According to a report from Financial
Times, the Beatles tunes will soon be included in the popular music games,
Guitar Hero and Rock Band.
The financial newspaper informed that there are ongoing negotiations
between Activision, the company which developed Guitar Hero and the Beatles
representatives, Apple Corps and EMI.
Although, the companies have held talks with MTV, the owner
of Rock Band franchise.
Quoting people familiar with the matter, Financial Times
noted that the deal could be announced within weeks. However, Apple Corps and EMI
refused to comment on the rumors.
Both games, Guitar Hero and Rock Band, are hugely popular. For
example, the latest title released by Activision, Guitar Hero III: Legends of
Rock, was the number 1 title in units and dollars for calendar year 2007.
The success of the games was predictable since its launch, as the title earned
more than $115 million in its first week on sale only in North
America.
That third edition of “Guitar Hero” contains 70 rock songs of various artists
or bands such as: Disturbed, Slipknot, The Killers, Aerosmith, A.F.I., Guns N’
Roses, Metallica, Muse, Pearl Jam, Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot Chili
Peppers, Smashing Pumkins and more others.
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock includes a multiplayer action-inspired battle
mode, grueling boss battles, a host of exclusive unlockable content and visually
stunning rock venues.
Since its initial release in fall 2005, the Guitar Hero franchise has sold in
excess of 14 million units in North America
alone, according to The NPD Group.
Its competitor, Rock Band, the game released by MTV and
Harmonix, has reached the six million downloads mark this March. The game was
released last November for Xbox 360 and PS3 and a Wii version was launched this
month.
Rock Band is a party game that was released bundled with
controllers shaped like guitar, drum set and microphone. The full package costs
$170 and it seems the price doesn’t represent a problem among the music-themed
video games fans.
Activision also announced it would release Guitar Hero World
Tour, a game that will combine the guitar gameplay, with a cooperative band
experience.
In addition to a newly redesigned guitar, Guitar Hero World Tour
will feature a genuine electronic drum kit and a microphone, as well as an
innovative Music Studio music creator that lets players compose, record, edit
and share their own rock and roll anthems, along with online Band Career and
8-player “Battle
of the Bands.”
Activision also announced its plans to release two new
versions of its game, specially dedicated to two famous rock bands: Aerosmith
and Metallica. I guess that a Beatles edition of Guitar Hero will be a huge success.
Apple has been trying for years to sign a deal to sell the
Beatles catalog through its iTunes music store.
