Band Hero gets DS Lite gig

Publisher Activision-Blizzard has been taking advantage of the "Hero" franchise for some time now, and with good reason. The series has so far seen over $2 billion in sales, and with the upcoming release of Guitar Hero 5 and DJ Hero this autumn, the franchise looks set to become even more of a cash cow for the publisher. There was another upcoming Hero title that made the rounds on the rumour mill recently, Band Hero. Not much information is known about it, except that it will be a family-friendly entry into the series, will feature more top-40 hits than previous Guitar Hero games, and will work on consoles with instruments from other music games.

Now, Activision has confirmed that Band Hero will be coming to the DS Lite. Previous retail listings showed the game on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii, but made no mention of a DS version. The game will allow gamers to not only play guitar but also vocals and drums on the portable. The Game Boy Advance-slot-dependent guitar grip from the previous Guitar Hero on Tour titles makes a return, as well as an "innovative" new drum grip.

According to Activision, Band Hero will also feature a new multiplayer mode, allowing gamers to play with any combination of guitar, bass, drums, and vocals with friends, but the megapublisher did not explain how this would be implemented on the DS platform. The game's 30 master recordings will feature in the game and include artists such as Blink-182, Avril Lavigne, The Killers, KT Tunstall, and Fall Out Boy. Other features include a Rockstar editor for customising band members, plus No Fail and Stage Stunts modes.

No release date for the title has been announced, but GameSpot will bring you more news as information on the game becomes available.