This week in games: June 15 - 19, 2009

This week’s retail releases are somewhere between slim and none. The highlights for the week are the new Ghostbusters game for various platforms and Activision’s Guitar Hero: Smash Hits. Well, if you didn’t pick up Prototype last week or inFamous, perhaps you might want to check those games out.

Anyway you can find the complete list of releases (excluding online only releases, of course) below:

June 16, 2009:

Big League Sports: Summer - Wii, DS

Class of Heroes - PSP

Discovery Kids: Parrot Pals - DS

Diva Girls: Divas on Ice - Wii, DS

Flower, Sun and Rain - DS

Ghostbusters - Wii, DS, Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Windows

Guitar Hero: Smash Hits - Wii, Xbox 360, PS3, PS2

Vertigo - Wii

More Guitar Hero: Smash Hits Tracks Revealed

Activision is hoping that today’s reveal of more music in Guitar Hero Smash Hits will get you excited. Of course that excitement is slightly curtailed by the fact that many of these tracks are already available in Guitar Hero II. Guitar Hero Smash Hits will finds its way to retail June 16 for PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360. The latest track reveal can be found below:

* Avenged Sevenfold:”Beast And The Harlot”

* Rage Against The Machine:”Killing In The Name”

* Rush:”YYZ”

* Lynyrd Skynyrd:”Free Bird”

* Wolfmother:”Woman”

* Foo Fighters:”Monkey Wrench”

* Iron Maiden:”The Trooper”

* Nirvana:”Heart-Shaped Box”

* Lamb of God:”Laid To Rest”

* The Police:”Message In A Bottle”

* Danzig:”Mother”

* Kansas:”Carry On Wayward Son”

* Stone Temple Pilots:”Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart”

* Warrant:”Cherry Pie”

* Alice in Chains:”Them Bones”

* Jane’s Addiction:”Stop!”

* The Sword:”Freya”

* Reverend Horton Heat:”Psychobilly Freakout”

* Motley Crue- “Shout At The Devil”

Activision Predicts Impressive Q1 Results

Activision this morning announced that it will do better in the first quarter than it had previously forecasted - thanks mostly to strong performances by Call of Duty: World at War, World of Warcraft and Guitar Hero titles. Activision had forecasted first quarter revenues of $860 million and earnings of 8 cents a share.

The company says that it is “tracking ahead” of its prior outlook. Excluding the usual charges, Activision predicts revenues of $550 million and 3 cents a share. Analysts had revenue pegged at $569.32 million and 4 cents a share.

“Global consumer response to the Call of Duty and Guitar Hero franchises and Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft remains strong despite the challenging economic environment,” said Activision CEO Robert Kotick. “We exceeded our quarterly financial goals as the video game market continues to grow and our franchises continue to perform.”

Kotick also had a positive outlook on upcoming games doing well later in the year. Those games include Transformers, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and Guitar Hero Smash Hits.

Call it Guitar Hero Smash Hits

Activision passed along box art, revealing a name change for its upcoming Guitar Hero product. Formerly Guitar Hero Greatest Hits, the new title for the game is apparently Guitar Hero Smash Hits. What’s the discernable difference in terms of content? None that we know of.

Guitar Hero Smash Hits promises 48 master tracks from Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Guitar Hero Smash Hits includes some of the most famous Guitar Hero songs playable with guitar or for the first time as a full band.

Check out the new box art on the left.