I, personally, have never played Guitar Hero or Rock Band. But, it seems that most of my students do and I've been asked by many people whether or not I think Guitar Hero helpful at all for learning to play the real guitar.

Guitar Hero probably helps with rhythm, and it definitely introduces kids to bands like The Police, Scorpions, and Cream that they would probably think were lame otherwise.

Other than that, the only thing that's helpful about it is that it has sparked an interest in guitar playing and I'm sure I've taught a ton of kids that I wouldn't have otherwise.

Maybe if it keeps up there will be a guitar renaissance in this country. In that case, maybe someone needs to come up with 'Real Estate Hero', and 'Stock Market Hero'. Possibly, 'Social Skills Hero'...