Music-related video games like 'Guitar Hero' and 'Rock Band' can mean an awful lot of things to an awful lot of people, but to musicians, they seem to just be, well, insulting. Noel Gallagher, lead singer of the former super-band Oasis, made his feelings on the subject very well known earlier this year, and now Jack White is sharing a similar sentiment.

White is the front man and guitar player of the White Stripes, a band consisting only of himself and his drummer Meg, but he currently devotes more time to leading his other bands, the Raconteurs and the Dead Weather. In various incarnations, his music appears multiple times in 'Guitar Hero 5.' But, he doesn't have to like it.

According to NME, White opined the following on Friday at a Los Angeles press conference: "It's depressing to have a label come and tell you that ['Guitar Hero'] is how kids are learning about music and experiencing music."

"Depressing" isn't quite how we'd describe it, as we've certainly learned a lot more about the tunes we love after playing through them in a game (even if we're only playing a third of the notes and are off-rhythm at that). This all stands as proof, it seems, that even rock stars can be Luddites. [From: NME, via: Joystiq]

With 'Guitar Hero: Metallica' set to hit shelves March 29th, attention now turns to which band the popular series will focus on next. All indications point toward Van Halen. While Activision has released no statements pertaining to the release of a Van Halen Guitar Hero, rumors abound, and, according to Joystiq, the game will include popular hits 'Jump,' 'Panama' and 'Hot for Teacher.'

While Van Halen songs have been featured in other games ('Hot for Teacher' in Wii's 'Guitar Hero World Tour,' for instance), this will be the first to focus almost entirely on the band. The disc is also purported to include songs by a few other artists such as Tenacious D, Weezer and Judas Priest.

No information exists yet as to the make-up of the band, or who the digital lead singer will be, but the game had better include some classic Diamond Dave material. Since it will, without a doubt, feature some tame, Top 40 Van Hagar titles like "Right Now," the game will need some "Running with the Devil"or "Ice Cream Man" action to give it some true, high-kickin' credibility. [From: Rolling Stone]

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'Guitar Hero' may have sparked some debate among music's elite about whether or not it's good for the music industry, but among gamers, there's no debate that it is a serious test of skill, particularly the song "Through the Fire and Flames" by DragonForce. It's seven-plus minutes of carpal-tunnel-inducing pain that only the best can survive, and a 14-year-old kid from Texas has recently become the highest scoring player in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The game -- in case you've been living under a rock -- lets you "play" numerous songs on a toy guitar, approximating the the feel of strumming a real guitar without having to sit through years of guitar lessons. Danny Johnson (aka Danny Fcing) got the world record with a score of 973,954 in the game, an amazing 99-percent completion. It's impressive, but watch the video above and you'll see him do even better, scoring a perfect 100 percent completion. Regardless of what you think about the merit of the game or what Danny could be doing better with his time, it's an impressive achievement and kudos to him!

For more video game heroics and record-setting, check out our gallery after the break. [From: betanews]

Apparently perturbed by the success of games like 'Guitar Hero' and 'Rock Band,' Oasis's Noel Gallagher recently told Total Guitar magazine that "playing a guitar is not a f**king videogame," CVG reported yesterday.

The lead guitarist and principal songwriter for the seminal Britpop band (and one half of the most hilariously cantankerous pair of British brothers known to man) is not known for his love of tech geekdom, or politeness, for that matter. While he isn't a fan of such games (which he admits he's never played), Gallagher does find them slightly more tolerable than others: "It's better than two goblins trying to f**k a donkey up the arse with a laser beam."

We'd hate to hear what Liam -- Gallagher brother and Oasis singer -- would have to say about karaoke. [From: CVG]

Related Links:

• Oasis Releases New Album on MySpace
• Have 'Guitar Hero' and 'Rock Band' Peaked?
• Axl Rose Has Bone to Pick With 'Guitar Hero'

Last week, Guns 'N Roses frontman Axl Rose used a message board to criticize the use of G'n'R songs in the most recent installment of Guitar Hero, we learned from PC World.

Logged in to the MyGNRForum fan site as 'Dexter,' Rose posted a pages-long rant in response to some of the innumerable questions posed to him in the forum. One of those questions had to do with Guns 'N' Roses' 'Welcome to the Jungle' being used in 'Guitar Hero III,' complete with an avatar of Slash, the band's former lead guitarist.

Rose's objection largely stems from his opinion that 'Guitar Hero's' simultaneous use of the song and the image of Slash serve to associate the guitarist with Guns 'N' Roses, while, in fact and law, he is no longer a member of the band.

