Adam Levine, the callous mastermind behind pop band, Maroon 5, is suing Activision over his depiction in Band Hero.
Making a claim very much like that the one former members of the now defunct ska-pop outfit No Doubt made earlier in the year, Levine argues that he only signed on to appear in Band Hero to sing one song, his own. Of course that’s not quite how it panned out. Band Hero allowed the player to select Levine as a band frontman then have him perform not only the Maroon 5 hit “She Will Be Loved,” but any song in the game’s roster, with often hilarious results. The lawsuit, which covers allegations of fraudulent inducement, breach of contract, violation of the common-law right of publicity, and unfair business acts or practices, was filed in a Los Angeles superior court yesterday and seeks an undisclosed amount of damages.
Apparently a specific source of irritation for Levine was the fact his motion captured likeness could be used to perform songs with female vocals. That and he was apparently getting paid less than other musicians signed to the game.
Essentially Levine claims that he did not agree to be depicted as he was in the game. Though it’s easy to dismiss this as another celebrity money grab, just take a look at the picture in the top right there. Good lord, He looks like Morrisey crossed with Cleetus Spuckler from the Simpsons. Whatever your feelings about Maroon 5, that horrendous digital approximation of a human being certainly adds some credibility to Adam Levine’s complaints. Also, five bucks says that’s the first time the words “Adam Levine” and “credibility” have been used in the same sentence by any reputable news source, ever.
Source: Destructoid
Published: Aug 5, 2011 03:45 pm