#20: Guitar Hero (2005)
Plenty of people had played air guitar before 2005. Guitar Hero just gave them plastic frets and permission to take it seriously for three minutes. Developed by Harmonix and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2, the game used a guitar-shaped controller that made rhythm gameplay feel physical and theatrical. Players followed colored notes down the screen, strummed along, and discovered that missing a solo in front of family could be oddly embarrassing.
