar -- it's Activision's attempt at a family-oriented Guitar Hero game, rated E10+, and will be facing off against Harmonix's Lego Rock Band later this year.

Finally, DJ Hero is something we've been hearing a lot of murmurs about for a while. It will feature "diverse music genres including hip-hop, R&B, Motown, electronica and dance" and will include the turntable controller, images of which we posted earlier. Apparently the title "transforms players into DJs who rule the club scene by creating original mixes of popular songs and music from the world's most exciting artists and DJs." We have to wonder, does the world need this many heroes?

Tags: activision, activision-blizzard, band-hero, dj-hero, Guitar-hero, guitar-hero-5

Related From Joystiq

Guitar Hero, Call of Duty franchises lead Activision's 'better-than-expected' Q3 2009
2 days ago
Guitar Hero co-founder expects DJ Hero to have slower initial sales
13 days ago
Full Band Hero track list, importable songs revealed
19 days ago

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

MystileArmor @ May 7th 2009 9:18AM

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

Guitar Hero: Tony Hawk

jeff @ May 7th 2009 9:31AM

Why is guitar her making a a statment about a skate bioarder?

Dr. @ May 7th 2009 9:32AM

We all know how exciting that game would be...

http://xbox.joystiq.com/2008/05/29/guitar-hero-world-tour-on-stage-debut/

*shudder*

Zerokku @ May 7th 2009 11:51AM

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/12/05/

This comic gets funnier and funnier as times goes by.

DaRabidDuckie @ May 7th 2009 11:53AM

This is seriously why I've been boycotting Activision games for months now, only buying used copies when they're available and buying absolutely no DLC whatsoever. All they do is whore out old franchises and offer nothing new, with Prototype being the one exception I can think of, but it's likely only because it's something they might be able to milk (ala Bobby Kotick's quote about only creating games that can be exploited as a franchise).

I wonder if we all need to get more formally organized about this? Not just shouting "Vote with your dollars, people!" but actually getting together and being more active about it. Ideas?

Richard 2.5 @ May 7th 2009 2:23PM

"I wonder if we all need to get more formally organized about this? Not just shouting "Vote with your dollars, people!" but actually getting together and being more active about it. Ideas?"

Here's an idea: try and get your priorities straight. I mean, really, are you serious? It's a fucking video game company. Yeah, they've gone a little crazy with their franchise-milking, but you act as if they're destroying the planet or poisoning society. Talking about getting "organized" and being more "active" in regards to some trivial game company that's has no adverse effect on the real world is just about the most ridiculous thing I've ever read on this site.

oolz @ May 7th 2009 9:19AM

LOLZY

Hafkie @ May 7th 2009 9:19AM

Well, here comes the usual shitstorm bawwfest related to every guitar hero article.

Snowblind @ May 7th 2009 12:04PM

I'm usually the first to defend properties that people claim are being overdone or milked.. But seriously, we're seeing 5+ Guitar Hero games per year, it's completely ridiculous.

I'm interested in the Beatles Rock Band and perhaps even the Lego one, depending on how its handled.. But give it a break.

bobartig @ May 7th 2009 2:57PM

I can't even keep track of who's copying who anymore. There's too many titles.

Harmonix looked like they were doing the 'right thing' with one amalgamated music store with SCADS of content, one solid engine, and the ability to munge (almost) everything into one big party experience. Now, they're double-branching with RockBand: Beetles, and Lego Rockband.

Might as well consider Guitar Hero again. Oh wait, they've got 3 branches coming out this year as well? What a mess. It's enough to make people stop buying rhythm games. I don't want to return to that crappy world of 5x different revisions of "Rock Game A" and having to switch discs, and deal with different gameplay with each switch. I thought I had escaped with Rock Band.. but I was wrong.

Harmonix, you can sell me a yearly update to RockBand with gameplay updates, and the ability to carry my songs forward, and I will *ALWAYS* buy it. Or, you can branch your musical ecosystem just like the Guitar Hero world, and I will no longer be able to differentiate your products from theirs. By the way, I don't buy their's any more. Balls in your court.

Mr. L @ May 7th 2009 9:20AM

That headline should really read: "Activision announces Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero and DJ Hero for FAIL".

DonGeronimo @ May 7th 2009 9:27AM

Forget about that what about this awsome guitar trainer (sarcasm)http://www.yourockguitar.com/

MrSpaceCowboy @ May 7th 2009 9:28AM

I think Tina Turner summed it up best with the song;

We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)

baby sea tuna @ May 7th 2009 9:49AM

That's the exact song my brain was singing as I was reading this article. Good show!

Manly Mcbeefington (Mr. ESC) @ May 7th 2009 12:41PM

So What do we do with our lives?
We leave only a mark
Will our story shine like a life
Or end in the dark
Give it all or nothing!!!

Dr. @ May 7th 2009 9:29AM

Shocking!

iamnotafish @ May 7th 2009 9:30AM

Will the old GHWT songs be importable to the new version? I think thats a huge draw of RB.

Michael T @ May 7th 2009 11:45AM

Offhand, I'm going to guess "no."

Who's with me?

Joe @ May 7th 2009 11:55AM

Activision really like money.

So, no. And if yes, at a hefty price.

Archon (PSN: Archonik, XBL: DarkARHN) @ May 7th 2009 9:33AM

WHEN WILL PEOPLE FUCKING LEARN TO STOP BUYING GUITAR HERO.

I FUCKING DESPISE THE SERIES NOW, NOT FOR RELEASING SO MANY GAMES, BUT THE RESULTING MURDER OF THE GENRE THAT THEY ARE COMMITTING.

