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Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Does NASCAR
Posted by Mike Fahey at 1:20 AM on June 19, 2008
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you living, speeding proof that Activision is officially marketing the living hell out of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. Presenting the Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Target Chip Ganassi Racing number 40 Dodge, appearing June 29th at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway to commemorate the launch of the game. This beast will be piloted by Ganassi's Dario Franchitti, who is just pleased as punch.
"I love video games and actually have versions of Guitar Hero that I play on my bus and at home. To have Target, Activision and Aerosmith on my car for the New Hampshire race is pretty cool," said Franchitti. "Who doesn't love Aerosmith's music? It's perfect for getting ready for the side-by-side, non-stop action of NASCAR racing."
In addition to the co-branded race car, Target stores will also be selling a special Wii bundle for GH: Aerosmith that includes 2 wireless controllers and a tour book for $AU 158.69. You might as well just buy the damn game before Activision starts marketing on you. Believe me, it's extremely difficult to breathe in a full vinyl wraparound.
Target and Activision Partner with Chip Ganassi Racing to Feature Guitar Hero: Aerosmith on No. 40 Dodge
Wrapped Car Will Run in New Hampshire NASCAR Race on June 29; Target to Offer Exclusive Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Wii BundleCONCORD, N.C.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates announced today it has partnered with Activision and its long-time sponsor Target® to feature the latest version of the Guitar Hero® series, Guitar Hero®: Aerosmith®, on Dario Franchitti's No. 40 Dodge in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) on June 29.
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, which will be released June 29, is the latest installment from the Activision franchise that was the top-selling video game in 2007. The game puts players in the shoes of Joe Perry (guitar), Brad Whitford (guitar) and Tom Hamilton (bass), as they rock out alongside front man Steven Tyler and drummer Joey Kramer. Gamers will experience Aerosmith's GRAMMY® winning career, from their first gig to becoming rock royalty while jamming to the band's top songs.
With the launch of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, Target stores will carry an exclusive bundle for Nintendo's Wii that includes the game, two wireless guitar controllers and a tour book. The ultimate rock experience, whether cooperatively or head-to-head, can be had right out of the box on June 29 for $149.99.
"The marriage of Nintendo Wii and Guitar Hero makes a lot of sense for the Target guest," said Steve Eastman, Vice President, Target. "The music of Aerosmith bridges generations, just as the Wii has done. Everyone in the family can share that experience with this bundle."
Franchitti will be making his debut in the Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire in the fading yellow to red Target/Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Dodge. The 2007 IndyCar champion has eight starts this season in his rookie campaign in the Cup Series and currently sits 39th in the 2008 point standings.
"We're very excited to have Guitar Hero bring together two great American traditions, rock 'n' roll Aerosmith style, and NASCAR racing," said Dusty Welch, head of publishing Activision/RedOctane. "Fans at the event will get a double treat, watching their favourite drivers race and competing for a chance to face off against one of them on Guitar Hero: Aerosmith."
The Guitar Hero consumer bus will be parked in the display area behind the main grandstands at NHMS all weekend for fans to take a sneak peak at the game and try their hands as a guitarist from Aerosmith. Franchitti and Target driver Reed Sorenson will make an appearance at the bus on Sunday to showcase their talents on the guitar before strapping into their Dodges for the 301-lap race.
"I love video games and actually have versions of Guitar Hero that I play on my bus and at home. To have Target, Activision and Aerosmith on my car for the New Hampshire race is pretty cool," said Franchitti. "Who doesn't love Aerosmith's music? It's perfect for getting ready for the side-by-side, non-stop action of NASCAR racing."
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
DaiMacculate
Posted 2:10 AM 19/6/08
@Fahey:
Believe me, it's extremely difficult to breathe in a full vinyl wraparound.
