While publisher Activision has been rather tight-lipped regarding the songs found in Guitar Hero 5--only a few tracks have been announced--developer Neversoft confirmed a couple more of the licensed in-game tunes during a presentation last week.

Elton John's "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting," A Perfect Circle's "Judith" and Blink 182's "The Rock Show" were among the previously unknown songs shown in a hands-off demonstration of the upcoming multi-instrument music game sequel.

In addition, director Brian Bright confirmed to Shacknews that, as indicated by the list of included bands, David Bowie and Queen's "Under Pressure" will be in... Read more

Activision today announced all 84 bands making an appearance in Guitar Hero 5, revealing that they are going with artists ranging from Elton John to Public Enemy to Rammstein.

The music rhythm game sequel is expected September 1st. The full list of bands follows

• 3 Doors Down
• A Perfect Circle
• AFI
• Arctic Monkeys
• Attack! Attack! UK
• Band Of Horses
• Beastie Boys
• Beck
• Billy Idol ... Read more

Update: More information on the bands included in Guitar Hero 5 have surfaced, revealing that the full game will feature tracks from Gorillaz, Duran Duran, Beastie Boys, Bush, Blur and more. A list of the recently confirmed artists can be found below.

Original: The next title in Neversoft's Guitar Hero series will hit stores on September 1, according to the official site for Guitar Hero 5.

Harmonix' The Beatles: Rock Band is currently scheduled to launch eight days later on September 9.

Guitar Hero 5 will allow the use of four instruments of the same type at once, and is set to feature songs from 85 bands.

Songs confirmed for GH5 include:

• Johnny Cash - "Ring of Fire"
• Santana - "No One To Depend On (Live)"
• Bob Dylan - "All Along the Watchtower"... Read more

Following up on last week's announcement of Guitar Hero 5, USA Today and Activision have revealed the first batch of songs and new details for the fall-due sequel.

As expected, the multi-instrument music game will arrive on PS2, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii, sporting tracks from 85 bands. Of those 85, over 30 recording artists will be "making their music-rhythm video game debut," according to Activision. Here's what we know:

• Johnny Cash - "Ring of Fire"
• Santana - "No One To Depend On (Live)"
• Bob Dylan - "All Along the Watchtower"
• Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - "Runnin' Down a Dream"... Read more

Activision Publishing has announced its fall lineup will include new titles DJ Hero, Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero, and confirmed the oft-rumoured Guitar Hero Van Halen.

When wielding DJ Hero's special turntable controller, players are transformed into world-class DJs spinning hip-hop, R&B, electronica, Motown and dance music.

Guitar Hero 5 brings drop-in drop-out play to the franchise, as well as the ability to change instruments and difficulty on the fly. The E10+-rated Band Hero intends to deliver Hero fun for the whole family with Top-40 hits and presumably no cussin' or sexy talk.

Guitar Hero Van Halen was confirmed in a separate mailing for release "the second half of this year", bringing a bevvy of Van Halen hits and music from a number of guest acts including Queen, Weezer, blink-182, The Offspring and Queens of the Stone Age.

No platforms were announced for any of the games, but history and rumours suggest the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PS2 and Wii are likely to be bopping hard this fall.

The full scoop from Activision's pillowy musical lips follows below... Read more

Guitar Hero publisher Activision has three more unannounced music games planned for 2009, a "source close to the publisher" has allegedly informed Eurogamer.

Hard Rock Van Halen and Band Hero are apparently slated to hit PS2, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii in August and November, respectively. No further details on the games themselves were provided, such as how Band Hero differs from Guitar Hero.

Earlier this year, Activision promised a "major re-stage" of the Guitar Hero franchise with "all new differentiated Guitar Hero products" in the second half of 2009.

The third unannounced game appears to be another Guitar Hero title for the Nintendo DS, which will follow the June-due Guitar Hero On Tour: Modern Hits.

The site further specified that already known efforts Guitar Hero 5 and DJ Hero will arrive in PS2, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii form in October and September, respectively.

Activision has vowed to triple the amount of Guitar Hero releases by 2010. Guitar Hero Metallica arrives on PS3 and Xbox 360 in March, with Wii and PS2 vesions coming later, and Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits will hit the same platforms come June.

During a conference call today, Activision confirmed three new Guitar Hero games, including a greatest hits compilation, a new DS game, and a "major restage."

Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits will appear on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii, bringing full-band versions of major songs that have appeared in past guitar-only iterations. Greatest Hits marks the first major Guitar Hero title to not appear on the PlayStation 2.

Update: Activision has since announced Greatest Hits for the PlayStation 2.

Both Greatest Hits and the new Nintendo DS game will arrive over the summer. That Nintendo DS game is likely to be Guitar Hero: Modern Hits, which has been previously revealed via trademarks and listings but never officially confirmed.

In addition, Activision Publishing president Mike Griffin revealed that the company is planning a "major re-stage" of the franchise with "all new differentiated Guitar Hero products" in the second half of the year, presumably in the fall holiday season.

The three Guitar Hero games join Guitar Hero: Metallica, which hits PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 29, followed by PlayStation 2 and Wii editions later on. Activision is also planning to debut the spin-off DJ Hero franchise at some point in 2009.

Yesterday, Activision Blizzard revealed several of its major games for 2009, such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Guitar Hero 5. Now, the studio has informed VideoGamer that reports of the games are "speculative as far as we're concerned."

The revelations were part of Activision Blizzard's presentation at a conference held by in-game advertising firm Massive Inc, during which Activision detailed its 2009 releases.

In addition to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Guitar Hero 5, the company also spoke of the next Tony Hawk game. "You're not going to be playing Tony Hawk with a controller in your hands," said an Activision executive, according to journalist N'Gai Croal.

The presentation also specified two new racing titles from Project Gotham Racing series developer Bizarre Creations: a James Bond racing game and another game billed as "Mario Kart meets Forza" by a company representative.

Along with N'Gai, MTV Multiplayer's Stephen Totilo provided coverage, lending further credibility to the reports. Both writers are respected and considered credible. It is speculated that Activision did not expect journalists to be reporting live from the event, and presented confidential information not yet meant for public consumption.

Details on many of Activision Blizzard's upcoming titles were revealed today during a joint event with in-game advertiser Massive Inc.

According to MTV, Call of Duty 6 is now known as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and is slated to arrive in fall 2009. As previously revealed, series creator and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare veteran Infinity Ward will return for the latest entry.

Furthermore, an in-game shot of Guitar Hero 5 was shown in a demonstration of Massive's in-game advertising strategy for Activision, showing a "Burger King ad to the right of the note highway." Past Guitar Hero games have used similar in-game ads.

Activision also confirmed rumors that the next Tony Hawk title will be played using some type of peripheral rather than with a controller. The skateboarding game will hit Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and DS in October.

An original James Bond racing title from Project Gotham Racing developer Bizarre Creations was also announced, and is set to debut next September. Bizarre is also working on an original racing title, described by Activision as "Mario Karts meets Forza."