14. Guitar Hero series (just about every platform)

While some will protest that I’m not including (or going to include) Rock Band, the bottom line is this: Guitar Hero came first and everything after that was simply a refinement of the same basic game play concept. But really, there were virtually no music games like it until Guitar Hero came along… and no, Parappa the Rappa doesn’t count.

Not only did this game invent an entire game genre, but it made it trendy to create games that, with such custom instrument/controllers including, cost almost as much as a videogame system itself. While the typical Guitar Hero or Rock Band title will retail for around $60 for the game only, the average for a complete package with instruments and a mic is in the neighborhood of $199, not to mention all the extra sales from new song downloads; the average price for a new song is about $1.99, or twice what it will cost you on iTunes.

Guitar Hero changed gaming in many, many ways, and it replaces the hunt for the best treatment for adult acne as a male game obsession. Yup, adults like it, too.