Activision's Guitar Hero and Harmonix's Rock Band may be market competitors, but that doesn't mean that one can't recognize what the other does well. Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg recently declared his love for his Harmonix, but is it enough to want to buy the company?
In an interview with Industry Gamers, Hirshberg wouldn't comment on whether his company was interested in buying Harmonix (which parent company Viacom recently put up for sale), but he was a lot less shy about his opinion of the creator of both the Rock Band and Guitar Hero franchises.
"They're a hell of a developer," he said, "and very innovative, and I've got nothing but love for them. As a fan, I can certainly say they are a great developer and they've done a great job in this space."
Hirshberg went on to talk about the music genre in general, acknowledging the slump it's in, but also reaffirming Activision's commitment to it and the Guitar Hero franchise. "I think we need to escalate the experience for people and innovate. I think the genre is still fairly new, and so I think it's probably time for us to really look at what the next level looks like for that genre."
Previously, Hirshberg's boss, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, has also stated his admiration for Harmonix and his regret for not looking more into the developer itself before it bought the Guitar Hero IP and publisher, Red Octane.