12 Stupid Gaming Moments That Unwittingly Defined The Last Generation

8. Guitar Hero Mania, Plastic Peripheral Bubble Quickly Bursts

The Guitar Hero series became a mammoth success right out of the gate in 2005, enjoying success as an innovative gimmick title that required players to amass an increasing stockpile of plastic peripherals, eventually culminating in a full on band kit, including two guitars, a drum set and a microphone, with Guitar Hero: World Tour in 2008. Unfortunately, greed eventually got the better of the franchise, and with up to four titles being released each year, as well as competition from the Rock Band series, the franchise was dead in the water by 2009. Great fun though these games are, and in fact, I still have all of my plastic guitars under my bed, they're a sign of just how ephemeral technological trends can be. One minute, Guitar Hero was raking in billions of dollars per year in revenue and setting records, and the next it was struggling to sell a million units. It is truly a bubble that burst, but what a bubble it was. Just be wary of the next one in generation eight.