The Guitar Hero franchise has surpassed $1 billion in North American retail sales since its initial release in the fall of 2005.
The series includes Guitar Hero (2005), Guitar Hero II (2006), Guitar Hero Encore Rocks the '80s (2007), and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (2007). Guitar Hero Aerosmith will be added in June.
Eleven of 12 Guitar Hero II songs experienced increased sales in 2007. One of them, "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas, went from 119,000 digital sales in 2006 to 297,000 in 2007, according to USA Today.
The game — whose slogan is "Kiss Your Air Guitar Goodbye!" — is bringing together kids and their families and is getting the younger generation interested in rock music again.
Nowhere is that more evident than at The Depot Bar & Restaurant in Dalton, where avid followers — young and old — flock to Guitar Hero contests.