Culture

While my Guitar Hero Gently Weeps: Beatles Coming to Games?

by Rob Walker | June 23, 2008 at 10:39 am

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Guitar Hero has turned the air guitar into an art form, and with titles like Aerosmith and a rumoured Van Halen version coming out, it's no surprise the game giant has set its sights higher: The Beatles.

For years the rights to the Beatles music library sat in a legal dead zone, with Michael Jackson owning the rights to the vast majority of songs. Recently though, Jackson sold his rights, partially back to Paul McCartney (he bought back all the songs he wrote) with the rest falling jointly between Apple Corps and EMI.

A few months ago we brought word that a head chairman loved the idea of a Guitar Hero Beatles game, and it looks like we might be getting one sooner, rather than later.

Nothing like playing 'yellow submarine' on a toy guitar to virtual music to add that extra touch of surrealness.

Read previous NowPublic coverage here.

Apple Corps and EMI, which respectively represent The Beatles' business interests and ownership of its master recordings, have reportedly been in discussions with video game publishers Activision and MTV Games.

Under a possible deal that could be worth several million dollars, users could put their air guitar to use while listening to The Beatles and playing Activision's Guitar Hero or MTV's Rock Band games, according to the report.

There is some reason to hope though, with L.A. Times reporting that Sony/ATV CEO Marty Bandier has said putting Beatles songs into a Guitar Hero game is "something we have talked about and something I'd like to pursue." Whether that possibility is something Activision would also like to pursue is not yet clear, but if the companies can Come Together, they'd both have a Ticket To Ride right to the bank. Come on Activision, Please Please Us and make this thing happen!

Now that Activision has confirmed Aerosmith is getting its own Guitar Hero release, with a rumored Van Halen version in the works, where to next? Perhaps the Beatles? If the music publishing company that has the rights to the Fab Four's catalog has their way, it just might happen.