In order for the gaming industry to truly become a mainstream form of entertainment, publishers and developers need to consciously attract casual gamers and non-gamers. Many potential gamers hold negative perceptions about console gaming. How do we invite this wider audience, with all of their expendable income, to play games with us? How do we encourage them to run out and buy a video game console?

At Harmonix, we have attracted new gamers by creating innovative new ways to play video games. We have designed games that are accessible to people who dont currently play video games. We have worked hard to understand our target audience, and we have assembled a uniquely diverse development team that reflects the diversity of our target audience. This session will examine how applying this set of guiding principles to the development of the Karaoke Revolution game series and Guitar Hero has allowed Harmonix games to reach beyond the traditional console game audience and introduce the thrill of playing video games to a broad range of new consumers.