Activision Kills 'Guitar Hero'

by Jordan Yerman | February 9, 2011 at 10:44 pm

136 views | 2 Recommendations | 0 comments

Activision Discontinues Guitar Hero and True Crime: Hong Kong, Takes Stock Hit

Activision has discontinued the Guitar Hero business unit, and, perhaps due to instant karma, its stock took a 7.4% hit.

While the Guitar Hero franchise is popular across every gaming age group, the title has seen declining sales in its latest iteration. Activision will be investing in new studios to further develop its other series, such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft.

Hey, just because there won't be any new Guitar Hero games, doesn't mean you can't still use your ottoman as a monitor and rock out to Sonic Youth's "Cool Thing".

Activision is also stopping development of True Crime: Hong Kong.

Chief Executive Robert Kotick said a host of new technologies would allow the company to develop cutting-edge games. Advanced televisions and interactive platforms that allow the development of online communities were among the developments he saw pushing the industry forward.

Though Guitar Hero introduced gamers to new (and non-violent) ways to enjoy a console system, it faces competion from controller-free interface games made possible by PS3 Move and Xbox 360 Kinect.

"It doesn't surprise me," said Amanda Caparoon, a Seattle bartender and music gaming fan, when told Activision was burying the brand. "There's cooler stuff now, like Rock Band. And dance-based games are where it's at now."