Source: A presentation made by Activision CEO Bobby Kotick at the Morgan Stanley Technology Conference in Dana Point, California.

　　What we heard: Ever since Activision confirmed long-running rumors by announcing Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, gamers have wondered what the next band-themed title in the franchise might be. Given Aerosmith's stature in the rock pantheon, it was suddenly possible that any supergroup could lend its name to the game. Metallica, The Rolling Stones, U2, Smashing Pumpkins, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers were among the bands most often mentioned by virtual axemen during basement speculation sessions.

　　Another of the most repeated names in the guess-the-next-Guitar-Hero-band metagame is Van Halen. After dropping out of the public eye during the beginning of the decade, the once-mighty quartet--which dominated the US record charts during the 1980s and 1990s--reunited with its second singer, Sammy Hagar, in 2003. After a 2004 tour fizzled out, the remaining members of the original group asked original frontman David Lee Roth to put aside decades of acrimony and re-up. The resulting successful tour is still ongoing, although recent postponements blamed on guitarist Eddie Van Halen's health woes have called its future into doubt.

　　But while Van Halen's real-life members are feeling the ravages of time, the band might see a second life in game form. At least that's the theory being bandied about on many a forum following comments made by Kotick at the Morgan Stanley Technology Conference yesterday. At the elite confab, analysts and financial mucky-mucks posited questions to the soon-to-be chief executive of Activision Blizzard about the future of the Guitar Hero series.

　　"So when you think about how we're going to grow, just getting to parity on the US business will add a significant amount of revenues this year," said Kotick. "Then you think about what we're doing in specialized programming, whether it is new platforms or Aerosmith, or other bands that are proprietary to our format." (Emphasis added.)

　　Later, Kotick discussed the sales bump each band featured in Guitar Hero receives. Kotick said "Every one of the artists included in Guitar Hero III saw their number one downloaded song on iTunes, within the month after the release of Guitar Hero III, being the Guitar Hero III song." He then continued, "So our attitude is, if we're breaking bands or creating this much enthusiasm, and you are reaching a whole new group of consumers, six to 11-year-old consumers, who are being exposed to Aerosmith for the first time or Van Halen for the first time, wherever it might be, we need to capture much more of that upside opportunity." (Emphasis added.)

　　The official story: While Kotick's mention of Van Halen riled up gamers old enough to remember "Hot for Teacher" being played on boomboxes at junior high cornfield keggers, it wasn't an official announcement of Guitar Hero: Van Halen. So was the comment a slip of the tongue or wishful thinking on the executive's part? Activision isn't saying, declining to respond to inquiries about Kotick's comments.

　　Bogus or not bogus?: Too little to go on. However, it is worth noting that, with Van Halen's volatile history, it might not be as easy to sort the royalty situation as it was for Aerosmith. Then there's the dilemma of choosing songs between the original lineup and the "Van Hagar" era--and won't someone think of Gary Cherone?