Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero, DJ Hero confirmed for fall '09

Activision today officially announced or confirmed information for a wide range of products with the Hero moniker, including Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero, DJ Hero, Guitar Hero: Van Halen, and Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits, which is known as Guitar Hero: Smash Hits in North America. The biggest news is that Guitar Hero 5 was also officially revealed, though no specific details except for the release window were mentioned.

Guitar Hero 5 is expected to follow the formula of Guitar Hero, World Tour which was released last year on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Wii, and PC to positive reviews. It will offer an "unprecedented level of control over the way they play the game with the ability to drop in and out of songs and change band members, instruments, and difficulty levels on the fly," according to the megapublisher.

The long-rumored Band Hero was also confirmed. Instead of featuring nonrock instruments, the game will instead be an all-ages, family-friendly entry in the series, and the first game in the franchise to bear an E10+ rating from the ESRB. No details were given other than that the game will feature "top-40 hits designed to expand the appeal to a broad family audience who can play together on the guitar, drums, bass, and microphone."

The previously confirmed DJ Hero also got a mention. Swapping pubs for clubs, the new instalment will feature songs spanning hip-hop, R&B, Motown, electronic, and "dance" genres. Rather than creating songs from scratch, DJ Hero will let players produce "original mixes of popular songs and music from the world's most exciting artists and DJs."

Several publicity images of the DJ Hero Turntable Controller were unveiled with the announcement. The deck features green, red, and blue buttons akin to those found on Guitar Hero instruments, with the middle button noticeably larger than the other two. DJ Hero is heading to the Xbox 360, Wii, and PlayStation 3 and/or PlayStation 2.

Although Prince may have knocked back the franchise's advances, Activision's Will Kassoy officially confirmed the existence of Guitar Hero: Van Halen earlier this week at a press event. Kassoy promised that the game will feature "many of the band's greatest hits," although it is still unclear which platforms it will appear on.

In a separate announcement, Activision also confirmed the complete 48-song setlist for Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits (subtitled Smash Hits in the US), combining songs from previous games in the series including Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. The full list is below.

Guitar Hero
Blue Oyster Cult - Godzilla
Boston - More Than a Feeling
Deep Purple - Smoke on the Water
Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out
Helmet - Unsung (Live)
Incubus - Stellar
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Love Rock N' Roll
Ozzy Osbourne - Bark at the Moon
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell (Live)
Queen - Killer Queen
Queens of the Stone Age - No One Knows
The Donnas - Take It Off
The Exies - Hey You
White Zombie - Thunder Kiss '65

Guitar Hero II
Alice in Chains - Them Bones
Avenged Sevenfold - Beast and the Harlot
Danzig - Mother
Foo Fighters - Monkey Wrench
Iron Maiden - The Trooper
Jane's Addiction - Stop!
Kansas - Carry on Wayward Son
Lamb of God - Laid to Rest
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird
Motley Crue- Shout at the Devil
Nirvana - Heart-Shaped Box
Rage Against the Machine - Killing in the Name
Reverend Horton Heat - Psychobilly Freakout
Rush - YYZ
Stone Temple Pilots - Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart
The Police - Message in a Bottle
The Sword - Freya
Warrant - Cherry Pie
Wolfmother - Woman

Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s
Anthrax - Caught in a Mosh
Extreme - Play With Me
Judas Priest - Electric Eye
Poison - Nothin' But a Good Time
Ratt - Round and Round
Twisted Sister - I Wanna Rock

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
AFI - Miss Murder
DragonForce - Through the Fire and Flames
Heart - Barracuda
Kiss - Rock and Roll All Nite
Living Colour - Cult of Personality
Pat Benatar - Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Priestess - Lay Down
Slayer - Raining Blood

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith
Aerosmith - Back in the Saddle