When the first Guitar Hero hit the market, it was hard not to fall in love with it. It was a bit more polished than any similar rhythm game for the console up to that point, with well designed hardware that made you feel at least a little bit like a rockstar. When the sequel came out, it just built onto a good thing and made it even better, and for anyone with a PS2 it was a must-have just to get the experience. It started to gain steam, get more press, and people really started to take notice in a big way. By the time it was ported over to the Xbox 360, it was a scene. Harmonix had created a monster, and then sold it off to Activision to take the reigns going forward with their developer Neversoft. When Guitar Hero III was released across just about every platform, it was pretty clear that it had gone mainstream in a huge way. It embraced the online component that had been the bastion of fans, through third parties like ScoreHero, for so long and made a community out of the virtual rockers of the world. Cultural phenomenon as it was, I don’t think anyone looking back at the original, quirky title would think that the third iteration would sell one billion dollars worth of units all its own. And here we are.

While Guitar Hero: World Tour may seem off to a rocky start in comparison to its predecessor, a billionaire is certainly hard to live up to. Mike Griffith, Activision Publishing President, went over the numbers and figures during his presentation at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas this week, letting the world know just how much money their newest franchise has managed to muster during its first steps in their portfolio. Of course, it’s a bit misleading of a statement, because it is certainly not the highest selling game of all time as a result, but the $100 price point means that it has gathered a lot of steam without having the same numbers as many other blockbuster titles have had as of late. They’ve even stated the supposed effect it has had on the music industry, with a 27% increase in the sales of guitar amplifiers in 2008 compared with the same time in the previous year. Quite a bold statement.

The weird thing is that it’s not the first Neversoft product that has had some kind of pop culture impact. The success of the Tony Hawk Pro Skateboard series amplified the sport of skateboarding to a lot of young kids, and certainly enjoyed the spotlight alongside the top names in the sport as it gathered steam in the 1990′s. Guitar Hero seems to have grabbed the attention of the media as the forefront of gaming as an industry in the same way (but much tamer) that Grand Theft Auto has done in the past. Sales have followed that popularity, and the word of mouth can’t have hurt as Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock managed to stay at the top of the charts throughout most of last year, especially for the Wii where it remained in the top ten of sales in North America until mid last year.

The success of GHIII was truly built on the backs of its predecessors, but it seems as if the follow-up hasn’t had the same steady sales start that many predicted. With Rock Band disrupting the market in a big way upon its release, there seems to be a growing schisms between the two brands that didn’t exist before and is eating up part of the market. While there was already a steady yearly release schedule for the game, having a price tag that grew by $100 in 2007-2008 did not grab the attention of the people in the same way that the originals did, especially considering the growing fears of economic turmoil that is sweeping the universe as of late. Even with Griffith’s fancy charts that he showed off at CES noting the declines across the entertainment industry while the gaming industry maintained steady, if not explosive growth in most areas, there is still a point in which people will not run out and throw money at a product. It will be interesting to see the overall sales figures when the NPD releases its numbers for the year and the holiday season this week, but don’t expect to see Guitar Hero at the top of the charts the same it was the year previous.

It’s still quite an accomplishment, and GHIII was a quality game for all its flaws, so it is not a surprise to see it grab such a massive amount of sales considering the amount of marketing and cross-platform development that has gone into the franchise since Activision took the reins. However, don’t be surprised if Nintendo makes a similar announcement regarding Wii Fit sometime in the near future. They can’t seem to keep that game on the shelves.