Hot on the heels of Sony announcing that all instruments for the PS3 versions of three upcoming music games (Rock Band 2, Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Revolution) will be compatible, Microsoft has announced that all instruments for upcoming Xbox 360 rhythm games will be compatible too.

In a post on the Gamerscoreblog, Microsoft stated “All the instruments from Rock Band 2, Guitar Hero: World Tour, and Rock Revolution will be cross-compatible. In other words, welcome to the party.”

A game notably absent from the list was Lips, a game from developer iNis that features motion-sensitive microphones and appears to be Microsoft’s answer to Sony’s SingStar series.

On the US PlayStation blog, Michael Shorrock, PR Director at Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) has announced that all of the upcoming music-based games for the PS3 will be compatible with each other, hardware-wise.

Not only will Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero: World Tour’s instruments work with the software of the other, Singstar’s microphones will also be supported by World Tour and Rock Band 2. The instruments in Konami’s future effort, Rock Revolution, are also included in the compatibility party.

This turn of events is a result of Sony’s work with Neversoft, Konami, Activision and Harmonix, the creators of each of the upcoming games, to ensure that all of the music peripherals released on the PS3 will work with other games, across the board, each featuring a “basic level of gameplay compatibility.”

Shorrock concluded, “Of course each of these great games have their own specific cool features that may not be compatible with the other controllers, but this is our first big step in bringing a level of compatibility to music games that is sure to benefit PlayStation 3 consumers.”

While this is great news for PS3 owners, Microsoft announced at E3 that Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero: World Tour instruments on the Xbox 360 will also be compatible with one another, while Logitech, a 3rd party peripheral developer, has been given the go-ahead to create 3rd party controllers for World Tour. We’ll be swimming in plastic guitars by the end of the year!

Guitar Hero: World Tour will be arriving on South African shelves on the 7th of November. This is the latest word from Megarom, who also confirmed the pricing for the game.

The Super Bundle for the Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii will retail at R1 999 while the PS2 version will cost R1 799. The standalone game will set you back R599 on the PS3 and 360, R499 on the Wii and R399 on the PS2. For an additional R199 you can walk away with the microphone.

Please note that the date and prices are still subject to change.

Guitar Hero: World Tour gives players the chance to play a single instrument or a combination of instruments as well as experience playing in a band with friends. The game will feature wireless instruments including a redesigned and more responsive guitar controller, a genuine electronic drum kit (featuring three drum pads, two raised cymbals and a bass kick pedal) as well as a microphone.

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Players will be able to step into the shoes of Ozzy Osbourne when the latest installment of Guitar Hero hits shelves.

Ozzy makes his videogame debut in Guitar Hero: World Tour with ‘Crazy Train’ and ‘Mr. Crowley.’ Players will also be able to jam at OZZFest, a new in-game venue created exclusively for Guitar Hero: World Tour.

Axe shredder Zakk Wylde joins Ozzy as a playable character and their song ‘Stillborn’ joins the song line-up. System of a Down will also debut on Guitar Hero with ‘B.Y.O.B.’ As previously announced, Metallica will be releasing their Death Magnetic album as downloadable content in Guitar Hero III and Guitar Hero: World Tour. Jimi Hendrix will also debut as a playable character, along with his songs ‘Purple Haze’ and ‘The Wind Cries Mary.’

Guitar Hero World Tour will be available for the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii and PS2 this autumn.

In an earnings call with investor’s, CEO of Activision, Bobby Kotick, announced a raft of new titles… probably all of them expected.

Kotick said “As we look ahead to calendar 2009, even though it is early, the slate is strong. Our lineup will be anchored by: multiple new Guitar Hero SKUs; an all-new Call of Duty, utilizing our leapfrog studio strategy; and a completely reinvented Tony Hawk. In addition, we will launch Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 and we will have a number of movie titles, including Marvel’s Wolverine, Transformers 2, DreamWorks’ Monsters versus Aliens, and 20th Century Fox’s Ice Age.”

Call of Duty: World at War is still a little while off, and ‘an all new’ version is already being touted. And what’s up with that ‘leapfrog studio strategy’? Referring to the Infinity Ward/Treyarch Call of Duty one-two? At least we have Monsters versus Aliens to look forward to.

Activision has announced that the late Jimi Hendrix will make his video game debut in Guitar Hero World Tour.

Hendrix will be featured in the game as a playable character and gamers can also look forward to grooving to two of his tracks, ‘Purple Haze’ and ‘The Wind Cries Mary.’ Additional Hendrix songs will become available as downloadable content in the future.

“Guitar Hero games have become the virtual rock stage for the industry’s most beloved artists and Guitar Hero World Tour continues that tradition by honoring the great Jimi Hendrix and celebrating some of his greatest work,” said Tim Riley, Vice President of Music Affairs for Activision Blizzard.

“His presence in the game will serve to satisfy multiple generations of his fans and Guitar Hero devotees, as well as create new fans by reintroducing his genre-defining guitar style through the unique Guitar Hero experience.”

Guitar Hero World Tour is scheduled to be released on the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii and PS2 this autumn.

The latest Bond game and the first to be delivered by Activision, Quantum of Solace takes place during the events of the movie Casino Royale as well as the new movie, Quantum of Solace.

Game play ranges from sneaking to full-on, unscripted battles against ‘realistic’ AI. We’ve heard that one before…Quantum of Solace contains all the flare, cinematic effects and explosions you’ve come to expect from a James Bond movie, only this time in game form. We’ve also heard that one…To round it off, the game will also feature a multiplayer mode.

