No Doubt suing Activision over Band Hero

It wasn't even two months ago that Courtney Love led a tirade against Activision for including her late husband, Kurt Cobain in Guitar Hero 5. It seems as though the company hasn't learned its lesson as the LA Times reports (found via NeoGAF) that Band Hero, released this week, has earned the ire (and a lawsuit) from the members of No Doubt, who are angered by the fact that the band members can be used to play songs that the band never performed, saying the game allows for performances that are "wholly inappropriate and out of character for No Doubt".

With Band Hero including over 65 tracks, there are hundreds of unrealistic performances you could create with No Doubt's members, but the complaint lodged by the band chose a few highlights. Particularly, the fact that Gwen Stefani can sing the Rolling Stones song "Honky Tonk Women," as the complaint called it "an unauthorized performance by the Gwen Stefani avatar in a male voice boasting about having sex with prostitutes." The band wasn't even pleased with the way its own songs can be performed, as the complaint also noted that band member Tony Kanal can be chosen to sing "Just a Girl" in a female voice.

According to the complaint, Activision did not reveal the details of the band's inclusion in the game as characters, and when asked to have the band removed as playable characters, were told that the process to do so would be "too expensive."

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It wasn't even two months ago that Courtney Love led a tirade against Activision for including her late husband, Kurt Cobain in Guitar Hero 5. It seems as though the company hasn't learned its lesson as the LA Times reports (found via NeoGAF) that Band Hero, released this week, has earned the ire (and a lawsuit) from the members of No Doubt, who are angered by the fact that the band members can be used to play songs that the band never performed, saying the game allows for performances that are "wholly inappropriate and out of character for No Doubt".

With Band Hero including over 65 tracks, there are hundreds of unrealistic performances you could create with No Doubt's members, but the complaint lodged by the band chose a few highlights. Particularly, the fact that Gwen Stefani can sing the Rolling Stones song "Honky Tonk Women," as the complaint called it "an unauthorized performance by the Gwen Stefani avatar in a male voice boasting about having sex with prostitutes." The band wasn't even pleased with the way its own songs can be performed, as the complaint also noted that band member Tony Kanal can be chosen to sing "Just a Girl" in a female voice.

According to the complaint, Activision did not reveal the details of the band's inclusion in the game as characters, and when asked to have the band removed as playable characters, were told that the process to do so would be "too expensive."

We'll keep you updated on any further developments in Activision's latest legal squabble.

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