14 DAY TRIAL // Guitar Hero 5 has stirred a lot of attention lately, but not in the way many might think. Apparently, the feature apparition of Nirvana's late singer and guitarist, Kurt Cobain, in the game may be an unfortunate made compromise. Maybe Activision chose to incorporate the image of a deceased, iconic rock star only after it was rejected by a still-breathing one.
In an interview granted to BBC, Bon Jovi admitted that he had been approached by Activision with a proposition to make an appearance in the game. "I had the paperwork; they wanted me to be on that game, and I just passed," Bon Jovi said. "But no one even broached the subject with me that I would be singing other people's stuff. I don't know how I would have reacted to that. I don't know that I would have wanted it either." Apparently, there is some discomfort among rock performers when it comes to the idea of being converted to a pixel form.
Guitar Hero 5 didn't stop facing difficulties even after obtaining the approval for the use of a famous face to go with the game. The title's publisher, Activision, now faces law-suit charges from the late-rocker's wife, Courteny Love.
Activion tried to quickly put a lid on the matter by stating that it had "secured the necessary licensing rights from the Cobain estate in a written agreement signed by Courtney Love to use Kurt Cobain's likeness as a fully playable character in Guitar Hero 5." Tim Riley, Activison's vice president, elaborated the matter for The Guardian. "Courtney supplied us with photos and videos. She picked the wardrobe and hairstyle, which turned out to be the 'Teen Spirit' look."
Former Nirvana band members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic also objected to Cobain's appearance in the game. "While we were aware of Kurt's image being used with two Nirvana songs, we didn't know players have the ability to unlock the character... We urge Activision to do the right thing in 're-locking' Kurt's character so that this won't continue in the future." their official standing on the matter was.
No matter what Activison has been doing of late, it seems to annoy a lot of people. Depending on the consequences of the hassle caused by Guitar Hero 5, it should maybe think twice before dealing again with celebrities. And it should find some god to pray to if it ever wants to make a Michael Jackson video game.