Activision’s upcoming rhythm franchise revival, Guitar Hero Live, will offer players full access to its music catalog via an included “party pass” feature, the development team at FreeStyle Games revealed during a recent presentation.
The feature supplements Guitar Hero Live‘s previously announced GHTV network, which expands the game’s on-disc setlist with playable, cloud-streamed versions of hundreds of popular songs. While Guitar Hero Live‘s core campaign simulates live performances with filmed crowd backdrops, GHTV tracks instead play original music videos in the background during gameplay.
GHTV features several live streaming channels that allow players to jump in and strum/pick/shred along to currently featured artists using the included (and newly redesigned) guitar controller peripheral. Players can request and play specific tracks at any time using in-game currency, and featured songs can be permanently added to a user’s library with a one-time purchase.
The “party pass” feature, on the other hand, functions as an all-access rental service, similar to how karaoke establishments operate. Players who purchase a pass can create setlists, schedule content, and play an unlimited number of GHTV songs on-demand for as long as the pass remains active.
“[The party pass will] allow you to pay real money to gain timed access to the entire music catalog,” senior designer Nathan Coppard stated. “Imagine you’ve got your friends coming over. You want to stick GHTV on, you want to just be able to make playlists and basically schedule your own programming.”
A pricing structure for the feature was not announced. Guitar Hero Live premieres as a controller-bundled package for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii U consoles on October 23.
