Mike Griffith, CEO of Activision Publishing, gave the news during his keynote address at CES. This brands Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock as the first game to produce more money than even most millionaires will ever seen in their lives, and possibly more than some of the smaller countries.
This sort of success for what is at its heart just a simple rhythm game has given pause to the music industry, and sparked a rush for unsigned and upcoming bands to get their music into the game where they can delude umpteen million players into believing the songs are actually good. Of course, these younger bands will have to battle their elder cousins for space on a tracklist, since even the Beatles and Metallica are looking to clamp their wrinkled lips around this money firehose.
The addition of user-created songs to the mix will only serve to fuel this rocketship of a genre, although its ultimate destination no doubt lies in a courtroom surrounded by RIAA lawyers and a pack of frightened executives flailing desperately to protect their monopoly and business model.
We here at Vox are watching this whole spectacle with some attention, because it does give us a glimpse into the future of gaming. Simple mechanics, a wide spectrum of ways to use those mechanics, combined with user-created content and networked, social gaming. Also, we’re waiting for Activision to assemble enough cash off this thing to buy God.
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