Axl Rose had a bone to pick with Activision Blizzard over the use of the Guns ‘N Roses song Welcome to the Jungle in the game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
Guns 'n' Roses, Photo by Ros O'Gorman
He allegedly agreed to the song’s use if the company did not put any Velvet Revolver songs in the game. Not only did Activision put a number of Revolver songs in the release, but they also placed group member and Rose’s ex-bandmate, Slash, on the cover and allowed people to play the game with an avatar of the guitarist.
Needless to say, Rose was not happy with the situation but, being the punctual guy that he is, he didn’t file a lawsuit until late 2007, three years after the game’s release.
Unfortunately, there is a two-year statute of limitations on such a suit, so a judge has tossed the entire lawsuit out of court, even though Rose claimed he waited so long because Activision had promised him his own version of the game, a release of music from Chinese Democracy and other projects.
Most likely, plans for those products fell apart when the bottom dropped out of the music-based gaming industry.
Rose had been seeking $20 million in damages.
