GiN Reports: "Peak Products, a gaming peripheral company dedicated to providing the best in instrument quality gaming controllers, announces Starpex, the first-ever full-size, wood, PS2 /PS3 Guitar controller with the look and feel of an actual guitar. Starpex boasts an instrument-quality, highgloss lacquered finish with a hardwood body, neck, and headstock handcrafted by a leading guitar manufacturer giving the authentic guitar experience that Guitar Hero and Rock Band enthusiasts crave."
» Read More 

Activision Blizzard Inc. on Thursday reported that Activision Inc.'s first-quarter profits more than doubled on strong sales of the "Guitar Hero" franchise and the game based on the animated movie "Kung Fu Panda."

The first quarter ended before the closing of Activision's merger with Vivendi Games, creating Activision Blizzard.

In the quarter, Activision earned $59 million, or 18 cents a share, up from $27.8 million, or 9 cents a share, in the first quarter a year ago.

In the quarter, Activision logged $654.2 million in sales, up from $495.5 million a year ago.
» Read More 

Not content with the plastic miniature guitar you're forced to use when you pretend rock out? Well, if you're a PlayStation 2 or 3 owner with an extra $180 lying around, you can pick up this new wooden guitar that works with Rock Band and all of the Guitar Hero games.
» Read More 

Dick McVengeance of Destructoid says,

"Let's face it: the Guitar Hero controller is not the ideal item for the game. It'd be nice to hold a full-sized guitar in your hands. We've seen people build custom controllers and put them on eBay, but those were one-off deals, and usually rather expensive."
» Read More 

Games like "Rock Band" and "Guitar Hero III" have proved their ability to breathe new life into classic rock sales. But can they do the same for new music?

Last month, Motley Crue decided to find out. The band placed its new single, the title track from "Saints of Los Angeles," for sale as a downloadable track on "Rock Band" well in advance of the album's release date, which has been pushed back to June 24. The only other place to obtain the track was iTunes.

According to data provided by the band's management, Tenth Street Entertainment, the track was downloaded more than 47,000 times via the Xbox 360 version of the game alone in the first week after it became available.

By comparison, the same track received slightly more than 10,000 downloads via digital services like iTunes and Amazon, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
» Read More 

As games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero continue to gobble up market and mind share, it's a safe bet gamers are going to continue to see more manufacturers trying to one-up the originals with their own take on the fake instruments. To that end, longtime guitar crafter The Ant Commandos is back with a new line-up of gear coming this spring.

First are two new wireless products, The Widow Maker Wireless Bass Guitar and The Double Range Guitar, compatible with Rock Band and Guitar Hero 1, 2 and 3 for the PS2 and PS3.
» Read More 

Gibson Guitar are suing both Wal-Mart and other major consumer retailers in relation to them selling Activision's Guitar Hero series of games. It should getting very interesting, but in the meantime the parties have each issued press releases.
» Read More 

Activision has released a statement in response to Gibson Guitar's claims that the publisher's popular Guitar Hero series of games infringe upon one of its patents.

Activision said in a statement released on Thursday, "Gibson's lawsuit is a transparent end run around an impartial court that Activision asked on March 11 to rule on patent assertions that Gibson knows have no merit."

"Our Guitar Hero retailing partners have done nothing wrong. We will confront this and any other efforts by Gibson to wrongfully interfere with Activision's relationship with its customers and its consumers."
» Read More 

On Thursday, March 20th, the Dallas Mavericks will launch the Guitar Hero Challenge where aficionados will have the chance to show off their skills on the AT&T Plaza outside the South Entrance of American Airlines Center. The grand prize, the chance to play Guitar Hero during a quarter break at a First Round Playoff game, two-tickets to the game, an autographed Mavs Authentic jersey.
» Read More 

While the Nintendo Wii continues to garner headlines for its many alternative uses, occupational therapists at the Select Specialty Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana are investigating the potential of Guitar Hero in physical rehabilitation.

