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Footage of Guitar Hero IV, someone tells Activision CEO it's called Rock Band
7:05 PM on 05.28.2008, Nick Chester 61 comments

     Music games

Are you sitting down? What we have here is the extremely awkward first footage of Activision's and Neversoft's Guitar Hero World Tour. Speaking at the All Things Digital 6 conference, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick introduced the game for the first time, bringing out Paula Abdul to clap, and Tony Hawk to play guitar.

This footage brings the official confirmation of a few things. One, Lenny Kravitz's "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" is indeed a playable song. Two, the gameplay sure does look and vibe a hell of a lot like Rock Band (which is not a bad thing). And three, Paula Abdul can't go anywhere with out her meds. 

Most hilarious is the following exchange between Kotick and interviewer Kara Swisher:

Kotick: We have a new product coming out in the fall called Guitar Hero World Tour, which is the first time you'll have multiple instruments -- drums, mic, bass, a different guitar ...

Swisher: It's called Rock Band, I think. 

Kotick (after a slight pause): We're calling it Guitar Hero World Tour.

Awkward ...

[Via Joystiq]


Next page: More Guitar Hero stories




Seanus's Avatar
Seanus at 05/28/2008 19:09
^Along with a picture of Kotick.
TwinkieFGR's Avatar
TwinkieFGR at 05/28/2008 19:09
Someone tell Nick it's called Rock BaND?

Lawl.

Awesome quote regardless.
Mxyzptlk's Avatar
Mxyzptlk at 05/28/2008 19:09
Well played Kara Swisher, well played.
DV2FOX's Avatar
DV2FOX at 05/28/2008 19:11
TONY HAWK!!...sweeeeeet...

Anyways,i hope they bring the "different" guitar in the bundle and not the GH3 one,so we dun have 3 PS3/X360 Guitars! XDDDD

Hope the game itself run smooth like GH3...and not a video like ROCK BAND on PS2...hope ROCK BAND on PS3/360 has no video XD
bmdubya's Avatar
bmdubya at 05/28/2008 19:18
Is it me, or does the gameplay look like the Guitar Hero that was on the South Park episode.
TrailerParkJesus's Avatar
TrailerParkJesus at 05/28/2008 19:20
lol @ "first time you'll have multiple instruments" and lol @ Rock Back
AKK's Avatar
AKK at 05/28/2008 19:22
So where exactly was the gameplay? There was maybe 4 seconds of it, if that.

Also, he got owned right there. No doubt.
T-Mart's Avatar
T-Mart at 05/28/2008 19:23
i seriously LOL-ed when she said Rock Band. I'm really glad they showed .5 seconds of the game and focused on the out of tune clapping of Drunk Paula and Tony Hawk and the nerd crew.
Jim Sterling's Avatar
Jim Sterling at 05/28/2008 19:26
"... we're calling it Guitar Hero World Tour."

That's fucking classic.

But eh, I'm more interested in this than Rock "months late and over twice as expensive" Band.
Diverse's Avatar
Diverse at 05/28/2008 19:27
I don't know why people are always bitching about GHIV and saying it's a Rock Band rip-off. Guitar Hero was here in the first place and Rock Band just came along and dick ate off them.

insert4chanimagemacro.jpeg
cbebop007's Avatar
cbebop007 at 05/28/2008 19:30
Hahaha. I *heart* Swisher.
bleep's Avatar
bleep at 05/28/2008 19:31
Paula is musically talented...oh and so it Tony Hawk...
sushi111's Avatar
sushi111 at 05/28/2008 19:33
Diverse you dont know much about this situation. Harmonix created GH1 and 2 (and 80s) before Neversoft snaked it from them.

So really its Guitar Hero that is now dick eating off Rock Band.

The game looks fucking terrible by the way.
DaveKap's Avatar
DaveKap at 05/28/2008 19:33
@Diverse

It might have to do with the fact that Harmonix, the developers behind Guitar Hero, went and made Rock Band, only to have their old series (Guitar Hero) shat upon by Activision and Neversoft when they tried to create the third installment. It's kinda hard to rip-off your own game.
Ninevolt's Avatar
Ninevolt at 05/28/2008 19:38
Oh i thought it was called Rock Band.

