Many of us could write entire volumes of songs and bands we'd like to see in one or both of the reigning emperors of the rhythm genre, Rock Band and Guitar Hero -- we'd wager that included in everyone's wishlist is a track or twelve from the legendary early 70s rock outfit Led Zeppelin. Unfortunately, Zeppelin front man Jimmy Page recently hung a definitive "No Stairway" sign on the genre, citing his hesitance to lend game developers the band's valuable master tracks.

The reasons behind Page's apprehension are unknown -- perhaps it has to do with the recent news of the easily misplaceable nature of master recordings. We hope the group's co-founder can be persuaded to part with the recordings before the siren call of "Immigrant Song" swoons the games' developers, forcing them to include earnest but unsatisfying covers of Zeppelin's bigger tracks. Discerning ears know -- there really is no rock-scream like a Robert Plant rock-scream.

Eager bookworms visiting the Washington-Centerville Public Library in Centerville, Ohio, will face exposure to the new-fangled "video game" entertainment medium, as the library will now be loaning PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 games. According to the Dayton Daily News, the library will carry two categories of games: Titles aimed at families, and ones aimed at players aged 10 and up (sans adult-only games). Each game will be available for one-week loan with the option of one renewal.

You can check for yourself which games are available in the library's online catalog, though the Dayton Daily News has gone and confirmed the presence of Guitar Hero, Kung-Fu Panda, Madden NFL 08 and, err, Iron Man. That one's probably meant to frighten the kids into reading books again.

[Via Shacknews]

In celebration of this week's Fourth of July holiday, Activision plans to serenade Guitar Hero III players with in-your-face patriotism and ambiguous homo-eroticism -- that's right, the "Top Gun Anthem" will be available as a free download on July 3rd. The film's instrumental theme, obtainable from both Xbox Live and PlayStation Network, is sure send your fingers up and down your instrument as you dream of being Val Kilmer's wingman. No, Tom Cruise's wingman!

You have room on your desk, right? Right there between the Varia Suit Samus statue and Battle Armor Skeletor sits a space just begging to be filled. Now, McFarlane Toys, whose figs have more in common with plastic sculptures than actual toys, has announced plans to fill that space on your already crowded desk with figures based on Guitar Hero this November.

Already known for creating figures based on other video game properties such as Metal Gear Solid and Halo, McFarlane Toys has announced a manly lineup of four Guitar Hero personalities, each featuring 15-18 moving parts and a price between $10-15. The first wave of plastic rockers will include Johnny Napalm, Lars Ümlaut, Axel Steel, and God of Rock, while Casey Lynch and Judy Nails cheer lead the first wave from the sidelines.

While we may find ourselves favoring Rock Band's a la carte offerings far more than Activision's band-themed bundles, we're not sure whose model will win in the long run. Take the Beatles for example: getting the notoriously protective (note: they're not even on iTunes) band's tracks onto either offering (or both!) would be a huge coup, to be sure, but wouldn't Guitar Hero: Beatles be more attractive to the license holder than some downloadable tracks for Rock Band?

FT.com revisits the pursuit and reports that, perhaps unsurprisingly, Beatles "representatives have held discussions with both Activision and MTV Games" in pursuit of a "final deal [that] would be worth several million dollars" and "could be reached in a matter of weeks." Well, we'll be here in a matter of weeks ... say, E3 would be a really nice time to announce something. We're just sayin' ...

Just in case you hadn't heard via, oh, every manner of media possible, British rockers Coldplay will have a new album, Viva la Vida, on shelves (and your favorite music download service) June 17. Today Activision announced that a dose of Coldplay DLC will hit Guitar Hero III two days later on June 19.

The Coldplay track pack will contain three songs, including "Violet Hill," the first single from Viva la Vida. "Yellow" and "God Put a Smile on Your Face" from the album A Rush of Blood to the Head round out the set. Activision has yet to price the goods, but three-song packs have historically run 500 MS points via Xbox Live and $6.25 on PSN.

[update: Activision sends along confirmation that the Coldplay track pack will, in fact, set you back 500 MS points or $6.25 on XBL and PSN, respectively.]

Following the Motörhead set earlier this month, more Guitar Hero III downloadable content lands on the PS3 and Xbox 360 today, with the three-song Isle of Wight Track Pack now available on both consoles for purchase and download.

The pack features "Problems [live at Brixton] by The Sex Pistols, "Shoot the Runner" by Kasabian, and "I Predict a Riot" by Kaiser Chiefs. The set costs 500 Microsoft Points, or $6.25 USD on PS3. For a taste, check out the above video for Kasabian's "Shoot the Runner." It's kinda rockin'.

