Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has launched a 20 million dollar lawsuit against Activision over its inclusion of the band's 'Welcome to the Jungle' track alongside ex-band member Slash in Guitar Hero III.
The fifteen-page lawsuit, that has been picked up and scanned by celebrity website Radar here, details how Axl only gave consent for the track to be used under the stipulation that Activision assured that ex-guitarist Slash's image or his current band Velvet Revolver would be used in the game or the guitarist be affiliated with the song in any way, which the company confirmed.
The court documents suggest Activision was "spinning lies and deception
to conceal its true intentions to not only feature Slash and [current band] VR prominently in GH III but also promote the game by emphasizing and reinforcing an association between Slash and Guns N' Roses and the band's song 'Welcome to the Jungle" despite that association ending "almost fifteen years ago".
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock was released on multiple formats three years ago. Why Axl has waited so long to get round to this is unknown, but then again, this is someone who took fifteen years to finish his last album.
This isn't the first time Activision have landed in hot water over their portrayal of musicians in its Guitar Hero franchise - last year Courtney Love took issue with her deceased husband Kurt Cobain's likeness in Guitar Hero 5, which allowed the character avatar to be used in other people's songs.