That’s not bad, especially when you consider that most movies don’t make that much in their first week. The numbers do pale, however, in comparison to the $170 million Halo 3 earned on its first day earlier this year. For Activision, the instant success of Guitar Hero III is proof that its reported $100 million purchase of the game’s publisher, RedOctane, has paid immediate dividends. And it puts a great deal of pressure on Harmonix, the original developer of Guitar Hero, to do well with its own new title, Rock Band

But there is little doubt that fans of the original Guitar Hero are still fans of Harmonix. So there is equal pressure on Activision and its game developer Neversoft going forward to prove that they can sustain the franchise’s leadership position.