12 Video Games You Presumed Were Massive Flops (That Really Weren't)

6. Guitar Hero 5

The Guitar Hero series is one of the most successful video game franchises in history, among the few in history to rake in an insane $2 billion in sales. The franchise continued to grow and grow right up to its third main entry, Legends of Rock, which across numerous platforms sold over 15 million units, making it the first video game ever to make $1 billion in sales. This marked a peak for the series, which still posted strong sales with the fourth game, World Tour, even with the highly cost-prohibitive nature of the band kit, including drums and a microphone. After that, the series began to lose its momentum quickly, in large part thanks to an overabundance of spin-offs, band-centric titles, and competition from the arguably superior Rock Band franchise. Guitar Hero 5, while not meeting the high sales figures of the previous two games, was still a considerable commercial success, selling just shy of 5 million units in total, which certainly isn't something to sniff at. And even then, the sixth and final main Guitar Hero game, Warriors of Rock, still pulled in around half that, so while that one was a financial disappointment for sure, it almost certainly made Activision money, even if it wasn't the high number that they were used to.