THEY ARE KILLING ONE OF MY FAVOURITE GENRES THAT I ENJOYED SO MUCH.

FUCK YOU, ACTIVISION. FUCK YOU. YOU DON'T EVEN DESERVE TO DIE IN A FIRE.

I SENTENCE YOU TO LISTENING TO THE CRAPPY GUITAR HERO COVER SONGS FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY. FUCK YOU, ACTIVISION. FUCK YOU.

Dr. @ May 7th 2009 9:37AM

Chill!

Also, agreed...

MystileArmor @ May 7th 2009 9:39AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOC-hDULX1c&feature=related

Mr. L @ May 7th 2009 9:44AM

It's the industry man. People are buying what they're selling. With the exception of Guitar Hero Metallica (only because they're my favorite band), I haven't been excited about a Guitar Hero game since II came out. But the game's changed. We're not in charge anymore. It's the soccer mom's and football dad's out there who've gotten into gaming thanks to the Wii and all these other casual games and will just buy the same rehashed crap because they don't know any better. Stick to Rock Band, download the songs that you like and feel better.

Mr. L @ May 7th 2009 9:47AM

Oh, and MystileArmor, wouldn't that have been so much more effective if you could've just embedded it? LOL!

Access Granted @ May 7th 2009 10:56AM

But I had to buy Aerosmith for 10 bucks to get the free guitar for rockband...

Duke @ May 7th 2009 10:59AM

Normally I don't read all cap rants - but this time I have to agree. I am disgusted by the flow of these games and how the devs just keep raking us over the coals for more cash. Unlike Archon though, I am mostly disgusted with the constant releases of "new" games. It's bs.

People need to wake up and stop accepting these games. Now, that being said, if my wife says she wants a copy I will be promptly hitting the stores like a lemming.

baconaholic @ May 7th 2009 12:04PM

Running ipconfig/renew a couple times so I can plus this more than once.

Saria the Cat @ May 7th 2009 3:04PM

I LOVE LAMP

Go1denchi1d @ May 7th 2009 9:34AM

Does anyone remember beat mania??? Although the button scheme is different, I'm assuming incredibly similar play. What's next keyboard mania???

DrRocktopus @ May 7th 2009 9:36AM

Wow, a bunch of new guitar hero games. I bet Activision and Neversoft are really gonna take their time to really add to and improve the guitar hero experience and make these the best games in the series yet.

And monkeys might fly out of my butt.

PSN: John-Paul-Jones @ May 7th 2009 10:16AM

Why the hell can't Activision patch the features in Guitar Hero 5 to Guitar Hero 4? I don't own Guitar Hero, but I'm just saying how big of a sham this is. Furthernore, do they really need a DJ Hero? That is one of the stupidest and lamest ideas ever. DJ'ing, as opposed to *creating* music, doesnt require much music synchronization like the Rock Band/Guitar Hero games because it's mostly (if not, all) adding your own effects.

Easo @ May 7th 2009 10:40AM

"DJ'ing, as opposed to *creating* music, doesnt require much music synchronization like the Rock Band/Guitar Hero games because it's mostly (if not, all) adding your own effects."

Words spoken by a man that has no clue what he is talking about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XglC056_98M&feature=channel

Eric @ May 7th 2009 12:20PM

I'm not a DJ, but to do it requires you to be very involved in the music. Switching from song to song requires you to alter the tempo of the incoming song in order to align the beats, otherwise there is a gap, or a sudden change, in the music. It's much more complicated than pressing play on one side and stop on the other.

Schlagwerk @ May 8th 2009 1:21PM

I'm going to have to agree with John-Paul-Jones here. DJing is not creating music. Sure, you have to have very good rhythm and sense of the music you're spinning. Writing music is a lot more complex - you're starting from scratch as opposed to something someone else wrote. Kinda like building with Legos versus building with steel.

Nothing against DJs, mind you. They're talented, but in different ways than composers are.

ultimatepryceman @ May 7th 2009 9:36AM

'Family based' - does that mean the tracklist is going to be a bunch of public domain classical music and 70's-80's pop rock? Because I think Wii Music has that niche more or less covered.

Also, I'm not skeptical about the relentless milking of the GH cow. I'm a Pal Wii user - we pretty much take anything we can get to make those plastic instruments seem worth the purchase. Always I would like GH: WT Importing AND for the GH: WT DLC to work in GH 5.

DJ Hero has the potential to be the most authentic music-game experience yet - after all, DJs tend to play other peoples songs anyway.

ultimatepryceman @ May 7th 2009 9:37AM

You mind sweeping up the sand that just fell out of your vagina?

MrSpaceCowboy @ May 7th 2009 9:48AM

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand?

Shmil @ May 7th 2009 9:55AM

50 Cent: Sand in the Blood

Rocketboy @ May 7th 2009 9:58AM

50cent Sand in the Vaseline?

Jerk Face @ May 7th 2009 10:18AM

D :

ultimatepryceman @ May 7th 2009 9:38AM

Blame it on being a first-time poster - I meant to reply to Dr. Capslock up there.

FNG @ May 7th 2009 10:07AM

I wouldn't worry too much. those of us that have been here for years under many names still have our posts end up in places they were not supposed to. Hell, even this very post that says "replying to ultimatepryceman [Undo]" right above where I am typing could end up anywhere. Here goes, about to click the add comment button. where will it end up?

Robert Maynard @ May 7th 2009 9:42AM

Not a cent from me, cheers.

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