Apparently, gaming company Activision’s collaboration with rock legends Aerosmith has paid off handsomely for both parties. As reported on the Gamasutra website, the sales to date of the game Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, has netted the band more revenue than any one of its album releases.
In my opinion, the success of the Guitar Hero franchise is dependent on two things: artist name association and the technology employed to make the game highly entertaining to gamers. I am a big Aerosmith fan, but not into gaming myself—thus, I was never attracted that much to consider buying the game.
Of course, there are many exceptions to my theory. I’m pretty sure that a lot of gamers who weren’t familiar with Aerosmith bought the game: some were probably intrigued, some had nothing better to do with their money, and most were probably challenged by the game. Good for them. They get to enjoy themselves, while learning the music of one of the best rock bands of all time.
How does this bode for the music industry in general? For one thing, I’m pretty sure that most big name bands will start to fall in line for their share of the revenue pie. Van Halen and Metallica are examples of the next bands to be featured on the franchise. Big money is in store for both the bands and Activision. But to boast of Guitar Hero's "music selling power" is a bit of a stretch; by reversing the logic, you can say that Aerosmith enabled Activision's "video game selling power."
While it can be argued that the artists involved may not need the money and just want to pass on their musical legacy to a new generation of potential fans, CD/music sales are also a big factor. Reportedly, Aerosmith’s CD/music sales had a “several folds boost.” Now is that just a coincidence, or a result of a lot of focus group discussions?
For the struggling garage band out there, I don’t think it will make any difference—perhaps marginally, in terms of inspiration. But inspiration is a totally different animal from business. Many bands out there with talent have never made it, and many more will never. It’s just a fact in the recording industry. You still have to make it the old fashioned way—through gigging, recording, and touring—before you can be featured on a game like Guitar Hero. And with games exactly like Guitar Hero in the market taking away the attention span of potential new fans of these struggling artists, what will become of them? It just gets harder and harder.
So, while Activision may be on to something here for quite a long and profitable run, dare I say that without the big name artists, the Guitar Hero franchise is worthless? Imagine Guitar Hero: Anonymous, and see if the product sells.
Article comments
1 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
This is what passes for journalism at Blogcritics??
Guitar Hero was huge before and that is what gave Activision the opportunity to work with these popular rock bands. After reading the title of your article, I think you should have been focused on questioning the integrity of such acts like Britney Spears,Pink,95% of the R&B community,etc... Now that sh!te sounds like it was made using a video game system.
Personally, I can't stand the game! I would suggest that most kids pick up a real instrument & actually learn how to play their favorites but, like you said,[at least]"they get to enjoy themselves, while learning the music of one of the best rock bands of all time."
2 - Clarence Yu
Hi,
You can care to read the article or not. Whatever passes as good or bad journalism is up to you.
My point, to make things short, is the effect of Guitar Hero on the music industry. Guitar Hero may have been "huge" without any artist collaboration but perhaps could not sustain themselves without pursuing band specific games.
I don't like the game either. But that's not my point. Personally, I feel that questioning the integrity of any artist, is part and parcel of opinion. No one is immune to this type of inquiry---and please take note again that I am a big Aerosmith fan. I learned most of their songs the old fashioned way, by copping off their records. Seeing them, and other bands who may just want to line their pockets more, is just sad. Again, this is only my OPINION.
3 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Great! My comment was my opinion and if I could never question the integrity of these so-called artists or give my two cents about the articles I read here then why should people even bother to publish reviews or record albums. This whole passive attitude about music, in general, is why we get stuck with all this shallow bullsh!t that gets rave reviews due to people's perception from the media. They have perfectly marketed to the sheople how making the big bucks is more important than writing music that will last for generations... It boils down to a cheap thrill & more bands are figuring out that they can make a boatload & bail after a few years!
It is sad that these classic bands are more concerned with making a buck instead of releasing kick ass music but I feel it is because their time has come and gone. They just don't want to admit it...
4 - Clarence Yu
I couldn't agree more. I think the problem, as I interpret it, is how I titled the article. It's kind of rhetorical, and the question is asked within a certain context. That's why there is a subheading which specifically states the Guitar Hero game as the subject of the article. I did not mean to mislead the reader with the title, and, reading it again, obviously someone would expect something along the lines of your opinion. I respect that highly.