Well im just buying the disk on this one.
Dr Milkdad's Avatar
Dr Milkdad at 05/28/2008 19:40
Tony Hawk looks like he's having the time of his life.
Pedro Blandino's Avatar
Pedro Blandino at 05/28/2008 19:40
Kara Swisher, bravo!
Professor Pew's Avatar
Professor Pew at 05/28/2008 19:45
Nick Chester rocks your back.
SLiFE's Avatar
SLiFE at 05/28/2008 19:48
Remember teh 1st public Rock Band performance at the MS pre-E3 press conference last July? It rocked way harder than this debacle.

They shoulda atleast had Peter Moore on bass.
maxio098ui's Avatar
maxio098ui at 05/28/2008 19:48
omg activision is failing in promoting games. just look at the on tour tutorial .
ultimate fail
Nick Chester's Avatar
Nick Chester at 05/28/2008 19:56
ROCK BACK!
Slick Icarus's Avatar
Slick Icarus at 05/28/2008 19:58
Instead of dropping $190 on GH4, just buy Rock Band and $20 worth of downloadable songs. Unless you live in England, then you're S.O.L.
B-Radicate's Avatar
B-Radicate at 05/28/2008 20:14
That's fucking awesome.

If Activision was intelligent they would make all of Rock Band's peripherals fully compatible with this new version of Guitar Hero and sell the game completely separate from that of the announced bundle. That way, they could still get Rock Band owners to buy their product AND it would lower the price point of the bundle so people would think they would be getting a better deal than they really are (people are dumb, what can I say?) or just lower the price of the bundle entirely.
yaisuah's Avatar
yaisuah at 05/28/2008 20:18
That whole video just put the gay back in FUCKING GAY.
That guy also had the worst toupee ever and even more like Jabba the Hutt if he took it off.
yaisuah's Avatar
yaisuah at 05/28/2008 20:19
would look even
Arminas's Avatar
Arminas at 05/28/2008 20:20
Wow.... That was the best subliminal serving I've seen in a while. I think the young ones call it a "Soft Serve".
MechaMonkey's Avatar
MechaMonkey at 05/28/2008 20:24
Nick Chester is bringing rock back.
Hamsizzla's Avatar
Hamsizzla at 05/28/2008 20:26
even the sounds of messed up notes sound more shitty on this game. Of course the naive public will buy this game and hate it just as they did the wii. oops
Kamakazie's Avatar
Kamakazie at 05/28/2008 20:43
@B-Radicate: I suppose they could do that, if they were the ones publishing Rock Band.
kielejocain's Avatar
kielejocain at 05/28/2008 20:52
@Kamakazie:

Harmonix has very clearly made known their desire for all such peripherals to be compatible. Note that GH3's stuff is compatible with RB, and recall the story that Sony was going to release a patch so that the reverse was true, but Activision blocked it.

My guess is that the additional cymbal, while definitely neat, was really added so that the instruments could not be compatible (as the tracks have different numbers of 'lanes'). Either way, it is clear that Activision will continue down the path they've chosen, not allowing RB peripherals to work on GH4.
TheSheezie's Avatar
TheSheezie at 05/28/2008 20:55
That looks [u]terrible[/u].
flaming burrito's Avatar
flaming burrito at 05/28/2008 21:08
yea... rockband
imbeta's Avatar
imbeta at 05/28/2008 21:09
it's too bad they still don't want to stay away from tiny bullshit toy guitars...

Rock Band's may not be full size... but these LES PAULs are ITSY BITSY!
SWE3tMadness's Avatar
SWE3tMadness at 05/28/2008 21:25
Ouch.

Yeah, Activision is starting off at a HUGE disadvantage here since Rock Band has had such a long time to become recignized and cultivate a noticable fan base.

I actually think Activision would do better if they kept the game guitar-exclusive. That way, it could develop as two different styles of games - Guitar Hero for more technically challenging solo songs where the other parts may not play such an integral role; and then Rock Band for a better multiplayer experience and features songs where the guitar is not the sole focus and emphasizes other instruments.

