ACTIVISION's TIM RILEY Talks 'Guitar Hero: Metallica'; Video Available

Tim Riley, vice president of music affairs at Activision, recently spoke to the Scandinavian gaming mag Gamereactor about the new importance of games as a platform for distribution and the new position it holds as catalyst for increased digital music sales in reference to the company's upcoming METALLICA edition of Guitar Hero. Watch the four-minute chat below.

METALLICA has revealed the complete track listing for Guitar Hero: Metallica, which is due out in North America on March 29. It is as follows:

METALLICA tracks:

* All Nightmare Long
* Battery
* Creeping Death
* Disposable Heroes
* Dyers Eve
* Enter Sandman
* Fade To Black
* Fight Fire With Fire
* For Whom The Bell Tolls
* Frantic
* Fuel
* Hit The Lights
* King Nothing
* Master of Puppets
* Mercyful Fate (Medley)
* No Leaf Clover
* Nothing Else Matters
* One
* Orion
* Sad But True
* Seek And Destroy
* The Memory Remains
* The Shortest Straw
* The Thing That Should Not Be
* The Unforgiven
* Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
* Wherever I May Roam
* Whiplash

If you downloaded the "Death Magnetic" album for Xbox and PS3, those ten songs will play in their entirety in the full game mode. PS2 and Wii versions (coming in the spring, most likely in early May) will include "Broken Beat & Scarred", "Cyanide" and "My Apocalypse" since they are not compatible with the "Death Magnetic" downloadable content.

Other artists:

* ALICE IN CHAINS - No Excuses
* BOB SEGER - Turn The Page
* CORROSION OF CONFORMITY - Albatross
* DIAMOND HEAD - Am I Evil?
* FOO FIGHTERS - Stacked Actors
* JUDAS PRIEST - Hell Bent For Leather
* KYUSS - Demon Cleaner
* LYNYRD SKYNYRD - Tuesdays Gone
* MACHINE HEAD - Beautiful Mourning
* MASTODON - Blood And Thunder
* MERCYFUL FATE - Evil
* MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP - Armed and Ready
* MOTÖRHEAD - Ace of Spades
* QUEEN - Stone Cold Crazy
* SAMHAIN - Mother of Mercy
* SLAYER - War Ensemble
* SOCIAL DISTORTION - Mommy's Little Monster
* SUICIDAL TENDENCIES - War Inside My Head
* SYSTEM OF A DOWN - Toxicity
* THE SWORD - Black River
* THIN LIZZY - The Boys Are Back in Town

RollingStone.com got a sneak preview of Guitar Hero: Metallica, which is only the second in the popular gaming franchise to be based around a specific artist. According to RollingStone.com's report, the game's storyline was conceived by frontman James Hetfield and lets players begin as METALLICA's opening act, eventually getting to play as the members of METALLICA themselves if they can make it that far.

The menu art is done by longtime METALLICA artist Pushead, while the venues and stage sets are taken from all eras of the band's quarter-century career. The virtual band members each do signature moves, from drummer Lars Ulrich popping up from behind his kit to bassist Robert Trujillo's trademark crabwalk across the stage. The members all start out looking like they do today, but can also revert back to younger versions of themselves. Previous bassists Jason Newsted and the late Cliff Burton do not appear in the game.

Trujillo told The Pulse of Radio why he thinks the Guitar Hero franchise is great for music. "I'm not a gamer, but I actually think it's a great thing in the sense that it's helping to educate our youth and older people about rock 'n' roll and heavy metal in particular, you know, bands like IRON MAIDEN and BLACK SABBATH, and I think that's important," he said.

The band had to go through an extensive motion-capture process in order to make them come to life in the game, and lead guitarist Kirk Hammett told The Pulse of Radio the final result was a little unsettling. "Once they've actually made a virtual you and you start seeing that virtual you playing METALLICA songs, it's a trip, man," he said. "It's like watching a hologram of yourself or, you know, a cartoon of yourself or whatever. It's strange because it's weird and different but oddly familiar at the same time."

Gameplay is available on vocals, guitar, bass, and drums, with an added skill level for double-bass drumming. There is not, however, an option for two players to play lead and rhythm guitar at the same time, like Hetfield and Hammett do in real life.

The game also comes with bonus features such as live videos, footage of the band being filmed for the game, and archival material from the group's history.

Interview:

Guitar Hero: Metallica official trailer: