Guitar Hero Series
Harmonix, RedOctane, and the Five-Fret Plastic Guitar Rock and Roll Phenomenon
Debuting in 2005 on PlayStation 2 by Harmonix and peripheral maker RedOctane, Guitar Hero ignited a multi-billion dollar cultural explosion through its five-fret Gibson SG peripheral, Star Power tilt mechanics, and licensed hard rock master tracks.
The Miniature Gibson SG and the Star Power Sensation
MIT graduates Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy of Harmonix partnered with peripheral maker RedOctane to Westernize Konami's Japanese arcade concept GuitarFreaks. Armed with a lightweight three-quarter scale plastic guitar featuring five color-coded fret buttons and an analog whammy bar, players strummed falling note gems to perfection, physically tilting the neck skyward to unleash multiplier-doubling 'Star Power'.
Legends of Rock and the $1 Billion Retail Milestone
Acquired by Activision, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (2007) made gaming history as the very first entertainment release to eclipse $1 billion in retail sales. Featuring guitar boss duels against Slash and Tom Morello, alongside DragonForce's blisteringly fast, finger-tapping speed-metal anthem 'Through the Fire and Flames', it revitalized classic rock catalogs for millions of teenagers.