The gameplay is similar to other music and rhythm video games, in that the player must press buttons on a game controller in time with scrolling notes on the game screen to complete a song. The interface shows the player's score and score multiplier (left), Star Power meter (right), and Rock Meter (bottom right). To play a note, the fret button and strum bar must be pressed when the solid note scrolls through the corresponding ring at the bottom. The game's success launched the Guitar Hero franchise, which has earned more than $2 billion in sales, spawning several sequels, expansions, and other game-related products.
Guitar Hero became a surprise hit, earning critical acclaim and winning many awards from major video game publications, and was considered one of the most influential games of its decade. The game features covers of 30 popular rock songs spanning five decades of rock, from the 1960s up through 2005, in addition to bonus tracks. The gameplay is similar to GuitarFreaks, in that the player presses buttons on the guitar controller in time with musical notes that scroll on the game screen. The game features a guitar-shaped controller (resembling a miniature Gibson SG) that the player uses to simulate playing rock music. The game's development was a result of collaboration between RedOctane and Harmonix to bring a Guitar Freaks-like game to United States. Guitar Hero was released in November 2005 in North America, April 2006 in Europe and June 2006 in Australia. It is the first main installment in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero is a 2005 music rhythm video game developed by Harmonix and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2.