EXCLUSIVE: Zakk Wylde talks Guitar Hero: World Tour

Wylde's suited up and feelin' sexy
Wylde's suited up and feelin' sexy

Zakk Wylde is the living, breathing embodiment of a rock star, but it wasn't until he donned a motion capture suit for Guitar Hero World Tour that he realized what it felt like to be a "super-sized, quarterback-style, kick-ass guitar monster."

Along with Sting, Ted Nugent, Billy Corgan and Jimi Hendrix, Wylde appears as one of digitized characters that players must battle, and according to the guitarist, the day he spent rocking out to Black Sabbath's Paranoid and Black Label Society's Stillborn for his role in the game was one of the most surreal experiences he's ever had.

"It's pretty pathetic when your son beats you and you're going, 'Wait a minute, I fucking wrote that song!'"

"Dude, that suit they put you in is tight," says Wylde, laughing, "I didn't know if I was going scuba diving or modeling men's underwear. But I sure felt sexy, man, more than I usually do. I took a look at my ass in the mirror and I said, 'All right, after I'm done here, I'm going down to a strip club to do some lap dances for the boys. I'm gonna make me some real money!'"

As one might expect, Wylde is a fan of the Guitar Hero franchise, but he admits that his son, Hendrix, is more proficient on the game than he is. "He kicks my ass all over the place on Guitar Hero," says Wylde. "I mean, it's pretty pathetic when your son beats you and you're going, 'Wait a minute, I fucking wrote that song! How could you beat me at my own song?'"

Wylde's got a game of his own

Guitar Hero World Tour, which will be released on October 26, promises more frills and extras than previous versions. Wylde, however, has a few ideas of his own for something he calls "Guitar Hero Real Life."

In Wylde's game, guitarists would "develop drug and alcohol problems, go into rehab; they'd get into fights with drummers and get fired from bands; they'd get ripped off by record companies and get their publishing stolen from them; and then they'd get divorced and sit there crying in their beer. Oh, and they'd have writer's block too - that's the real fun part!"

Definitely one to be rated M for Mature.

You can view the trailer of Zakk Wylde in Guitar Hero World Tour right here.

Joe Bosso

Joe is a freelance journalist who has, over the past few decades, interviewed hundreds of guitarists for Guitar WorldGuitar PlayerMusicRadar and Classic Rock. He is also a former editor of Guitar World, contributing writer for Guitar Aficionado and VP of A&R for Island Records. He’s an enthusiastic guitarist, but he’s nowhere near the likes of the people he interviews. Surprisingly, his skills are more suited to the drums. If you need a drummer for your Beatles tribute band, look him up.