Now they have to directly compete with Rock Band and Harmonix. Not an easy task, considering Rock Band pretty much nailed the formula their first time.
monosylabik's Avatar
monosylabik at 05/28/2008 21:32
saying harmonix nailed the formula is like saying hilary clinton is going to get the democratic nomination (topical humor joke -1).
this looks like what i hoped rock band was going to be (especially for the drums since i am a drummer myself) a bit more accurate and technical. if activision had the balls to change the name instead of leaching off the guitar hero success they could create this new franchise with better features and from the looks of the last video with chad smith,travis barker and stewart copeland a better promotional advantage.
burgerdog's Avatar
burgerdog at 05/28/2008 22:08
I'd consider getting it if I wasn't required to buy a whole new slew of fake instruments to get it to work. I've already got the clutter of the Rock Band gear and don't need more non-drums in my tiny house.

Mostly though, how much more bored could they have gotten the people playing to seem?
Clockwork's Avatar
Clockwork at 05/28/2008 22:17
Not good. But goddamn that is the best interview I've ever seen.
Bizznet's Avatar
Bizznet at 05/28/2008 22:31
I love playing Guitar Hero 2 at my friend's house, but I'll never buy my own copy of that, or Guitar Hero's clone Rock Band, or even this Rock Band clone. Called Guitar Hero.
AnotherCastle's Avatar
AnotherCastle at 05/28/2008 22:37
I'll be getting this version, since Activision seems to be one of the few companies that actually puts in any effort when it comes to the Wii. No sucktastic PS2 Rock Band port for me, thank you.
Sharpless's Avatar
Sharpless at 05/28/2008 22:50
First of all, Kara Swisher: Dead-fucking-on. I can't stomach how fucking dense and arrogant Activision has been with Guitar Hero. The "first time"? My goodness, you ridiculous nit. God forbid Activision actually try something different from the competition. Rock Band took a page from Guitar Hero's book and improved on it. Guitar Hero is just rehashing Rock Band's shit, now.

Second, that was the most ridiculously dull and unengaging video I've seen. That did nothing to get me interested in or excited for the game. My reaction is the same as the perpetual look on Tony Hawk's face.
Crumpet Lips's Avatar
Crumpet Lips at 05/28/2008 22:51
You know the more news and videos I see of Guitar Hero IV now are making me start to say to myself "Hmm wow that actually looks real dicky".

I am not getting Rock Band because they have delayed it for far too long and now I am not so sure I will even get Guitar Hero IV.

I guess I will play both once someone I know has one or both of them, then I may get one depending on how much I like it but it's starting to give me a sour taste in my mouth now, I don't think I like it anymore.

I would also like to see how GHIV pricing of DLC will be AND I would like to know what this whole "Create your own custom tracks" is all about. If that doesn't include being able to import MP3's of your choosing and create tracks for them then they lose big time. Why would I want to change a track of a song that is already setup on GHIV? That's fucking gay.
Dennen's Avatar
Dennen at 05/28/2008 23:10
I actually don't care about Guitar Hero anymore. I loved the series. But Rock Band has gotten me to just remind myself why I loved Harmonix to begin with.

I started out with Frequency and that led to Amplitude. Amplitude led to Guitar Hero. Now that they've moved over to making Rock band, I can honestly say that I really don't care for buying anymore guitars. I am actually on the brink of taking every guitar I have and just trashing them except for the Rock Band Instruments.

I sure as hell will not be picking up Guitar Hero IV unless they get off their high horse and make it somehow applicable to Rock Bands instruments. At least the mic and the guitar. But I will not be using their drums. I'm sick of buying additional items for my games. I'd rather buy additional songs. But I am just running out of room for me to place all these instruments.
Elandarex's Avatar
Elandarex at 05/28/2008 23:33
This is truly one of the most pathetic displays in gaming history. Thanks for all the entertainment Activision!
Tet's Avatar
Tet at 05/28/2008 23:48
"The game looks fucking terrible by the way."
Based on what? The three seconds of gameplay footage? For fuck sake it looks like Rock Band with round colors instead of square ones. Fanboys...
Knives's Avatar
Knives at 05/29/2008 00:02
I still get the feeling it will be like GH3 for me, it should be fun but it just gets boring fast.

@Tet
"Fanboys..."
Based on what? The three seconds of reading a line? For fuck sake it looks like a different opinion instead of your own.
Troll..
Morrius's Avatar
Morrius at 05/29/2008 00:56
Cock band
mistic's Avatar
mistic at 05/29/2008 00:57
LOL @ the interview, that was EPIC :-)
stevenjazz787's Avatar
stevenjazz787 at 05/29/2008 02:48
Tet said it best.
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