[Via X3F]

Each week Jeff Engel and Geoff Brooks contribute Counting Rupees, a column on the business behind gaming:
Guitar Hero IV is on its way, and with it are coming individual games themed around Metallica, Aerosmith, and others. This follows the strategy highlighted by Activision CEO Robert Kotick last year, in which the executive promised shareholders to fully "exploit" the company's franchises on an annual basis. The immediate response of gamers was almost exclusively negative, not least because the prospect has connotations of poor quality and high pricing. Although Activision may be the only company to announce its strategy so publicly, it's hardly the only adopting these kinds of tactics. If it irritates gamers so much, why do companies in the industry do this? And is it as bad as it seems?

Some of us here at Joystiq still remember the first time we played Super Mario 64, at a Toys "R" Us kiosk set up a month before the game and the Nintendo 64 system were officially released. Compared to that, a four-hour long in-store sneak peak for Guitar Hero: On Tour might not seem as revolutionary, but hey, we'll take what we can get.

Players eager for some portable shredding can head to their local TRU between noon and 4 p.m. on June 14 -- one week before the game's June 22 release. Besides getting the opportunity to "prove their shredding skills on the most diverse set list of master tracks ever offered in a Guitar Hero game," as the release puts it, attendees will also receive a "complimentary Guitar Hero sticker, dog tag, and temporary tattoo." Caution: Wearing all three at once may actually transform you into a rock god, accidentally raining rock-infused destruction on the surrounding area. You've been warned.

[Via Press Release]

Big fat update this week. For starters, it's time for PS3 owners to jump in the pool and try out the Civilization Revolution demo. So far, our thoughts are positive, but conflicted. PC Civilization players will jump right in and notice some major changes, but will console gamers find joy in the methodical (yet incredibly streamlined) Civ gameplay?

Enough thinking, what about some twitch action? The free God of War theme for GH III is available today, along with the PSN's first game self-published by a developer, Novastrike. Also, storming out of left field is Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3. There's also a couple other nice additions in this week's update, so check it out after the break.

The PS3 Fanboy's got your European PSN update on their site, but be sure to bring chocolates. They like chocolates.

Fret no more, for there is new reason to hold onto thy fret! Activision has announced that five new downloadable track packs for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock will be made available in the month of June. The first pack, a trio of songs from British band Motörhead, is already available on the Xbox Live Marketplace, and should follow on the PlayStation Network later today.

The only other release announced thus far is the Isle of Wight pack. The Isle of Wight is not, you'll note, a band, but a music festival held in 2007. Three of its "most memorable performances" have been converted into colorful note charts, with Kasabian, Kaiser Chiefs and The Sex Pistols providing the music. So, in summary:

Motörhead Track Pack (5 June / 500 MS Points / $6.25)

• "(We Are) The Road Crew"
• "Stay Clean"
  
• "Motörhead"

Isle of Wight Track Pack (12 June / Price unconfirmed, but likely to be same as above)

• "Shoot the Runner" by Kasabian
  
• "I Predict a Riot" by Kaiser Chiefs
  
• "Problems" by The Sex Pistols

Having mastered every single one of Guitar Hero III's songs (including that one), perhaps you and your freakish, mutant fingers are yearning for some new notes to enliven those increasingly soporific shredding sessions. If you've got a PlayStation 3 copy of Activision's guitar 'em up, why not grab the promised God of War track, "The End Begins (to Rock)," from the PSN later today? It's epic, it's free and it sounds like this.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Wedbush Morgan analyst -- no, not that one -- Edward Woo uncovered some interesting news after sifting through an Activision SEC filing this week. According to the filing (via Gamespot), the company plans to launch Guitar Hero: Metallica in Fiscal 2009, which, for Activision, is anytime between now and March 31, 2009.

No other details are known about the game other than its existence. Will it be guitar-only or multi-instrumental a la the upcoming Guitar Hero World Tour? Regardless, we're guessing that long-awaited new single won't debut on Rock Band anymore.

It's Guitar Hero III ... now with lots more Aerosmith! Seriously though, at Activision's hands-on debut event for the stepping stone to Guitar Hero World Tour, we couldn't help but feel a strong overwhelming sense of déjà vu.

That's probably because, for all intents and purposes, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith is GH3 with polygonal likenesses of the legendary rockers, a story mode that follows their rise to fame, lots of their songs, and a few tracks from other bands to sweeten the deal.