Guitar Hero Mobile Stumbles with AI Launch

When it comes to fast-and-furious rhythm games, although the genre never really took off in the West, there was one huge exception: Guitar Hero. Now, this legendary franchise is set to make a comeback, and it's coming to the mobile platform! However, the announcement didn't hit the right note with fans. Instead of a thrilling trailer or a detailed press release, Activision chose to reveal Guitar Hero Mobile with an awkwardly AI-generated promotional image on Instagram. This move has drawn significant criticism, especially following another instance of AI use in the reveal of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

As for what Guitar Hero Mobile will actually look and sound like, details are scarce. The series did appear on mobile devices nearly 20 years ago, but expectations are high for a more impressive revival this time around. You can see the older version below:

The AI-generated art used for the announcement has been widely criticized, with many noting its poor quality and suggesting it might not have been produced using the latest image generation technology. This has led to concerns that Guitar Hero Mobile could be "dead on arrival," especially given the competition from successful titles like Space Ape's BeatStar.

Despite my excitement about the potential of Guitar Hero returning and thriving on mobile, it's clear that Activision has stumbled out of the gate with this announcement. The use of AI art has overshadowed what could have been a celebrated revival.

In the meantime, if you're curious about how other major franchises have fared on mobile devices, check out the top 9 Final Fantasy games available on smartphones.