<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
is	I-Application
a	O
2005	B-Application
music	B-Application
rhythm	O
video	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
Harmonix	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
RedOctane	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
first	O
main	O
installment	O
in	O
the	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
series	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
was	O
released	O
in	O
November	O
2005	B-Application
in	O
North	O
America	O
,	O
April	O
2006	O
in	O
Europe	O
and	O
June	O
2006	O
in	O
Australia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
features	O
a	O
guitar-shaped	O
controller	B-Device
(	O
resembling	O
a	O
miniature	O
Gibson	O
SG	O
)	O
that	O
the	O
player	O
uses	O
to	O
simulate	O
playing	O
rock	O
music	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gameplay	O
is	O
similar	O
to	O
GuitarFreaks	B-Application
,	O
in	O
that	O
the	O
player	O
presses	O
buttons	O
on	O
the	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
in	O
time	O
with	O
musical	O
notes	O
that	O
scroll	O
on	O
the	O
game	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
features	O
covers	O
of	O
30	O
popular	O
rock	O
songs	O
spanning	O
five	O
decades	O
of	O
rock	O
,	O
from	O
the	O
1960s	O
up	O
through	O
2005	B-Application
,	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
bonus	O
tracks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
became	O
a	O
surprise	O
hit	O
,	O
earning	O
critical	O
acclaim	O
and	O
winning	O
many	O
awards	O
from	O
major	O
video	O
game	O
publications	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
considered	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
influential	O
games	O
of	O
its	O
decade	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
success	O
launched	O
the	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
franchise	O
,	O
which	O
has	O
earned	O
more	O
than	O
$2	O
billion	O
in	O
sales	O
,	O
spawning	O
several	O
sequels	O
,	O
expansions	O
,	O
and	O
other	O
game-related	O
products	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gameplay	O
is	O
similar	O
to	O
other	O
music	B-Application
and	O
rhythm	O
video	O
games	O
,	O
in	O
that	O
the	O
player	O
must	O
press	O
buttons	O
on	O
a	O
game	B-Device
controller	I-Device
in	O
time	O
with	O
scrolling	O
notes	O
on	O
the	O
game	O
screen	O
to	O
complete	O
a	O
song	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
basic	O
mechanics	O
are	O
based	O
on	O
Konami	O
's	O
Guitar	B-Application
Freaks	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
,	O
the	O
player	O
may	O
use	O
either	O
the	O
guitar	O
peripheral	O
(	O
a	O
3/4	O
-scale	O
reproduction	O
of	O
the	O
Gibson	O
SG	O
guitar	O
as	O
bundled	O
with	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
or	O
a	O
third-party	O
version	O
)	O
or	O
a	O
standard	O
controller	B-Device
to	O
play	O
the	O
scrolling	O
notes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Music	B-Application
is	O
displayed	O
on	O
screen	O
through	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
notes	O
,	O
matching	O
in	O
color	O
and	O
position	O
to	O
the	O
fret	O
buttons	O
,	O
that	O
scroll	O
down	O
the	O
screen	O
on	O
a	O
fret	O
board	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Faster	O
series	O
of	O
notes	O
may	O
be	O
played	O
on	O
the	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
using	O
hammer-on	O
and	O
pull-off	O
techniques	O
where	O
the	O
player	O
does	O
not	O
need	O
to	O
strum	O
each	O
note	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
supports	O
toggling	O
the	O
handedness	O
of	O
the	O
guitar	O
,	O
allowing	O
both	O
left-handed	O
and	O
right-handed	O
players	O
to	O
utilize	O
the	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
player	O
using	O
the	O
standard	O
controller	B-Device
simply	O
presses	O
the	O
buttons	O
that	O
correspond	O
with	O
the	O
displayed	O
notes	O
as	O
outlined	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
manual	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Once	O
the	O
Star	O
Power	O
meter	O
is	O
filled	O
at	O
least	O
halfway	O
,	O
Star	O
Power	O
can	O
then	O
be	O
activated	O
by	O
briefly	O
tilting	O
the	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
vertically	O
,	O
or	O
by	O
pressing	O
a	O
specific	O
button	O
on	O
a	O
standard	O
