Music games evolved from rhythm matching to full-band simulation, creating a genre that made everyone feel like musicians before market saturation caused its dramatic collapse.
From pressing buttons to performing concerts. Music games started with simple rhythm matching and evolved into elaborate simulations with dedicated plastic instruments. Japan embraced arcade rhythm games; the West exploded with Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The genre’s arc—obscurity to phenomenon to oversaturation to niche—became a cautionary tale about market exploitation.