To get a glimpse of the action, watch the trailer showing off the different aspects of the game. Quantum of Solace releases late this year on all platforms, in development at Treyarch, Beenox, Eurocom and Vicarious Visions.

Activision Blizzard has announced Activision’s stand alone financial results for Quarter 1 of 2009. The first quarter of Activision’s fiscal year 2009 ended on the 30th of June 2008, before the transaction with Vivendi was closed on the 9th of July.

Activision expects higher net revenues for the first quarter, approximately $650 million up from the prior outlook of $500 million.

The publisher’s performance was driven by Kung Fu Panda’s launch across North America early in Q1. Kung Fu Panda took the title of largest launch of a DreamWorks Animation licensed property by Activision.

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Activision has revealed its fall 2008 line-up and detailed five new games currently in development.

The publisher also announced that Metallica’s upcoming album titled Death Magnetic will be available simultaneously in record stores and as downloadable content for Guitar Hero III.

The fall 2008 line-up includes Call of Duty: World at War, Guitar Hero World Tour, Quantum of Solace and Spider-Man: Web of Shadows.

It is also currently in development on Wolfenstein, the sequel from id Software; RPG Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2: Fusion by Vicarious Visions; FPS Singularity based on a new intellectual property from Raven Software; a Luxoflux game based on Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen from Dreamworks, Paramount Pictures and Hasbro; and a title based on X-Men Origins: Wolverine from Twentieth Century Fox and Marvel which is in development at Raven Software.

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Activision has announced Wee 1ST, a new brand focused on titles designed specifically for the Wii.

The new brand has been in the works for over a year and is aimed at expanding its portfolio for the Wii this fall, with Activision bearing in mind that the Wii is on track to be the leading platform by Christmas.

The first titles under the Wee 1ST brand include Little League World Series 2008, Rapala Fishing Frenzy and Dancing with the Stars: Get your dance on. Activision has promised to reveal more games in the next few weeks, all of which will be released this holiday season.

“The Wii is introducing new audiences to gaming,” said Dave Oxford, Activision Publishing. “Clearly, the Wii’s accessible controls are changing how the audience plays games and how we look at game design. This initiative is designed to showcase games that take full advantage of the Wii’s capabilities.”

The latest word from Infinity Ward’s Director of Communications Robert Bowling (aka iamfourzerotwo) is that Infinity Ward has renewed its contract with Activision publishing. Bowling also hinted at the possibility of a new IP by Infinity Ward.

“We’re excited to announce that in the recent months we have decided to reup on our contract with Activision publishing. The recently renegotiated deal may not seem like much of an impact from the outside perspective, but it has laid the ground work and kick started our future project, as well as the possibility of a unique new IP by Infinity Ward, that we’ll have complete control over.”

Unfortunately that is all Bowling has to say. “We’re excited to be working on our next project, but it’s going to be quite a while before I can share any details on exactly what that project is.”

Activision has announced that Guitar Hero: On Tour has sold over 300 000 units in the US in just seven days since the game was launched. This makes the title the largest North American launch for the Nintendo DS in Activision’s history by more than a factor of eight.

The sales also mean that Guitar Hero: On Tour ranks as one of Activision’s Top 5 best selling launches on any title on any platform in Activision’s history.

“Guitar Hero is one of the most successful entertainment properties and continues to push the boundaries of innovation with Guitar Hero: On Tour,” said Mike Griffith, President and Chief Executive Officer of Activision.

“The game’s breakthrough peripheral brings the Guitar Hero experience to the 41 million DS users in North America and Europe, where they can play anywhere, anytime.”

Guitar Hero World Tour will enables players to rock with a guitar controller, electronic drum kit and microphone.

Here are a couple of new screenshots of the drums and guitar peripherals.

The drum controller features three drum pads, two raised cymbals as well as a bass kick pedal and promises to be the “most realistic drum experience ever in a video game.”

Apart from being easy to set up, break down, move and store, it combines “larger and quieter, velocity-sensitive drum heads with soft rubber construction to deliver authentic bounce back.”

For a look at how much this game will set you back, head over to our previous coverage.

Activision and Treyarch have released further details about Call of Duty: World at War as well as the trailer for the game and a couple of screenshots.

Call of Duty: World at War is in development for the Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo Wii and PC. It is scheduled to be released this fall.

Making use of the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare engine, Call of Duty: World at War takes players deep into the South Pacific and Europe, promising to transform WWII combat through “a new enemy, new tactics and an uncensored experience of the climatic battles that gripped a generation.”

Players will step into the shoes of US Marines and Russian soldiers in the “most chaotic and cinematically intense experience to date.” The game includes new features such as cooperative game play and weapons including the flamethrower.

This will be the first time that players can experience the single player missions together. The cooperative play means that up to four players can battle it out online for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC or two-player local split-screen on consoles. Wii owners can look forward to a unique co-op mode for two players.

Players can complete challenges and earn experience points in the co-op campaign, allowing them to rank up and unlock perks in competitive multiplayer. If you play competitively or cooperatively online you will earn experience points. The game scales dynamically based on a players experience rank.

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Coldplay will be making their debut on Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock this week.

The three track downloadable song pack includes ‘Yellow,’ ‘God Put a Smile Upon Your Face’ as well as the new single ‘Violet Hill’ from the new album Viva la Vida which hits shelves on the 17th of June.

Guitar Hero fans will be able to download the Coldplay track pack on the 19th of June from Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Store.