Guitar Hero - Without the Guitar

Guitar Hero has spurred a number of peripherals, but they’re usually just variations of the original guitar controller. But Jada Toys is adding something new to the Guitar Hero phenomenon with Air Guitar Rocker.

Actually, Jada is eliminating the Guitar Hero controller. The Air Guitar Rocker is a stand-alone package that lets users emulate “air guitar” motions for popular Guitar Hero tunes like Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man” and Boston’s “More Than A Feeling.” Instead of using a Guitar Hero controller and working the color-coded buttons, gamers use the Air Guitar Rocker picks and wave them in front of a special belt buckle.

When the pick is waved in front of the buckle, the guitar cords are played through a mini-amplifier that comes with the package. The goal is to keep up with the tempo of the song and time each strum of the air guitar pick with the riffs of the songs. The Air Guitar Rocker bundle comes with two picks, the mini-amp (which includes three AA batteries), and an exchangeable Air Cartridge that comes with 10 guitar riffs.

Jada Toys said it plans on releasing more songs with additional Air Cartridges for the package. The Air Guitar Hero, which is supported by Guitar Hero publisher Activision, will go on sale this March for a suggested retail price of $29.99.