14 DAY TRIAL // Activision announced that it was ending the Guitar Hero series for the moment, with no video game in the franchise planned for 2011 and with no more downloadable content delivered to those who own Warriors of Rock after February, but rival series Rock Band will continue to push for innovation in the music game space.
John Drake, who is a developer working on Rock Band, has posted on the official forums of the game to say that, “The discontinuation of Guitar Hero is discouraging news for fans of the band game genre. As retail sales of Guitar Hero and Rock Band titles have slowed with time, we’ve been focused on building a robust digital platform for music gaming and have recently crested 2,500 songs available for play within Rock Band 3.”
He went on to add that the Harmonix team is still committed to its music title, adding that, “The music genre is one that calls for constant reinvention, and Harmonix is continuing to welcome and embrace that call.”
The developer also made a play for the customer base of Guitar Hero, suggesting that a shift to Rock Band might be a smart one at the moment, with instrument compatibility between the two franchises making the move an easy one.
Not too long ago Harmonix was working with MTV Games under the guidance of Viacom on creating its games, but that situation changed quickly when the parent company decided that the music simulation genre was not profitable enough.
Viacom has sold Harmonix to an investment firm for what appears to be a symbolic sum as long as the new owner also assumed financial obligations linked to the licensing deals for Rock Band.
MTV Games no longer exists.
Harmonix has been forced to lay off some people and has not yet revealed whether it was working on a whole new Rock Band game and what new features it might offer to gamers.