Music games saw a big comeback last fall with the release of titles like Guitar Hero Live for consoles and mobile devices. However, using a toy instrument to simulate the feel of playing alongside a live-action band before a massive audience only makes up half the game. The other half is an online experience called GHTV, which is the world’s first and only playable music video station. Think of it as MTV (back when it played music videos), except that fans can play along with pre-set blocks of programming or select a song from the on-demand list.

With GHTV, audiences can discover and engage with music like never before, and it is perfect for a longstanding band like Def Leppard to engage with fans. Formed in 1977, the band saw tremendous success in the 80s — particularly with the Hysteria album, which won numerous accolades and is ranked among Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. The band released a new self-titled album last October, its first since 2008, and debuted the music video for “Dangerous” for U.S. and European fans on GHTV in a premium show that also features classic hits like “Let’s Go” and “Rock of Ages.”

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The Def Leppard: On Through The Ages premium show is available now, and can be accessed using real-world currency or by completing three in-game challenges until it expires next week on Feb. 9.

Rich Orchard, music supervisor at FreeStyleGames, talked to [a]listdaily about getting “Dangerous,” working with classic bands like Def Leppard and rocking out on GHTV.

How did Def Leppard become involved with Guitar Hero Live to debut the “Dangerous” video on GHTV?

We’re constantly looking out for the right music, both old and new, that we see as a great fit for the game. The band had their first record in seven years on the way and were keen to do something different for it. They very much recognize the way fans discover and listen to music has evolved so much since they began as a band, so when the idea was suggested of premiering the “Dangerous” video in Guitar Hero Live, they felt like it was an idea that was super interesting and the perfect fit for them and their fanbase.

The vision for Guitar Hero Live – and in particular GHTV – was to create a unique way for fans to both discover new music, and get a new gameplay experience with it. So, it’s gratifying to be able to work with the band to deliver exactly this type of experience, and we hope the fans love it as much as we do.

How do you go about choosing which artists to partner with for premium show experiences?

We’re lucky in that we have great relationships with most bands and their labels; and with two channels and a music set list of 300-plus songs in GHTV, we’re able to reflect the genre breadth you’ll see across all the music festivals this summer. So, we are partnering with artists across the spectrum (rock to pop, indie to metal) to deliver new music and gaming experiences for the bands and their fans. With the new tech innovation coupled with the core Guitar Hero gameplay that made the old games great, it makes for an enticing mix of old meets new, with classic bands such as Def Leppard sitting alongside your favorite band of tomorrow. Our GH community is also awesome at giving us shoutouts on the bands they want to see next.

Has there been discussion about including more classic Def Leppard songs in the GHTV catalog?

No announcement on that just yet, but they’re certainly very much up for consideration. Classic rock as a genre is always going to both be popular, and works well in Guitar Hero. The riffs and solos play great, plus with GHTV we now also get to revisit the classic music videos that many of us grew up with. So, more classic artists and tracks forthcoming for sure … I’d say stay tuned to our social feeds in the weeks ahead to find out which they might be.

What are some of the top songs played on GHTV right now?

It’s a musical journey right there! From classic 70s and 80s rock courtesy of Boston, Survivor and Queen, to contemporary rock icons such as Green Day and System of a Down, to today’s biggest global popstars in Bruno Mars, Calvin Harris and Ed Sheeran. All very popular in the service at this moment in time.

GHTV is a great way to discover and engage with music from the past 35 years or so, but are there plans to include songs that came out before music videos became popular?

Not at this moment in time, but we’ll have to see what future innovation we bring to GHTV. You can be sure though that with our commitment to the gameplay as well as new weekly content for the service, there will always be exciting and compelling new content, from all eras, to play in game.