Activision To Acquire Guitar Hero Publisher

Red Octane, Inc., publisher of the popular Guitar Hero series, is to be taken over and absorbed into Activision, Inc., as the latter seeks to position itself as a leader in music-related gaming. Activision believes this particular genre will be one of the fastest growing over the next few years.

Guitar Hero, another popular “sim”-type game, is one in which the player gets to form and lead their own rock band. The game’s controller resembles a guitar, and allows the player to perform up to 30 songs with such legends as  the Red Hot Chili Peppers, David Bowie and Ozzy Osbourne – even if s/he lacks any sort of musical training.  With six performance venues, eight characters, several different guitar models and a number of difficulty levels, GH is the fifth biggest seller among teens on the PS2 console. Ron Doornik, Director and Strategic Advisor of Activision, says “Guitar Hero intergrates music and gaming in a unique and highly engaging way that delivers a compelling game experience for both the current and next-generation consoles.”

Kai Huang, President and Co-founder of RedOctane, Inc., adds “[We are] incredibly excited about joining forces with Activision to lead the industry in the music-based gaming category.”

Red Octane, Inc., publisher of the popular Guitar Hero series, is to be taken over and absorbed into Activision, Inc., as the latter seeks to position itself as a leader in music-related gaming. Activision believes this particular genre will be one of the fastest growing over the next few years.

Guitar Hero, another popular “sim”-type game, is one in which the player gets to form and lead their own rock band. The game’s controller resembles a guitar, and allows the player to perform up to 30 songs with such legends as  the Red Hot Chili Peppers, David Bowie and Ozzy Osbourne – even if s/he lacks any sort of musical training.  With six performance venues, eight characters, several different guitar models and a number of difficulty levels, GH is the fifth biggest seller among teens on the PS2 console. Ron Doornik, Director and Strategic Advisor of Activision, says “Guitar Hero intergrates music and gaming in a unique and highly engaging way that delivers a compelling game experience for both the current and next-generation consoles.”

Kai Huang, President and Co-founder of RedOctane, Inc., adds “[We are] incredibly excited about joining forces with Activision to lead the industry in the music-based gaming category.”