Did Konami Inspire Gibson’s Patent Suit?
Last week, Guitar Hero III came out in Japan. The game sold something like 3,000 copies fore both the PS3 and the PS2. Ouch. Not surprising as guitar-based music games were popular in Japan nine years ago. Nine years ago? As game site Next Generation points out, that’s the same number that guitar manufacturer Gibson pulled out for its legal suit. As Next Gen points out:
1999, hmm? A quick visit to our good friend Wikipedia reveals that Konami’s GuitarFreaks game made its debut in Japan in 1999, meaning it was most likely in the production and planning phases since 1998 at the latest.My guess is that someone in the Gibson corporation’s marketing department heard of GuitarFreaks in 1999 and immediately checked to see if Konami had filed a patent in the US. When their search revealed no results, they filed a patent themselves, and waited patiently. For nine years. How utterly slimy.
The mind boggles. Truly.
This Week In Japan [Next Generation]
Comments (AU Comments | US Comments)
LMFAO! I remember seeing that game in Golfland Arcade during 1999 in America. That only has 3 buttons - but it’s still fun and has great songs too. Made me wonder so much why the whole Guitar Hero thing was considered so original, new, and amazing…