Activision is running ads on TV and online featuring celebrity “Guitar Hero” combos plugging into the “Guitar Hero World Tour” video game.
The first ad boosting the new video debut on Oct. 26, features Kobe Bryant, Alex Rodriguez, Michael Phelps and Tony Hawk, rocking out to Bob Seger’s “Old Time Rock and Roll.”
Variations on the themes, which recreate a scene from the film “Risky Business,” will include spots with athletes, actors and super-models, according to Activision spokeswoman Maryann Lataif.
Activision has athletes, actors and super-models signed up for an ad campaign that will continue through the holidays. The ads are being posted on the “Guitar Hero” site. The spots will also be posted on the “Guitar Hero” YouTube page, which assures them viral lives all their own, with distribution to other video sites also part of Activision’s promotion arrangements.
The Web video figures to hit the young, male-skewing core audience for the game. But “Guitar Hero” is a big hit with a broad demographic ranging from teens to baby boomers.
“Guitar Hero has a really broad range. It’s really become a broad appealing product,” Lataif said.
The latest iteration of the game also expands its range, featuring 86 master recordings from artists including Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Van Halen, Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, Linkin Park, Michael Jackson and others.
“Guitar Hero World Tour” was produced by Neversoft Entertainment for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 platforms.
The ads were produced by advertising agency DDB and H.S.I. Productions.
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