This is a response to an article I found as I was browsing the Internet. Alright. I thought I had seen it all. Sure, celebrities get involved with the gaming industry on all levels. From endorsements, to guest appearances, to commercials. But most of the time they either focus on the core demographic of the game with the celebrities or the celebrities chosen have some sort of relevance to the game. DJ Hero, a game that is coming out soon for consoles, is coming out with a special edition, featuring Eminem and Jay-Z. I can understand John Madden and the football games, Ken Griffey Jr. in baseball, and even Mike Tyson in Punch Out!, but the only real thing that Eminem and Jay-Z seem to have ANYTHING to do with "DJ-ing" is the fact that most rap and hip-hop is made from DJ's remixing old songs for rap beats. If they had Tiesto, I might understand it. Sure, famous DJs are in the game, and produced the tracks for the game, but Eminem and Jay-Z being featured makes about as much sense as William Hung being the cover boy for the popular Xbox singing game Lips. To me, it seems like more of a racially "balanced" publicity stunt for Activision. Ever since "Guitar Hero" picked up popularity, Activision, now Activision-Blizzard, seems to be more about making a buck than quality. Neversoft, an Activision development company,responsible for the Tony Hawk series and now the Guitar Hero series, made Guitar Hero 3, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, Guitar Hero: World Tour, and Guitar Hero: Smash Hits,in the time Harmonix (the original Guitar Hero developer) took to make the first three original Guitar Hero games. The original Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero 2 by Harmonix actually sparked more interest in the series and genre, than the previously listed Guitar Hero titles combined.
There was a time when developers and publishers rarely got endorsements and had to make a quality game in order to even reimburse their investment in the game-making process. Now, many companies use celebrity endorsements, like the commercials for World of Warcraft featuring Ozzy Osbourne, to get people to buy them. Some people, like some of my friends, think, "If they play it, it must be good." Electronic Arts (EA), has decided to go back to the roots of game development lately. They have shied away from celebrity endorsements as much, and their change has made a difference. The quality of their games, as well as the average ratings for their games has gone up in recent years. Personally, as a consumer, I'd rather buy one game and it be amazing, than to buy a used copy of an okay game just to trade it with another game a day after I get it. In the end, every company has its own money-maker, EA has Madden, now Activision has Guitar Hero. Sadly, it seems the days of good, quality games, are being replaced by the days of okay, mediocre sequels.
