After five years, Guitar Hero is staging a comeback this fall with Guitar Hero Live, a complete reboot of the series coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Wii U, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and select mobile devices.
The reboot, developed byDJ Hero studio Freestyle Games, ditches the third-person viewpoint and rendered graphics for a first-person view with live-action sequences. Players become a member of the fictitious band Broken Tide, as they move from playing small clubs to massive venues, and perform for crowds that react to how well or poorly you’re performing.
The game includes a new guitar peripheral, which replaces the previous games’ five-button layout for a six-button layout split into two rows. Activision hopes this will reduce the difficulty for those who struggled with reaching the orange button in previous games, as well as provide a new layer of difficulty for those who have mastered it.
Specific songs have yet to be announced, but some of the participating artists include: The Black Keys, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, The Rolling Stones, Gary Clark, Jr., Green Day, Ed Sheeran, The War On Drugs, The Killers, Skrillex, The Lumineers, Pierce the Veil, and Blitz Kids. More will be announced in the coming month.s
Guitar Hero Live is also home to Guitar Hero TV, a 24-hour playable music video network that lets fans play along to a continually-updated collection of official music videos. Players can jump on at their leisure to play both locally and online with friends. The network will offer multiple channels and themed shows, as well as on-demand songs.
Unlike previous mobile versions of Guitar Hero, the mobile version of Guitar Hero Live will deliver the same experience offered by the console versions. Since the new guitar is required, the game will launch bundled with the peripheral this fall or $99.99.
Get the trailer and fact sheet below. View the first screenshots at the gallery.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SnIZgESm4c
About
Guitar Hero, the pop culture phenomenon that introduced a new way to interact with music, is back with the all-new Guitar Hero Live, featuring breakthrough innovations that will re-ignite your dreams of becoming a rock star.
Developed by FreeStyleGames, the studio behind DJ Hero and DJ Hero 2, Guitar Hero Live introduces two powerful ways to play, including a first-person point of view where you are up on stage as the star of the show. A quantum leap forward in immersion and realism, Guitar Hero Live is a live-action experience that delivers the full emotional roller coaster of being on stage, with players performing in a real band, in front of real crowds, who react in real time to how well or poorly you play.
Guitar Hero Live also includes GHTV, a revolutionary new way to play Guitar Hero. The 24hour playable music video network lets fans play along to a continually-updated collection of official videos, from the newest releases to favorite hits. GHTV also lets players compete with their friends as well as players from across the globe to battle for the highest score on any given song.
Guitar Hero Live introduces a new guitar controller hat features two rows of three buttons that better reflects the way people naturally play and delivers more fun for players of all abilities. This simple innovation makes it easier for beginners to play and harder for veterans to master.
Key Features
- Live Action, First Person Rock Star Realism – GH Live introduces a whole new level of immersion, empowering players to unleash their inner rock stars like never before. It’s a first-person, live-action gaming experience where the player is the star of the show. Players will feel the stage fright and exhilaration of being on stage in a variety of venues, from the smallest club stage in front a hundred people, to the massive main stage of an outdoor festival in front of a hundred thousand people.
- The World’s First Playable Music Video Network –Guitar Hero Live also introduces GHTV, a 24-hour music video network that lets players jump right into various genres of music and play along to official music videos. The game mode adds an entirely new dimension to Guitar Hero, giving players the chance to compete with their friends in the same room as well as fans around the world to see who can achieve the highest score. GHTV is a living, breathing platform that will be continually updated, serving as an ever-growing source for new music discovery, while further bringing the party atmosphere back to the living room.
- Authentic, Re-designed Guitar Controller – The signature Guitar Hero controller has been redesigned to enhance the gameplay experience. The modern, redesigned guitar controller features two rows of three buttons that better reflects the way people naturally play. The new format ensures fun for players of all abilities. For beginners, you can feel like a rock star by mastering play with the bottom three buttons. Medium-level players don’t have to stretch their fingers down the guitar controller neck anymore and can instead skillfully play two-row combinations that mimic real chords. Experienced players have a new challenge in creating complex chord shapes and finger combinations that will bring new thrills to veterans.
- Festival-Worthy Lineup and a Variety of Venues – Music variety is at the heart of Guitar Hero Live. The game takes the approach of the modern music festival, with rock, folk, EDM, hip-hop, country and pop acts sharing the same stage. The game will feature hundreds of playable songs from a diverse array of artists, including The Black Keys, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Gary Clark, Jr., Green Day, Ed Sheeran, The War on Drugs, The Killers, Skrillex, The Rolling Stones, The Lumineers, Pierce the Veil and Blitz Kids, with many more bands to be announced in the coming months.
- No Console? No Problem – For the first time ever, Activision is bringing the complete Guitar Hero Live experience to mobile devices, providing players with the same console experience anytime, anywhere. Guitar Hero Live on mobile represents a massive technological leap for the franchise, giving fans the opportunity to play wherever, whenever they want.
Thanks, Game Informer.