Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Guitar Hero: Beatles Edition?

Greatest. Rock band. Ever. - We all know that Guitar Hero: Aerosmith is coming this June, but could we be seeing a Beatles version of GH? According to this article from the LA Times today, its possible.
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The latest sign of a video-game "Revolution"? You may soon be able to plug in and play guitar in "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." Martin N. "Marty" Bandier, the top executive at the music publishing company that owns the John Lennon- Paul McCartney copyrights, said he liked the idea of a dedicated Beatles edition of Guitar Hero, Activision Inc.'s hugely popular video-game franchise. Activision announced last month that Aerosmith would be the first act with a dedicated version of Guitar Hero. "It's something we have talked about and something I'd like to pursue," said Bandier, who last year took over as chairman and chief executive at Sony/ATV Music Publishing. The company has loosened its approach to the Beatles' music. Producers of " American Idol," for instance, had for years sought permission for contestants to perform Beatles hits on the show but were turned down again and again.That's changed: Tonight's episode is the second week of an "all-Beatles" format for the show, which Bandier calls "a wonderful way to get this legendary music in front of an audience of 30 million people in an exciting way."
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Now we're talking! Personally I can't stand American Idol and could care less if a bunch of glorified karaoke singers didn't get to sing songs from the greatest band ever, but the chance to play Beatles tunes in a game like Guitar Hero would be awesome. And considering that Rock Band is a far superior game, it would actually give an older gamer like me (and possibly younger gamers with a sense of rock history) a reason to buy GH over Rock Band. If we see The Beatles in Guitar Hero, who knows where else we could see them in other games. Rock Band would make perfect sense to be sure but maybe licensed Beatles songs could be in other games as well. Maybe on a classic rock radio station in GTA perhaps?
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The keepers of The Beatles catalog have been awfully quiet for a long time. So far the people in charge have done a great job of not selling the band out and being respectful of its amazing franchise. You don't find the band being whored out like the Rolling Stones or Elvis. Heck, they're not even on iTunes (although all of the band members solo work is) and you'll rarely hear a Beatles tune in a commercial or some other cheesy advertisement. But with the band not having released an album in over 30 years, maybe its time The Beatles did reach a wider audience. Having a Guitar Hero: Beatles edition would be a sweet way for gamers to experience the greatest rock band ever.
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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

this is probably the only scenario i see that results in me buying guitar hero.

i disagree with your point about whoring out and commercials. there are TONS of beatles songs and shitty beatles covers in commercials. "across the universe", "drive my car", "here comes the sun", "good day sunshine", "getting better" have all been used and that's just off the top of my head. although i agree they haven't been whored out as much as others and been in like mastercard commercials or anything.

Terry Terrones said...

I'm not saying the Beatles aren't out there, they're certainly making some money. But unlike a lot of other bands who will put their brand on anything from sheets to toilet paper, they're a lot more subtle.

Anonymous said...

Im 14 and i disagree with letting aerosmith get a whole edition dedicated to them insteadf of the beatles, aerosmiths early start was great but after they were made to a radio band they became dead to me, the beatles have a huge selection of songs that will stand the test of time & should be recognized we can only hope that some people will make the decision to let the beatles get a dedicated version of GH they earned it, yet aerosmith with about 5 tops good songs takes the stage...

Anonymous said...

Personally, being a HUGE fan of the Beatles, i thin kit would be awesome! Because to tell you the truth, i don't really know any of the songs of bands on Guitar Hero... or didn't until i played it. I'm 14, and pretty good at Guitar Hero, but a Beatles version would make it so much more fun!

Anonymous said...

I agree with everyone else. I'm also 14 and a Beatles Fan too. Having a Beatles edition would have been a better idea.