DJ Hero - Development

Development

Activision had initially applied for a trademark on the name DJ Hero in early 2008, leading to speculation that Activision was making plans to compete against Konami's Beatmania series of music video games with their own DJ game as a possible spinoff of their popular Guitar Hero series. FreeStyleGames, a small developer of music games, was employed to help produce localized downloadable content for Guitar Hero games and develop another yet-to-be announced music game. This game was later revealed to be DJ Hero. Activision CEO Robert Kotick confirmed the existence of DJ Hero in an interview with CNBC on January 20, 2009, revealing a release "later this year". Activision CFO Thomas Tippl stated that DJ Hero would be aimed at a broader audience than the Guitar Hero games primarily through the use of more contemporary music in its soundtrack. Producer Will Townsend stated they opted for a wide variety of music to "make sure that everybody has something in there that they want." DJ Hero has been designed as a party game and to make the player "the life of the party", and has been developed with many gameplay modes to put the player "in control of the music", according to Townsend.

FreeStyleGames teamed up with London based music production company Crossfade Cartel owned by Ofei Sakyi and Dan Neil to ensure the overall quality of the soundtrack. The 16 man music production team used a combination of MIDI software along with the music sequencer program, Ableton Live; the MIDI information was used to construct the gameplay elements such as crossfading and scratching with additional custom export software. Because of this nature, Neil stated that it was much easier to alter a mix to meet certain gameplay goals, taking only a few minutes to complete, compared with the development of songs for Guitar Hero.

The team worked alongside artists and DJ's for incorporation of songs into the game. Neil stated they brought to artists and DJ's working prototypes of the game and hardware to show them what the sampled music and final mixes sounded like, garnering interest from these groups. This led to securing of rights from several groups for their songs, though this did occur late in the development process. Mixing with celebrity DJ's was performed either though electronic communications, or at FreeStyleGames' studios or the homes or studios of the DJ's themselves; the team outlined the goals of the game and requested mixes that emphasized the gameplay featured, but avoided hampering the creativity of the artists.

DJ Shadow was brought in by Activision during November and December 2008, at least a year into the development into the game, to help select individual songs, help with creating the mixes, and provide additional input for the game, and will also be a playable DJ avatar in the game. He was able to identify old effects samples that were used in the past for scratching for the developers to include the game. To create the mixes, DJ Shadow first created a "dry version" of each mix which did not include any embellishments. DJ Shadow then proceeded to build off that to create the "wet version" with added effects that was used as the base for the gameplay's mixes. Artists Eminem and Jay-Z have also served as consultants for the game; a special edition of DJ Hero was branded with their names, and included a limited edition of the controller, a music CD of their songs, a DJ stand, and a travel case for the units. This version is titled "Renegade Edition." Jay-Z stated that he " the freedom" that the game gives him, and was able to work closely with Activision to put in new mixes that he envisioned, and considered the game "a DJ's universe", while Eminem believed DJ Hero was a game that he could "see actually playing". DJ's Z-Trip and DJ AM both created mixes for the game and will also be playable DJ's in the game; Z-Trip will also help demonstrate the game at the 2009 E3 Conference. Cut Chemist and J.Period will also be assisting in creating mixes for the game. Grandmaster Flash, DJ Jazzy Jeff, and Daft Punk have contributed remixes to the soundtrack and will also appear as playable avatars. In the case of Daft Punk, a special venue inspired by the group's Alive 2007 tour has been created by Freestyle games, which Tim Riley, Vice President for Music Affairs at Activision, stated "is the next best thing to being at a Daft Punk concert". David Guetta has also contributed three mixes that will be available as downloadable content for the game, and will be the game's spokesperson in Europe. As part of the game's promotion, the DJ Hero controller appears in the music video for Kid Cudi's "Make Her Say".

On August 28, 2009, DJ AM, a significant contributor to DJ Hero, was found dead in his apartment in New York City. His death did not affect the release of the game. Tim Riley, vice president of music affairs for Activision, stated that "We are deeply saddened by the loss of DJ AM. We hope that his work on the game will be a fitting tribute to his creative spirit and musical talent". Also, at least one promotional video for the game has included a screen commemorating the deceased DJ, with the message "DJ AM, 1973–2009. In memory of a visionary."

Neversoft's Brian Bright revealed that the use of Guitar Hero guitar controllers within DJ Hero arose when they tried to create mixes of guitar-heavy and rock tracks in the game; they felt something was missing in these mixes and added in the Guitar Hero-style of play alongside it. Bright has stated that, while too late for the planned release of Guitar Hero 5, they are looking towards future instrument controller interoperability, including use of the DJ Hero controller into gameplay for future Guitar Hero titles, or using drum controllers within DJ Hero.