"Guitar Hero" is even a hit at the military base. "We actually go to one of the offices at lunch, plug the game into an LCD screen and play it right there sometimes," Hill said.
So clearly, Hill loves the game. But will he now play real instruments? Not only is the answer "yes," but he ventured one step further. He drove to a Guitar Center one month before our interview and purchased an Ibanez RG3 series electric guitar and a Line 6 amplifier. The transition to a real guitar is difficult, but Hill is really enjoying the challenge. "With the game, you're really playing up and down the frets on one string. Now, I have six strings. But playing the expert level on 'Guitar Hero' has helped me a lot on a real guitar because a lot of people have trouble using their pinky on a guitar. I don't have that problem."
Not only does our next respondent love "Guitar Hero," but sports a famous name as well. Alex Rodriguez, 20, of Whittier, Calif., didn't recently sign a huge contract with the New York Yankees, but he may one day become a guitar superstar. "I know it sounds cheesy, but when I play the game, I feel like a real rock star," said Rodriguez. "I'm not sure how good I'll be at guitar. I wish I had learned to play guitar in junior high or high school. I probably would have gotten a couple of girlfriends that way. [Laughs] But I'm more confident about playing guitar after playing 'Guitar Hero.' So I'm actually planning to buy a drum set. They're expensive, but it would be totally worth it."
Allen McLean, 18, lives in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. He has played versions one, two, and three on his Xbox 360. Like Hill, McLean purchased a guitar-his is a Yamaha-after playing "Guitar Hero." "The game encouraged me to go out and buy a guitar," he said. "I've had difficulty learning [a real guitar] though. I'm sure if I stuck with it, I could."
However, McLean said he is considering purchasing other instruments. "The game got me more interested in music," he said. "I listen to bands I'd never listen to before."
Dallas-area resident Peyton Dow, 18, has played the second and third version of "Guitar Hero." He loves the game so much he said he planned to buy a Gibson Les Paul within a month of our November interview. "I would have considered buying an instrument before playing 'Guitar Hero,'" said Dow. "But this really got my blood flowing. I always wanted to play, but now I have confidence I can play a guitar."
Sherry Frey, a 40 year old seven-year cancer survivor from Kingsford Heights, Ind., loves "Guitar Hero" so much she named her bird "Slash" after the former Guns N' Roses and current Velvet Revolver lead guitarist. She received "Guitar Hero 3" as a birthday gift and hasn't been able to put down the game since. "One of the reasons I wanted 'Guitar Hero' is because [Stevie Ray Vaughan's] 'Pride and Joy' is on it. I love that song," said Frey. "I play until my wrists and knuckles hurt. I'm the captain of a dart team on Wednesday nights and when I hear a good song on the jukebox, I say, 'That would be a great song for 'Guitar Hero.' "Believe me, I'm thinking about buying an instrument more and more and more," added Frey. "I told my boyfriend I'd like to learn how to play the acoustic before I move on to an electric. I want to start with something easier first so I can get the hang of things."
Editor's Note: Frey contacted us just before press time and alerted us her boyfriend just bought her a black beginner acoustic guitar. She said she "hopes she can pull this off" and would go into an MI store to purchase instructional DVDs to hopefully help her do so.
Is Eight Enough?
Granted, eight people seriously considering buying or already purchasing instruments will have little affect on our industry. And of course, we can't tell at this time if our interviewees will stick to playing the instruments they plan to purchase or already bought. But it's safe to say there aren't only eight "Guitar Hero" addicts who haven't played instruments before.
Peavey Electronics CEO Hartley Peavey praised the video game as a "win-win" for our industry. "This is a musical phenomenon," he said. "We're going to get the trickle-down effect. The more people you have playing guitar, the better off the guitar business is long-term. Of course, many people who play 'Guitar Hero' will not go out and own a guitar. But would you rather have none, or four, five, or six additional customers per 100 people? Is it better not to have these customers at all? And the wonderful thing about the guitar business is you'll never find a guitarist who's anywhere close to being worthy of that name who owns one guitar. Show me a guitarist and I'll show you someone who has several guitars and is looking for more. I haven't played guitar seriously in 30 years and I own 20 guitars."
"Our most recent Gallup Poll shows that 82 percent of Americans who don't play a musical instrument wish that they did," said Joe Lamond, president and CEO, NAMM. "Our goal as an industry is to get these non-players who have expressed an interest to become active music makers, or as we call it 'going after the freeway.' Will 'Guitar Hero III' and other virtual music-making games help us achieve that? It's probably too early to tell conclusively, but anecdotal evidence from the industry and music educators indicates that these games are getting people excited about the prospect of playing real instruments and helping to drive traffic into member stores."
Red Octane did not respond to e-mail and phone requests for comment.
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