controller	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
's	O
main	O
mode	O
of	O
play	O
is	O
Career	O
Mode	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
player	O
and	O
in-game	O
band	O
travel	O
between	O
various	O
fictional	O
performance	O
arenas	O
and	O
perform	O
sets	O
of	O
four	O
or	O
five	O
songs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Rob	O
Kay	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
Lead	O
Designer	O
,	O
the	O
idea	O
of	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
was	O
directly	O
inspired	O
by	O
Konami	O
's	O
Guitar	B-Application
Freaks	I-Application
arcade	O
game	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
player	O
used	O
a	O
guitar-shaped	O
controller	B-Device
to	O
interact	O
with	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
GuitarFreaks	B-Application
had	O
not	O
seen	O
much	O
exposure	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
RedOctane	O
was	O
making	O
dance	B-Device
pads	I-Device
for	O
games	O
like	O
Dance	B-Application
Dance	I-Application
Revolution	I-Application
for	O
home	O
consoles	O
and	O
also	O
operated	O
an	O
online	O
video	O
rental	O
service	O
similar	O
to	O
Netflix	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
RedOctane	O
's	O
Kai	O
and	O
Charles	O
Huang	O
recognized	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
GuitarFreaks	B-Application
in	O
Japan	O
through	O
their	O
rental	O
service	O
,	O
and	O
planned	O
to	O
create	O
guitar	O
controllers	O
to	O
bring	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
North	O
America	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Greg	O
Fischbach	O
,	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
founders	O
of	O
Acclaim	O
Entertainment	O
,	O
noted	O
,	O
regretfully	O
several	O
years	O
later	O
,	O
they	O
had	O
passed	O
on	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
,	O
questioning	O
"	O
Who	O
's	O
going	O
to	O
buy	O
a	O
peripheral	O
like	O
that	O
?	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Huangs	O
approached	O
Harmonix	O
,	O
who	O
had	O
previously	O
made	O
music	B-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
such	O
as	O
Frequency	B-Application
,	O
Amplitude	B-Application
and	O
Karaoke	B-Application
Revolution	I-Application
about	O
making	O
a	O
guitar-based	O
video	O
game	O
for	O
those	O
controllers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
a	O
budget	O
of	O
about	O
one	O
million	O
dollars	O
(	O
which	O
Kay	O
noted	O
was	O
"	O
pretty	O
tiny	O
for	O
a	O
video	O
game	O
"	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
two	O
companies	O
worked	O
together	O
to	O
develop	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Harmonix	O
's	O
president	O
Alex	O
Rigopulos	O
also	O
claims	O
that	O
former	O
Microsoft	O
vice-president	O
of	O
game	O
publishing	O
Ed	O
Fries	O
indirectly	O
influenced	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
creation	O
,	O
who	O
had	O
previously	O
told	O
Harmonix	O
when	O
they	O
were	O
pitching	O
Frequency	B-Application
to	O
Microsoft	O
that	O
no	O
music-rhythm	O
game	O
would	O
succeed	O
without	O
custom	O
hardware	O
for	O
it	O
,	O
prompting	O
Rigopulos	O
to	O
investigate	O
the	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
opportunity	O
when	O
it	O
arose	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
quickly	O
recognized	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
controller	B-Device
really	O
was	O
the	O
kind	O
of	O
magic	O
sauce	O
for	O
what	O
we	O
wanted	O
to	O
do	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Harmonix	O
used	O
third	O
party	O
controllers	O
made	O
for	O
GuitarFreaks	B-Application
that	O
were	O
already	O
on	O
the	O
market	O
for	O
development	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
until	O
RedOctane	O
had	O
prepared	O
prototypes	O
for	O
the	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
controller	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
controller	B-Device
initially	O
had	O
pressure-sensitive	O
fret	O
buttons	O
to	O
mimic	O
the	O
playing	O
of	O
a	O
real	O
guitar	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
idea	O
was	O
dropped	O
as	O
it	O
made	O
the	O
gameplay	O
too	O
complex	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Harmonix	O
 '	O
past	O
games	O
Frequency	B-Application
and	O
Amplitude	B-Application
aided	O
in	O
