Guitar Hero III and Rock Band are well alive in the public eye following their debut recently in North America to rave reviews all around. Guitar Hero in particular shows no signs of slowing down, following a listing on an Activision Blizzard fact sheet revealing that Guitar Hero IV is in consideration for development.
As for the PlayStation 3 owners of both games, excitement shot through the roof following the possibility that Guitar Hero III guitar controllers could work for Rock Band, via a specialised patch.
This patch was also under controversy as it was said from MTV/Harmonix that Activision was blocking Sony from allowing it to be uploaded. Now it appears that Activision was not to blame, but MTV/Harmonix.
In a letter issued to fans, this is what Activision had to say:
To Music Gaming Fans:
The recent announcement by MTV Games/Viacom’s Harmonix division that Activision is blocking Sony from releasing a patch and their plea to enable Rock Band software to work with Guitar Hero hardware paints a very misleading picture.
In fact, Harmonix and its parent company MTV Games/Viacom recently declined Activision’s offer to reach an agreement that would allow the use of Guitar Hero guitar controllers with Rock Band. We have been and remain open to discussions with Harmonix and MTV Games/Viacom about the use of our technology in Rock Band. Unfortunately for Rock Band users, in this case Harmonix and MTV Games/Viacom are unwilling to discuss an agreement with Activision.
Activision’s top priority is to provide consumers with a seamless marriage of best-in-class hardware and software. We are focusing our efforts on innovating hardware and software that are designed to work together, work flawlessly and provide an enjoyable gaming experience.
Best regards,
Activision
Funny, videogame industry beef. This sort of thing is common in the hip-hop world, but videogames? Either way, it looks like more dirt happens behind the scenes than we know of.
Source: CVG