Well known for making his fans wait, lead singer of Guns N’ Roses Axl Rose has picked up the pace in launching a $20 million lawsuit against Activision, the company behind the wildly successful Guitar Hero music video game franchise, after they included a character similar to ex-bandmate Slash.
Filed Tuesday (November 23) in a Los Angeles court, Rose’s lawsuit says he approved the use of GNR classic Welcome to the Jungle for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, but never agreed to reference ex-lead guitarist anywhere in the game.
Despite his instructions, the game and its packaging feature a dead ringer for Slash, complete with trademark top hat, long curly hair and sunglasses.
“Activision was keenly aware of Rose’s concerns in these regards," the suit claims, "and began spinning a web of lies and deception to conceal its true intentions to not only feature Slash and [Velvet Revolver] prominently in ‘GH III,’ but also promote the game by emphasizing and reinforcing an association between Slash and Guns N’ Roses and the band’s song Welcome to the Jungle.”Well known for making his fans wait, lead singer of Guns N’ Roses Axl Rose has suddenly picked up the pace to launch a $20 million lawsuit against Activision, the company behind the wildly successful Guitar Hero music video game franchise, after they included a character similar to ex-bandmate Slash.
Filed Tuesday (November 23) in a Los Angeles court, Rose’s lawsuit says he approved the use of GNR classic Welcome to the Jungle for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, but never agreed to reference ex-lead guitarist anywhere in the game.
Despite his instructions, the game and its packaging feature a dead ringer for Slash, complete with trademark top hat, long curly hair and sunglasses.
“Activision was keenly aware of Rose’s concerns in these regards," the suit claims, "and began spinning a web of lies and deception to conceal its true intentions to not only feature Slash and [Velvet Revolver] prominently in ‘GH III,’ but also promote the game by emphasizing and reinforcing an association between Slash and Guns N’ Roses and the band’s song Welcome to the Jungle.”