designing	O
the	O
visual	O
interface	O
for	O
these	O
gem	O
tracks	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
how	O
big	O
to	O
make	O
the	O
gems	O
and	O
how	O
fast	O
they	O
should	O
move	O
on	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WaveGroup	B-Application
Sound	I-Application
were	O
used	O
to	O
create	O
the	O
covers	O
of	O
the	O
licensed	O
songs	O
provided	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WaveGroup	B-Application
Sound	I-Application
also	O
went	O
to	O
efforts	O
to	O
try	O
to	O
recreate	O
effects	O
for	O
some	O
songs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
a	O
"	O
Be	O
a	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
"	O
contest	O
was	O
held	O
allowing	O
bands	O
to	O
submit	O
their	O
own	O
song	O
to	O
be	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
started	O
with	O
"	O
super-basic	O
Pong-style	O
graphics	O
"	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
display	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
final	O
game	O
art	O
was	O
led	O
by	O
Ryan	O
Lesser	O
,	O
using	O
the	O
art	O
team	O
's	O
involvement	O
in	O
the	O
music	B-Application
scene	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Based	O
on	O
the	O
experience	O
from	O
Frequency	B-Application
and	O
Amplitude	B-Application
,	O
the	O
team	O
realized	O
that	O
"	O
people	O
dont	O
necessarily	O
relate	O
to	O
really	O
abstract	O
visuals	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
included	O
the	O
depictions	O
of	O
live	O
performances	O
as	O
previously	O
used	O
in	O
Karaoke	B-Application
Revolution	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
was	O
also	O
limited	O
so	O
that	O
they	O
could	O
not	O
do	O
photorealistic	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
House	O
of	O
Moves	O
were	O
used	O
to	O
assist	O
in	O
creation	O
motion	B-Application
capture	I-Application
for	O
the	O
on-screen	O
animations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
was	O
initially	O
released	O
to	O
retail	O
stores	O
in	O
a	O
bundle	O
that	O
packaged	O
the	O
game	O
disc	O
and	O
a	O
Gibson	B-Application
SG	I-Application
guitar	I-Application
controller	I-Application
,	O
priced	O
at	O
$69.99	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
its	O
release	O
,	O
stand-alone	O
copies	O
of	O
the	O
games	O
and	O
the	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
have	O
been	O
released	O
,	O
including	O
both	O
RedOctane	O
and	O
third-party	O
controllers	O
from	O
TAC	O
and	O
Nyko	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MadCatz	O
,	O
another	O
controller	B-Device
company	O
that	O
has	O
produced	O
guitar	O
controllers	O
,	O
was	O
set	O
to	O
initially	O
be	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
development	O
,	O
creating	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
Xbox	B-Application
,	O
but	O
had	O
to	O
pull	O
out	O
due	O
to	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
by	O
Konami	O
;	O
MadCatz	O
's	O
Darrel	O
Richardson	O
stated	O
they	O
had	O
to	O
pay	O
$	O
300,000	O
to	O
get	O
out	O
of	O
their	O
contract	O
with	O
RedOctane	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
features	O
47	O
playable	O
songs	O
,	O
30	O
of	O
which	O
are	O
"	O
main	O
setlist	O
"	O
tracks	O
that	O
are	O
covers	O
of	O
popular	O
songs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
received	O
critical	O
acclaim	O
upon	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
praised	O
the	O
"	O
fantastic	O
soundtrack	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
great	O
peripheral	O
"	O
,	O
further	O
commenting	O
that	O
mini-Gibson	O
SG	O
controller	B-Device
"	O
is	O
what	O
makes	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
,	O
rather	O
than	O
what	O
breaks	O
it	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
GameSpot	O
echoed	O
these	O
sentiments	O
,	O
stating	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
had	O
a	O
"	O
great	O
guitar	O
controller	B-Device
"	O
and	O
"	O
killer	O
soundtrack	O
"	O
and	O
was	O
possibly	O
the	O
"	O
best	O
rhythm	O
game	O
ever	O
made	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
after	O
release	O
,	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
became	O
an	O
unexpected	O
hit	O
;	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
second-highest-selling	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
