The Guitar Hero Phenomenon

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It's already been a big week for Guitar Hero fans. As if Tuesday's release of the Xbox 360 version of this smash hit rhythm game wasn't enough, news crept out on Sunday that the game's original developer is cooperating with uber-publisher EA and music behemoth MTV. The result is a PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game that promises to make Guitar Hero look like a flash-in-the-pan boy band.

There's something deeply primal about the Guitar Hero experience. Maybe it's the way it takes the air guitar -- usually an instrument strictly reserved for private practice, at the risk of colossal social humiliation -- and makes it both publicly acceptable and downright encouraged.

Perhaps it's the way it taps into that vague ambition to join a rock band most of us entertained at some point or other. You only have to look at the massive success of Guitar Hero contests in bars, retail stores, and around the world to see how popular a theme it's turned out to be. Celeb tie-ins from the likes of , sponsorship from legendary guitar maker Gibson, and cemented the game and its style as one of the biggest successes of recent years.

Guitar Hero II on Xbox 360 GuitarFreaks Arcade

So imagine this: you and three friends, in the same room or spread around the world, playing lead guitar, bass, drums, and singing, each with a specially designed peripheral to complete the experience. What Guitar Hero fan hasn't thought, from time to time, how much fun it would be to take this successful formula beyond mere axe-wielding? Rock Band, Harmonix's newly announced title, aims to accomplish exactly this, and should be in your calloused and sweaty hands by the end of the year.

It's not actually the first time this kind of rhythm game has been proposed, although it's by far the most ambitious. Konami's GuitarFreaks and DrumMania, released in various version at arcades and on the PS1 and 2, could be linked for two-player guitar and drum action, but both underperformed in the USA and are now only available as imports. Rock Band promises to go much, much further.

Harmonix is also talking up its partnership with MTV. Guitar Hero, except in a handful of cases, didn't use the original recordings for its well-known tracks, relying instead on specially created cover versions. Although we don't have any details on the line-up yet, Rock Band will use master recordings from the original artists on at least some of its songs, and downloadable content is going to be a big selling point too.

Rockin' Out! Guitar Hero II PS2

Where does that leave Guitar Hero, then? Here it gets a little complicated. After Harmonix parted with series publisher Activision last year, development of future Guitar Hero games behind the Tony Hawk games, Neversoft. Aside from today's release of Guitar Hero II on the Xbox 360, many others are planned: Guitar Hero: 80s Edition, due on the PS2 later this year, and Guitar Hero III, due in the 2008 fiscal year. Nintendo platforms are coming in for rock star love in the same year: are in for Guitar Hero games -- and Activision has patents on the names too.

Rock Band still awaits a release date, pictures, pricing details for the peripherals, a track list, and... well, just about everything else. But one thing's for certain: suddenly we have a new contender for this year's most eagerly anticipated new release.