I'm disturbed by the implication that you've experienced this first hand, but I'm even more disturbed that my immediate reaction was "Thats why you use Liquid Latex instead" :P
Yeah, I think this game will crash and burn, personally. You would think they'd have learned some lessons about NOT destroying an immensely popular franchise from the Tony Hawk games, but apparently not.
DaiMacculate
ChimDeathmonkey
Posted 2:09 AM 19/6/08
Video Games advertising on NASCAR. Wow. With that said, didn't the GameStop car win over the weekend?
ChimDeathmonkey
Jakuub
Posted 2:03 AM 19/6/08
@BrandtRock: Two words : MOAR MONEY
Jakuub
noobosaurus
Posted 2:03 AM 19/6/08
total waste. NASCAR is boring.
noobosaurus
BrandtRock
Posted 1:57 AM 19/6/08
@TheGreySpectre: Not excited either and I won't buy that crap.
Why didn't they just make the tracklist an expansion pack?
BrandtRock
KaneRobot
Posted 1:56 AM 19/6/08
I hate press releases:
""Who doesn't love Aerosmith's music? It's perfect for getting ready for the side-by-side, non-stop action of NASCAR racing.""
NO ONE TALKS LIKE THAT IN REAL LIFE. Idiots.
KaneRobot
Mricci424
Posted 1:52 AM 19/6/08
Of all the pointless crap crafted from all the commercially created games, i believe this to be the worst. I really want guitar hero IV, but i dont think i can purchase it because activision has made my morals come between my wallet and a potentially great game.
Mricci424
TheGreySpectre
Posted 1:48 AM 19/6/08
Maybe i'm talking to the wrong crowd of people, but no one I know is excited about this game. No one even plans on getting it. The tracklist looks like crap.
/goes off to play more rockband
TheGreySpectre
Kyattsuai
Posted 1:44 AM 19/6/08
@elementary: Because if you only have one Wiimote, the bundle goes up to $190. At that point you're better off getting Rock Band.
Kyattsuai
Jakuub
Posted 1:33 AM 19/6/08
The only good that can come of this would be the amusement gained from watching that car burst into flames or otherwise be destroyed (after the driver got out, etc - nothing against him).
Jakuub
Ghede (Follow me for no raisin)
Posted 1:31 AM 19/6/08
@elementary: Because the Wii controller itself is wireless, along with any other peripheral that attaches to it. Marketing it as a special feature is like marketing... a house for having walls.
Ghede (Follow me for no raisin)
elementary
Posted 1:28 AM 19/6/08
I can't pinpoint why, but I find it disingenuous to market the Wii guitar peripherals as wireless guitar controllers.
elementary
chuffhoncho
Posted 3:08 AM 19/6/08
Awesome, I wonder if this means Dueling Banjos will be the hidden boss battle.
"You sher doo gots a pritty mouth, Steven Tyler..."
chuffhoncho
MadExponent
Posted 2:49 AM 19/6/08
Just a way to reach a new audience.
MadExponent
Torgen got his apology faceplate but not his fixed GH3 disc
Posted 2:39 AM 19/6/08
@Kyattsuai: Not the Wii version of Rock Band.
Torgen got his apology faceplate but not his fixed GH3 disc
Thief
Posted 2:38 AM 19/6/08
Activision has officially shit all over the legend that once was called 'Guitar Hero'
Thief
Epaminondas
Posted 2:36 AM 19/6/08
I'm not against Aerosmith, Activision, or GH, but I think this whole economic model Activision is using is going to kill them. I don't see how a pitiful amount of DLC, and band specific games can match the broad based library of DLC RockBand offers.
Again not hating on anyone but the people at Activison who think they can compete with the RockBand DLC setup long term...
@DaiMacculate: I'd add that you should be sure to take a deep breath and hold it as your being wrapped. This will give you a little more wiggle room once your chest contracts from exhaling. -Hey, the more you know!
Epaminondas
EndwaterAngry
Posted 2:24 AM 19/6/08
@DaiMacculate: What if the car crashed and burned, basically serving as a metaphore for the game......
