This Fall: Guitar Hero II

Press release
Source: Red Octane

Get ready for a rock encore! RedOctane® announced today that Johnny Napalm and friends will begin touring the US again this Fall in the new videogame “Guitar Hero II™”. Picking up where Guitar Hero™ left off, Guitar Hero II arrives with a new track list, new venues and additional play modes – including the ability to transform the original Guitar Hero SG Controller into a rhythm, lead or bass guitar.

“Guitar Hero has proved phenomenally successful! Guitar Hero veterans will be able to plug in their Guitar Hero SG Controllers and rock GH II straight out of the box,” said Kelly Sumner, CEO of RedOctane. “We will really push the envelope with Guitar Hero II. Despite the fact there are many months until release, we’re already implementing exciting features and innovations. This fall we’re going to rock everyone’s world all over again.”

The top-secret sequel song list remains firmly in the rock domain, pulling from a mix of classic rock, ‘hair’ metal, heavy metal, modern rock, and alternative titles. More than 55 songs will be featured in the next installment.

Veteran music videogame developer Harmonix® Music Systems has been busy in-studio, enriching this rockstar experience with more features and multiplayer modes. In addition to the traditional head-to-head competition, Multiplayer Co-op Mode allows players to collaborate in order to beat songs, with each guitarist playing a separate guitar track. Available guitar tracks include lead, rhythm or bass tracks, depending upon the song. The Guitar Hero SG Controller used in the first installment will also be compatible with the new game.

Guitar Hero II is the follow-up to 2005’s award-winning release, “Guitar Hero,” which rocked the game industry and garnered a stack of awards including: “Best Offline Multiplayer Game 2005” and “Music Game of the Year 2005” from IGN.com, and “Best Soundtrack 2005” at the Spike TV Videogames Awards. Recently, it picked up five awards at the D.I.C.E. Summit's Interactive Achievement Awards including Outstanding Innovation in Gaming and Family Game of the Year.

RedOctane has confirmed an early glimpse of the upcoming game will be available during the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles next month.

The game that has inspired a nation of wannabe rock stars to achieve video game greatness is scheduled for a new US tour on the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system in November 2006.

About RedOctane
Based in Sunnyvale, California, RedOctane® is an innovative video game publisher, specializing in rhythm action games. The company began as the world’s first online videogame rental service. In 2001, RedOctane introduced the world’s first home non-slip dance mat and dance mat covers, and a year later the firm’s Ignition Pad was premiered – subsequently winning a host of peripheral awards. Guitar Hero was released in the US in November 2005 – to universal consumer and critical acclaim.

For more information on RedOctane please visit www.RedOctane.com.

About Harmonix Music Systems, Inc.
Veteran music video game creator Harmonix® is developing Guitar Hero II. Based in Cambridge, MA, Harmonix previously developed Guitar Hero, Frequency, Amplitude, Karaoke Revolution and EyeToy: AntiGrav.

For more information about Harmonix please visit www.harmonixmusic.com.

Karaoke Revolution™ is a registered trademark KONAMI CORPORATION. ©2004 KONAMI. Developed by Harmonix Music System. Harmonix is a registered trademark of Harmonix Music Systems, Inc. Frequency and Amplitude are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

RedOctane® is a registered trademark of RedOctane, Inc. “Guitar Hero” and “Guitar Hero II” are trademarks of RedOctane, Inc. Developed by Harmonix Music Systems. © 2005 RedOctane, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

“PlayStation” and the “PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.