Standalone Aerosmith Guitar Hero Confirmed News

Activision has today confirmed the development Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, the first instalment in the series to revolve around a sole band, scheduled for release on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and PlayStation 2 in June.

First hinted at several months back in the US-based Billboard magazine, the game will feature numerous hits from the band, with Steven Tyler and the rest of Aerosmith also undergoing the 'Guitar Hero' treatment.

"Having a game built around Aerosmith has been a huge honor and really a great experience for us," says Joe Perry. "We've put a lot of ideas into the game so that fans can have fun interacting with our music, getting inside our body of work and learning about the band's history."

Steven Tyler says, "Any band that can go from 'Don't Want to Miss A Thing' (Aerosmith's #1 smash hit) to the ass-kicking 'Sweet Emotion' to the cheekiness of 'Love in an Elevator,' to the classic ballad 'Dream On' shows why Activision chose us to headline this game based on the diversity of the Aerosmith catalog. Not only is songwriting a bitch, but then it goes and has puppies."

Perry adds, "On a larger scale, it's cool for us to be pioneers helping to rebuild the music industry through a format like video games. It's great for rock since the record companies are struggling to make sense of how things are changing. Fans want to get and experience music in new formats--and there are going to be some of them who will play the game, then pick up the guitar for real and start bands. It's what's happening now, and it's only going to build more momentum in the future. It's a massive change for the music business."

"We are extremely excited that Aerosmith chose to team up with Guitar Hero, bringing one of the world's all-time best-selling artists together with one of the biggest video game brands, to deliver a new and unique interactive way for our customers to connect with artists and their music," said Dusty Welch, head of publishing for Activision/RedOctane. "This partnership will give Aerosmith, a band that has sold more than 150 million albums worldwide, a powerful and innovative platform to reach their fans and new audiences."

As part of the announcement, Activision has revealed that one of the band's tracks, Dream On, will be available to download for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock from between 16th-18th February over Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Store for free.

Questions will inevitably rise over whether one band can bring in the same level of interest as the franchise's standard mix of classics and modern hits - guess we'll just have to wait and see what June brings us.