According to Axl:

Yes Slash was in Guns and on Jungle (and the whole [story that] I came to him for his riff is as much crap as him saying he brought Locomotive and Coma in as complete songs) and he has rights to perform it but not to be represented in this context in association with Guns. And since they weren't granted the license it'll take some sorting.

Rose apparently finds Slash's behavior in this instance to be symptomatic of a fundamental arrogance, identifying it as "[the] ok I put up with all Axl's and Izzy's crap now I'm gonna be the man trip."

Our take? We think Axl's jealous that the spectacularly terrible 'Chinese Democracy' turned out to be even worse than Slash's post-Guns albums with Slash's Snake Pit. And, believe us, a band's got to work at it to be worse than Slash's Snake Pit. [From: MyGNRForum via PC World]

According to Electronic Entertainment Design and Research's "November 2008 Retail Sales Preview" report, the popularity of Guitar Hero is peaking. Predicting a sales decline of more than 50 percent from 'Guitar Hero 3' to 'World Tour' this month (and following a decline of 60 percent in October), it's expected that the game will begin a slow but steady decline in the months and years ahead.

"It is pretty clear that the series has already reached its peak among the mass-market audience," Jesse Divnich, director of analyst services for the firm, told Joystiq. He went go on to say that he doesn't believe this to be the end of 'Guitar Hero' or 'Rock Band,' and that they're "here to stay," and that they expects the franchises to continue for the next 10 years.

What's next? Are we going to start playing real instruments? Our money is on getting computers to play the games for us. Now, resume the faux rocking. [From: Joystiq]

A recent survey conducted by retail giant Guitar Center found that the games 'Guitar Hero' and 'Rock Band' are encouraging players to pick up and learn how to play real instruments, reports Game Daily.

According to the survey of 7,000 gamers, 67 percent of those who do not play an instrument plan to learn and 72 percent of those who already play an instrument play more frequently due to the game.

According to Norman Hajjar, the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Guitar Center, the appeal and success of these games spring from their foundations in reality. "Most video games sell fantasy, but 'Guitar Hero' and 'Rock Band' are selling a dream that can be realized," he told Game Daily.

While we do enjoy playing these games, we cannot pretend that they are anything but utterly fantastical takes on what it's like to play in a band. Now, when 'Rock Band' features levels that tests players' abilities to live off fast food, sleep on floors, scrape together rent money, haggle with club owners and circumvent homefolks' questions about getting a real job, then we'll sign off on it. Maybe these starry-eyed gamers would fare better playing for love offerings than bar percentages. [From: Game Daily]

Oh man... we were excited when we first heard about 'Guitar Praise,' but now that we've seen the three-minute over-explanatory trailer, we might just buy two copies, just in case one isn't enough to get us heathens past St. Peter.

The 'Guitar Hero' clone features songs from Christian Rock acts like Day of Fire and Family Force 5 (What!? no Stryper?), as well as a wireless controller that lets you "shred the riffs and thump the bass." And if you were wondering what to do while you wait for your turn, the trailer lets you know that you can sing along. Exciting!

We really hope that other religions get in on the guitar-based rhythm game fad soon. We're really excited to rock out to 'Hava Nagila.' [From: Joystiq]

After years of negotiations, rumors, and quite probably begging, the Beatles catalog will finally be available for digital download -- but not on iTunes, and we're sure Steve Jobs is none too happy (despite numerous teaser announcements and rumors, the Beatles still aren't on Apple's online music store, or anywhere else online, for that matter).

So if not Apple with its iTunes Store, then who's the lucky distributor? Amazon? Napster? Actually, they've all been upstaged by 'Rock Band' makers Harmonix and MTV. That's right, a video game has succeeded where Apple's army of lawyers and messianic father figure couldn't.

MTV will have access to the entire back catalog of the biggest (and arguably best) band ever for the creation of a Beatles play-along game that will stand separate from its already established 'Rock Band' series. Details such as pricing, release date (all that's been announced is 2009), and exactly what songs will be included will have to wait for another day -- today's news was merely a victory lap.

Activision, Steve Jobs, you just got served. [From: Wall Street Journal]

We're praying that Activision copyrighted the name 'Dance Hero' just to protect the integrity of their property, but something about it just makes us uneasy. The rhythm game genre is starting to feel a little stale. With 'Rock Band' and 'Guitar Hero' essentially becoming the same game, Activision may be looking to expand on its 'Hero' franchise by resurrecting the button stomping genre popularized and dominated by 'Dance Dance Revolution.'

