Activision’s Guitar Compatibility Deal Involved $$$
The guitar compatibility saga continues. A few days after Harmonix announced that Activision is blocking a patch they had ready to allow Guitar Hero III controllers to work with the PlayStation 3, Activision quickly retaliated stating that they wanted to cooperate but Harmonix refused to make a deal.
In an article from The Boston Globe, Activision spokeswoman Maryanne Lataif explained why their company blocked the patch further. According to her:
Unfortunately for Rock Band users, Harmonix has been unwilling to discuss an agreement that will allow us to provide that option in a manner that maintains the high standards people have come to expect from Activision. We believe we should be compensated for the use of our technology.
Harmonix spokeswoman Spencer Saltonstall in the meantime commented that they want the best for gamers. According to them:
We are looking at this from the consumer standpoint.
Pooch: “Compensated”? Sounds fair in a corporate world. But in the end, the consumers will be on the losing side.
It’s strange that they would block a compatibility patch for the PlayStation 3 controller. Both Rock Band and Guitar Hero III guitar controllers work perfectly on the PlayStaion 2 and Xbox 360 version of Rock Band. Why block them now?
We already know that there is a shortage of Rock Band controllers and coupled with the defective ones that shipped out, the promised four player cooperative play is hard to realize. Most PS3 players have bought both games, and were hoping to use the Guitar Hero controller as an extra guitar. Now that option isn’t available, and many gamers are understandably unhappy about it.
Activision’s move is obviously a ploy to crush their rival. They have already successfully taken over what Harmonix started with Guitar Hero, now they want to make sure they dominate their niche in the gaming world. Blocking the patch will hurt Harmonix, particularly since Rock Band isn’t selling well.
As of now, Guitar Hero has a huge lead boosted by its cheaper price and compatibility with the PlayStation 2. With 1.9 million units sold in November alone, they decimated Rock Band’s 382,000 units sold for the same month.
They may be selling now, but Activision’s hard-balling may backfire on them in the long run as gamers get more and more annoyed with the company. They are already facing a lawsuit. In the meantime, EA seems to be doing a better job at taking care of their customers.
[Source: The Boston Globe]