title	O
in	O
February	O
2006	O
according	O
to	O
the	O
NPD	O
Group	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Game	O
sales	O
amounted	O
to	O
$45million	O
in	O
2005	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
success	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
has	O
spawned	O
a	O
one	O
billion	O
dollar	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
franchise	O
,	O
including	O
four	O
sequels	O
on	O
several	O
seventh	B-Application
generation	I-Application
consoles	I-Application
,	O
seven	O
expansions	O
,	O
a	O
mobile	O
phone-based	O
version	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
portable	O
version	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Device
DS	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Harmonix	O
has	O
since	O
developed	O
Rock	B-Application
Band	I-Application
using	O
designs	O
similar	O
to	O
those	O
that	O
based	O
Guitar	O
Hero'''s	O
success	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2009	O
,	O
several	O
journalists	O
,	O
including	O
Wired	O
,	O
G4TV	O
,	O
CNN	B-Architecture
,	O
the	O
San	O
Jose	O
Mercury	O
News	O
,	O
the	O
Toronto	O
Star	O
,	O
Inc.	O
,	O
The	O
Guardian	O
,	O
and	O
Advertising	O
Age	O
,	O
considered	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
to	O
be	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
influential	O
products	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
decade	O
of	O
the	O
21st	O
century	O
,	O
attributing	O
it	O
as	O
the	O
spark	O
leading	O
to	O
the	O
growth	O
of	O
the	O
rhythm	O
game	O
market	O
,	O
for	O
boosting	O
music	B-Application
sales	O
for	O
both	O
new	O
and	O
old	O
artists	O
,	O
for	O
introducing	O
more	O
social	O
gaming	O
concepts	O
to	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
market	O
,	O
and	O
,	O
in	O
conjunction	O
with	O
the	B-Operating_System
Wii	I-Operating_System
,	O
for	O
improving	O
interactivity	O
with	O
gaming	O
consoles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Awards	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
has	O
won	O
several	O
awards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
IGNs	O
"	O
Best	O
of	O
2005	B-Application
"	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
recognized	O
for	O
"	O
Best	O
Music	B-Application
Game	I-Application
"	O
,	O
"	O
Best	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
Music	B-Application
Game	I-Application
"	O
,	O
"	O
Best	O
Licensed	O
Soundtrack	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Best	O
Licensed	O
Soundtrack	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
"	O
,	O
"	O
Best	O
Offline	O
Multiplayer	O
Game	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Best	O
PlayStation	B-Device
2	I-Device
Offline	O
Multiplayer	O
Game	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
Best	O
Gaming	O
Peripheral	O
"	O
(	O
for	O
the	O
Mini	B-Application
Gibson	I-Application
SG	I-Application
controller	B-Device
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
GameSpot	O
also	O
recognized	O
the	O
game	O
in	O
its	O
"	O
Best	O
and	O
Worst	O
of	O
2005	B-Application
"	O
,	O
awarding	O
it	O
honors	O
for	O
"	O
Best	O
Puzzle/Rhythm	O
Game	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Most	O
Metal	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
Reader	O
's	O
Choice	O
–	O
Best	O
Puzzle/Rhythm	O
Game	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Game	O
Developers	O
Choice	O
Awards	O
honored	O
Guitar	B-Application
Hero	I-Application
for	O
"	O
Excellence	O
in	O
Audio	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
Excellence	O
in	O
Game	O
Innovation	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Academy	O
of	O
Interactive	O
Arts	O
&	O
Sciences	O
 '	O
2005	B-Application
Interactive	O
Achievement	O
Awards	O
honored	O
the	O
game	O
with	O
awards	O
for	O
"	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Outstanding	O
Achievement	O
in	O
Game	O
Design	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Outstanding	O
Achievement	O
in	O
Game	O
Play	O
Engineering	O
"	O
(	O
tie	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
Outstanding	O
Achievement	O
in	O
Soundtrack	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guitar	O
Hero''	O
also	O
won	O
"	O
Best	O
Soundtrack	O
"	O
at	O
the	O
2005	B-Application
Spike	O
TV	O
Video	O
Game	O
Awards	O
.	O
</s>