Certified occupational therapy assistant Kelly Colwell first noted the healing potential of Guitar Hero while working with a patient who had injured his elbow and lost range of motion in his arm.
» Read More 

Mon Jan 21 2008, by Mark Wilson

Around 26 months ago, Guitar Hero was an instant cult classic. Today, it's officially a $1 billion franchise. Apparently this milestone comes in video game record time. In addition, since the launch of Guitar Hero III, users have downloaded five million songs. If so, that total is double the figure that Rock Band has released.

Kotaku posted Activision's official announcement.
» Read More 

Videogames are often put at odds with certain forms of productivity, such as learning a musical instrument. But performance simulators such as Guitar Hero have proven to be an entryway into real-world musicianship.

To help support a growing interest in guitar study, RedOctane and NAMM announced a partnership at the annual NAMM Show in Anaheim, Calif. that will link Guitar Hero III to NAMM's "Wanna Play" campaign. This new facet of the public awareness campaign focuses on bridging the gap between virtual and real-life musicianship.
» Read More 

In 2008, the team at MTV Games are proud to present to you the MTV Rhythm Game Track Finder, your beacon in the confusing swirl of rhythm games.

The regularly updated database will allow you to search any artist and any song to find out which rhythm games it is in and to compare song lists for any major music-based video game.

The database currently indexes song lists for more than two dozen rhythm games, including a range of SingStars, Guitar Heroes, Dance Dance Revolutions, Rock Band, and lesser-known favorites such as FreQuency, Elite Beat Agents and the Donkey Konga series.
» Read More 

Guitar Hero may be a great game, but it doesn't help the ego if you are thrashing with a little plastic toy in your hands. For the music loving gamers who love their guitars, ArtGuitar and Peavey are making 17 limited edition PS2 Guitar Hero controllers - with fantastic artwork and housed in a real high-quality Peavey guitar.
» Read More 

Activision has announced a dual pack with Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II games for only $59.99 USD for the Playstation 2 . Just buy a guitar of your choice for the Playstation 2 and you will be all set to rock on with two games for the price of one.
» Read More 

Introducing a new title into a national videogame league is never easy. The game has to be easy enough to pick up, but at the same time offer a competitive level of expertise that only a few in the world can obtain.
The World Series of Video Games is hoping that Guitar Hero will be the next game to propel competitions to epic proportions.

Guitar Hero is one of those games which does fit into the national competition level. Anyone can pick it up, but only a select few can master it. With that in mind it looks like Guitar Hero is setting itself up to be the next big competition ticket next to heavy weights like Quake IV and World of Warcraft.
» Read More 

In only a few months, gamers will be able to get their guitar on as Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock comes rocking onto the Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Playstation 2, and Playstation 3.

The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the game will ship for A$169.95 (roughly $137 US), while the Wii version will put you back A$159.95. The PS2 bundle is set at A$149.95. Each of these bundles will include the game and a wireless guitar controller. Extra wireless guitars will cost A$79.95 for the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii. Activision is also planning on selling the game as a separate item for the PS2 and the 360, which will cost A$69.95 and A$89.95 respectively.

Guitar Hero II for the PS2 and Xbox 360 cost A$149.95 and A$159.95 at launch, respectively, both packaged with wired guitars.
» Read More 

Today, this intricately crafted LEGO Guitar Hero controller appeared on the internet, and GamerSquad's jaw duly dropped.

Obviously, constructing a replica of Guitar Hero's Gibson Explorer-inspired controller using just LEGO is a feat worthy of applause on its own, but get this: it even works with the game.
» Read More 

While playing Guitar Hero with a large frame and big fingers can be difficult, the opposite side of the spectrum can pose a unique challenge as well. Enter XFPS and their "mini guitar".
» Read More 

If you were unfortunate enough to sell your PS2 before reading about the failed attempts to play the original Guitar Hero on PS3, you aren't alone. PS3 users have been patiently awaiting this very product since it was known to be in the works since November. Thanks to Pelican and their beautiful PS2 to PS3 adapting magic, PS3 users can finally rejoice, hold their original Guitar Hero controllers high, and rock themselves out silly.
» Read More