When first discussing the original Guitar Hero in Chart Toppers, GameDaily BIZ talked about how the game was a phenomenon when it came out. An underdog, from the small publisher to the huge box required for the controller and $80 price tag, Guitar Hero built up a groundswell of support. Word of mouth and mainstream appeal gave the game incredibly long legs for a video game.

Now, Guitar Hero II is here, and the franchise's success can hardly be labeled a surprise anymore. The purchase of RedOctane by Activision now seems thoroughly wise as Guitar Hero has become among the biggest (if not THE biggest) franchise for the publisher. With sequels and multi-platform status destined in the future, the sky seems to be the limit.

We took some time to chat with the RedOctane tag team of Stacey Hirata (Vice President of Marketing) and Dusty Welch (Head of Publishing) to find out why things are better the second time around.

According to the NPD, Guitar Hero II (with the guitar controller) was the overall fourth best selling title in November and (when including the standalone game) the second best seller in December. It was also the second best selling PS2 title during both of those months. This equaled an impressive 1.3 million sales of Guitar Hero II, making it the fifth best selling title overall in the U.S. during all of 2006.

"Our passion and love for the game does set a certain expectation. We would expect nothing less, as we feel we've truly created an unmatched rock star experience," said Hirata, who added about sales comparisons to the first Guitar Hero, "Actually, Guitar Hero sales have steadily done well month to month since its release back in November 2005. The great thing about this franchise is that it has exceptional longevity. It's not your typical video game release of spiked sales at launch and a steep decline shortly after. Guitar Hero will peak at launch and remain steady through the year. The difference between GH and GHII is that GHII had more awareness and inventory available at launch."

"Guitar Hero II was the number 1 SKU [in terms of dollars] in the month of December, industry-wide, and beat out very compelling and long standing franchises," added Welch. "This stellar performance was anticipated and 'telegraphed;' via a pre-order campaign that logged record pre-orders for Activision as well as advanced key account orders for the initial 30 days of sales. What has exceeded our expectations is that demand has not waned for the product, producing out-of-stock situations with retailers."

"As shown in the recently announced NPD report, Guitar Hero II had a major impact this holiday season, and helped Activision become the top overall publisher during the month of December. It was one of the top SKUs through the year, and sold well over a million units in two months. That success speaks directly to Guitar Hero's huge fan base and growing popularity in the mass market. Guitar Hero is a very rare product that has transcended into a true mass market brand," he continued, adding, "Interestingly, since Guitar Hero II's release this past November, it has already surpassed lifetime sales of the original Guitar Hero, both in NA and Europe, primarily attributable to class-leading awareness from the broad based marketing and PR initiatives, as well as improved supply of guitars."

In appealing to a wider audience for the second Guitar Hero, RedOctane tapped a number of famous bands that probably were not available to them the first time around. Not that there was anything wrong with the bands from the first game, but artists like Nirvana, Van Halen, Rolling Stones, and Rage Against the Machine brought a whole new level of appeal to the franchise. Not everyone preferred the band or song selection over the first Guitar Hero, but that's almost destined to happen in games of this nature.

"It definitely helps to have music made famous by stars like Nirvana, Rolling Stones and others, though ultimately it's all about translating that music to create an awesome game experience. That's what propels the game into 'super stardom,' the right music that gives fans a fun song to play, along with the guitar controller to make you truly feel like a rock star!" explained Hirata. "We're quite positive the success won't hurt us in opening new doors to more bands and music. Guitar Hero is THE premiere rhythm action video game, and the brand has certainly penetrated the mass market. With its growing number of passionate fans and cult following from real life rock stars and celebrities, it's only natural for the music industry to now be more supportive of future Guitar Hero iterations."