It's not that we have anything against leg flailing games in general, we just wonder how much success Activision plans to have with a clone of a fad of that only saw a lot of success in arcades, which are quickly dying off. [From: Joystiq]

We're not exactly sure why those crazy Christians need to make Jesus-centric versions of everything in sight. Talking Jesus Dolls; preachy, porno-free YouTube clones; cross shaped music players; they just can't leave anything alone.

So it came as no surprise when we heard the people who thought 'Dance Dance Revolution' wasn't godly enough were releasing 'Guitar Praise: Solid Rock.' We're pretty sure you can guess what it is, but let us spell it out for you: 'Guitar Praise' is a 'Guitar Hero' clone, filled with (wait for it...) Christian rock tunes. Hallelujah!

As if 'Guitar Hero' wasn't frustrating enough before now you can try and jam along with songs from bands you've never heard of, like Skillet, Day of Fire, and Family Force 5.

$99.95 nets you the PC and Mac compatible game along with a plastic wireless guitar controller, and of course eternal salvation. [From: Boing Boing]

We've done the roundup treatment for the big three (Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft) at this year's E3 video game show. Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony have each had their turn to toot their own horns, and now it's time for the publishers to have their say. Yes, these are the third-party developers that are responsible for much of the flood of actual games that will be hitting the various consoles over the next few months. Here's what we liked best:

Guitar Hero World Tour - For many, the battle-of-the-band-games is the highlight of the show. While a certain other game (see the next entry) has been getting a lot of attention lately, many gamers still feel that the 'Guitar Hero' franchise reigns supreme, and Activision's upcoming 'Guitar Hero World Tour' ups the ante considerably. It takes a cue from that other rock title by adding a drum kit and microphone to the gameplay, but goes way beyond the competition by letting you plug a real electronic drum kit into it and by including a detailed-looking song maker. Add in exclusive tracks from Metallica and 85 other songs, all from the original bands, and you have a heck of a package.

Rock Band 2 - Not to be left behind, 'Rock Band' is back, also with a slew of updates, including new, self-syncing guitars, a newer, fancier drum kit, and 84 new tunes -- one less than the competition. But, 'Rock Band 2' will let you import nearly all the tracks from the first game, and it remains to be seen whether that'll be the case for the new 'Guitar Hero.'

iPhone Games - The 3G iPhone is out, and so is the App Store. While there are already boatloads of games on the store to download, none were really on display at E3. Still, we saw fairly tame ones like 'Tetris' and 'Spore,' which we already knew about. What gives?

Raving Rabbids - One of the most popular third-party games on the Nintendo Wii is 'Rayman: Raving Rabbids.' It's simple, stupid, and tons of fun, and that's exactly how its latest follow-up is looking, 'Rayman: Raving Rabbids TV Party,' which is another collection of simple and fun mini-games, including what is apparently the first game to let you play with your posterior.

Star Wars: Force Unleashed - There have been absolutely no shortage of 'Star Wars' games cluttering up arcades and gaming systems since the very beginning. So, it's hard to get too excited about a new one, but 'Star Wars: Force Unleashed' is looking genuinely fun. In it, you play the secret apprentice of a certain Mr. Darth Vader, who is overwhelmed with ridiculously powerful force powers, which you can use to pick up and throw everything from Storm Troopers to whole TIE Fighters. Add in some remote-waving action on the Wii that almost makes you feel like an evil Sith, and you have a hot looking game due this September.

Shaun White Snowboarding - It's hard to get too excited about another snowboarding game, even when it's being fronted by the incredibly talented Shaun White. But mix in compatibility with the Wii Fit Balance Board, and suddenly you get our attention. The ability to lean into the turns and shift your weight to land tricks sounds awesome, but having to keep your feet planted could be a drag.

Games for Girls - Female gamers are the largest growing demographic in games right now, making up a large portion of Nintendo's sales, and buying half of all DS handhelds sold. For this reason Ubisoft is singling out girls with a slew of new tween-specific titles, while Natsume is showing off a new 'Harvest Moon' on Wii title, a franchise that has proven to be hugely popular among girls.

With great games like these coming soon (most near the holidays) it's going to be a busy winter of gaming. Better start saving your pennies! For gaming news from E3, be sure to check out thorough, up-to-the-minute coverage from both GameDaily and Joystiq.