Activision Already Gearing Up For DJ Hero Sequel

[Andy Chalk]

Activision Already Gearing Up For DJ Hero Sequel

DJ Hero [http://www.activision.com], which isn't particularly surprising except for the fact that DJ Hero doesn't come out for another month.

We all know by now how Activision feels about sequels: It likes them, a lot. And none of us can pretend to be shocked that the publisher wants to turn DJ Hero into a franchise comparable to Guitar Hero [http://www.guitarhero.com], with tons of DLC and new entries in the franchise coming out on something like an annual basis. But doesn't it seem a little premature to be lining up a sequel when the first game won't debut for almost another full month?

Apparently not. GamesIndustry [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/activision-recruiting-talent-for-dj-hero-sequels] claims that Activision is already out pounding the pavement in search of new talent for a sequel and future DLC. DMC Champion has already been "approached" about appearing in the follow-up, as has DJ Qbert, whose signing would be a "coup" for the game, according to the report. "Considered a pioneer of turntablism, [DJ Qbert] won multiple awards personally and as part of the Invisible Skratch Piklz, including a gong at the Sundance Film Festival for the movie Wave Twisters," it said. "He has also designed mixers and turntables for Vestax."

I'm not ashamed to admit that I have absolutely no idea what any of that means but I guess it's pretty big stuff for fans of the genre - turntablistic, you might say. Activision certainly has high hopes for the game; in June, Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith said DJ Hero would hit a "more mainstream and expanded audience [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/92723-Activision-DJ-Hero-Will-Be-More-Mainstream-Than-Guitar-Hero]" than Guitar Hero. "DJ Hero is going to be expansive to the franchise and be particularly exciting for Europe where that genre of music is arguably more important than it is elsewhere," he added.

He's probably right. DJ Hero will like sell a bazillion copies and make a hojillion dollars, but come on, can we slow down the stampede to Sequel-land? It's unseemly.


Permalink

 

[scotth266]

Er, what?

Just because it has Hero tacked onto the name doesn't mean that the game's automatically going to sell like hotcakes. This is a brand new franchise: you can't just expect the sales that you get from Guitar Hero.

 

[Lord Mountbatten Reborn]

I hope people stop buying so Activision will go away.

Yeah right.

 

[TaborMallory]

Disgusting. Not surprising, but that's the disgusting part.

 

[TheTygerfire]

Just because it has Hero tacked onto the name doesn't mean that the game's automatically going to sell like hotcakes.

I love how they think that DJ Hero has MORE mainstream appeal than Guitar Hero....

Hey, guess what? No one wants to be a DJ, everyone want to play guitar. The people that want to be DJs ARE DJS

 

[The Rockerfly]

Bad Activision, get back in your troll corner
Seriously though, it's unlikely to sell particularly well and games that don't sell well usually don't get sequels

 

[SomethingUnrelated]

Urgh....

To me, Activision nows just spells "Cash in". Everything they do seems to be revolved around money, which could be true of any compnay, but at least for other game devs it isn't all they strive for. But hey, evetually other people will see this, stop buying, and Activision will die out.

Wait, that's like asking for someone to fix world hunger in 2 seconds. Impossible.

 

[MagicShroom]

Just add moar techno and dnb and I will be cool

 

[ae86gamer]

I was expecting this.

Next game should be called Keyboard Hero.

 

[shMerker]

Maybe it's different worldwide, but at least in America I find it hard to imagine that DJ Hero could ever be as big as Guitar Hero. Rock music is a pretty deeply embedded cultural phenomenon. Everybody listens to it, or at least something heaviliy influenced by it. Even outside of rock the guitar is a powerful symbol and a part of pretty much all popular music. Turntablism just doesn't have the same mythic status. DJ Hero will expand the audience of the "hero" brand, but there's no way that it will be more mainstream than Guitar Hero was.

I think Activision knows that too. What's really going on here is that they've noticed that they can get more retail space and more attention by putting their games in a larger box, but they can only justify that to retailers if the box contains something that can't be made smaller, like a special controller, and if the game promises to be a big hit that justifies taking up the space of several smaller packages. Retailers view products that don't move as an opportunity cost, since the space and capital it ties up could have been used more profitably. So it has to sell better than anything that takes up the same amount of space. That includes a Guitar Hero game. So that's what they promise, because otherwise all they have is a game with a fancy controller that no one will be able to buy.

 

[Pendragon9]

And here we are again, with Activision suckling from the nipple that is Sequelitis.

 

[Mrsoupcup]

Activision is quickly becoming the new Square enix. Last year they released World tour, Metalic, Smash hits, Vanhalen and 5. That is alot of Guitar hero games for one year. (Thats not counting the two for the DS) Don't forget that they have more than 30 songs of DLC for each game(not the ds ones obviously). (Vanhalen was just a bonus for ordering 5 but its a full game with 1000 g's in achievments, it is also going to be realesed in a couple months for all to buy)

 

[hansari]

I was expecting this.

Next game should be called Keyboard Hero.

Personally, I can't wait for the release of Humming Hero...

 

[Mrsoupcup]

I was expecting this.

Next game should be called Keyboard Hero.

Personally, I can't wait for the release of Humming Hero...

How about Harmonica Hero?

 

[akmarksman]

If it had Tiesto (forgot the umlauts..sorry) I would look into it..Tiesto and BT.

 

[Sixties Spidey]

Yeah, because God Forbid Activision can produce anything other than Call of Duty that's the slightest bit worth a fuck.

 

[DaxStrife]

DJ Hero: Brought to you by the people who tried to cancel "Brutal Legend."

Seriously, can't they wait until the first one fails before making the sequel? They're taking an awful risk betting that the first will be a success.

 

[DeadAccountMoveAlong]

I believe something about Activision only taking franchises that have the potential to be exploited year after year after year. This isn't surprising in the slightest, as disgusting as it is.