"Activision abused Guitar Hero"

With what was a multi billion dollar selling franchise not long ago put on indefinite hiatus by publisher Activision Blizzard there are many who ask if things couldn't have been very different. Kelly Sumner, former CEO of Red Octane, the company Activision Blizzard acquired to grab hold of the franchise shares his ideas with MCV.

"They tried to get too much out of the franchise too quickly. They abused it. There's no reason why Guitar Hero cannot continue. It's a great product."

Maybe the machine Activision built up around Guitar Hero was just too big to support a normalisation of the market.

"My gut tells me there is still a significant market for Guitar Hero. Not every game can be a billion dollar franchise, but maybe that's what Activision wants. I'd be surprised if they sold the brand as it'd prove to the world there is still a market for this product and show them up.

"Look at how Take-Two has handled GTA. They haven't thrown products out there. They've nurtured it for over ten years and it is still a strong franchise."