They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but they neglected to mention that it’s also a crushing chokehold on the windpipe of creativity. Nowhere is this fact of life more apparent than in this fall’s lineup of upcoming and recently released video games. Look a little closer and you’ll realize—with a few exceptions—that it’s not just this season’s selection of pixelly diversions that suffer from a general lack of originality; it’s a long-running ailment endemic to the entire video game industry.

As I search for a new 3-D plaything to tempt Carpal Tunnel with in the coming months, I can’t help but think: Haven’t I played all of these games before?

Guitar Hero might be the worst thing that’s happened to video games since Uwe Boll. I remember seeing a preview version of the original game in 2005 a few months before its release. At the time, I had trouble deciding if the game was really cool, or just really goofy. Back then, I never would have predicted it to go as gangbusters as it did.

Of course, I’m joking when I say that the game is the worst thing that’s happened to the industry. Like the Nintendo Wii, Guitar Hero has broadened the appeal of video games to a mass audience that was widely considered unreachable just a few short years ago. It’s put video-game consoles into the homes of people who would never—and still don’t—consider themselves “gamers.” How can a game that’s had such a positive effect on the industry possibly be a bad thing?

Copy cats.

Guitar Hero deserves a lot respect for breaking the mold of what was popular and available around the time of its release. The game invented a completely new genre, which isn’t something that happens every day. Sadly, the mold it once shattered has been glued back together—and it’s in the shape of a stringless, plastic five-button guitar.

Guitar Hero begat Rock Band, which took the Guitar Hero formula and added drums, a mic and much-improved cooperative team play. Rock Band then begat Guitar Hero World Tour (available next month), which took the original recipe and copped Rock Band’s drums and vocals. Line up the instruments, gameplay modes and online features of Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour, and you’ll have a difficult time spotting the difference.