EndwaterAngry
VixDiesel
Posted 3:14 AM 19/6/08
Too bad he sucks and likely will wreck before the race even starts.
VixDiesel
Matt B
Posted 4:01 AM 19/6/08
at least they know the only people dumb enough to buy the crappy game are the people dumb enough to watch crappy cars go around a circle a million times...
Matt B
notoriousEIC
Posted 5:05 AM 19/6/08
@Matt B:
That would be about 80 million of them, then...
notoriousEIC
Dalren
Posted 5:32 AM 19/6/08
@Thief: Bullcrap. Guitar Hero 3 was fun, whether jerks on the internet like to think so or not. Aerosmith is a great band, with a long history, so there is nothing wrong with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. I already have my copy preordered. Really the only monstrosity they are producing is the DS game but in that case fans just don't have to buy it, it doesn't kill or degrade anything. GH:WT will be everything Rock Band is, but better.
Why do people feel it necessary to come to every single article on GH on every single website on the internet and try and claim the game is somehow dead? I play these games for the music, and I enjoy the music in GH3 more than Rock Band. I'll enjoy Aerosmith more too.
Dalren
murph
Posted 5:27 AM 19/6/08
coming soon...Guitar Hero: Dead Horse Edition
murph
DaiMacculate
Posted 7:17 AM 19/6/08
@Dalren: Did you miss the whole Rock Band/GH guitar compatibility debacle? Thats why I won't buy another GH game, personally. Has nothing to do with the specific music (though I'm not an Aerosmith fan so that doesn't help either), but I refuse to show Activision that we're totally cool with their obnoxious hardware practices by continuing to give them money. They don't care what we say for the most part of course, but if enough of us don't buy it they *might* at least try to figure out why :P
DaiMacculate
chuffhoncho
Posted 6:31 AM 19/6/08
Well, I guess I must just be a jerk on the internet then, because I didn't find GHIII to be that much fun and I don't think that Aerosmith is that great of a band.
Opinions aside, this game costs the same as GHIII but has no DLC and a lot less songs. This is why people are bashing Guitar Hero nowadays. The games may be fun, but cash runs like this are a rip-off. And they don't NEED to be a rip off. There's no reason they couldn't sell this game for $40 or add a few more songs to justify the $60 price tag. A LOT more people would consider it. But as it stands, and as a GH fan, I'm starting to feel the sting of owning a bunch of garbage guitars and still having to pay full price for an add-on.
chuffhoncho
Dalren
Posted 9:20 AM 19/6/08
@DaiMacculate: As nice it would be to save money on the hardware, I really don't think what Activision did was that big of a deal. The way they see it, they would probably be helping sell copies of Rock Band if they let the patch go through.
I just enjoyed GH3 too much to let some petty drama between two companies to keep me from enjoying one of the games I love. Maybe some of you are less forgiving. But I guess it's your money, isn't it?
Though I can definitely see why you wouldn't want GH: Aerosmith if you don't like the band. That's totally understandable. I didn't think they were so unpopular though...
Dalren
annexation
Posted 11:39 AM 19/6/08
You know what I think when I see this? Appalachia.
annexation
r3m1x
Posted 11:30 AM 19/6/08
lawlz@EA decal on a Guitar Hero Stock Car.
Yeah, its part of EA's exclusivity with NASCAR but I had to spot the irony on that picture.
r3m1x
Matt B
Posted 1:07 PM 19/6/08
The only thing that would redeem this practice is if the car got fucked up in the race and the only replacement body panels they could find were re-wrapped with Rock Band vinyl by HMX/MTV :)
Matt B
Ryodestined
Posted 2:10 PM 19/6/08
Now they just need to make Banjo Hero and everyone down south will be satisfied. I guess I find it silly to put something on a NASCAR vehicle if it isn't going to be there for a while.
Ryodestined