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Harmonix was founded on May 10, 1995 by [[Alex Rigopulos]] and [[Eran Egozy]], who met while attending [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]].<ref name="GameCritics interview">[https://gamecritics.com/david-stone/interview-with-alex-rigopulos-part-1/ Interview with Alex Rigopulos] at GameCritics.com</ref> Egozy was an electrical/computer engineer with an interest in music, while Rigopulos was a music composition major with an interest in programming; both met while working in the [[MIT Media Lab]]. After building a computer music generation system that could algorithmically create music on the fly, the two considered how one could use a [[joystick]] to control the system, and set up a demonstration of the unit for the Lab, which gained interest from others in the Lab. The two realized that after graduation that they probably couldn't pursue such ideas working at any existing companies, so they chose to start their own.<ref name="cnn hmx history">{{cite news | url = https://money.cnn.com/2009/09/03/smallbusiness/harmonix_rock_band_startup_story/?postversion=2009090304 | title = How 'horrendous failure' led to Rock Band | first = Maggie | last = Overfelt | date = 3 September 2009 | access-date = 3 September 2009 | publisher = [[CNNMoney]]}}</ref> The company was built on the premise that the experience of performing music could become accessible to those who would otherwise have trouble learning a traditional instrument.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/>
The company was initially funded with about [[US$]]100,000, and for the first five years, had nearly zero revenue.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/> The company's earliest product was ''The Axe'' on [[personal computer|PC]] [[CD-ROM]]. ''The Axe'' enabled consumers to easily perform unique instrumental solos by using a PC [[joystick]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.polygon.com/2015/6/11/8765869/the-pitch-video-for-the-first-harmonix-game-will-make-your-head | title = The pitch video for the first Harmonix game will make your head explode | first = Charlie | last = Hall | date = 11 June 2015 | access-date = 11 June 2015 | website = [[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] }}</ref> This product only sold about 300 copies, with Rigopulos and Egozy realizing that people, while initially entranced by the game, lost interest after 15 minutes of playing with it.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/> Harmonix then designed "CamJam", which performed similar functions, this time using simple body gestures to trigger music sequences.<ref name="GameCritics interview"/> CamJam was utilized at [[Disney]] theme parks.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/><ref>[https://www.livedesignonline.com/mag/show_business_roar_iaapa/index.html The Roar of IAAPA] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927230320/http://livedesignonline.com/mag/show_business_roar_iaapa/index.html |date=27 September 2007 }} at livedesignonline.com</ref> This led the two to consider approaching entertainment businesses like [[Dave & Buster's]] to include their products, but they soon realized that this would be a year to a year-and-a-half effort, too long for their needs.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/> They then considered the entertainment industry in [[Japan]],
=== Early titles ===
Harmonix' first major video game was ''[[Frequency (video game)|Frequency]]'', with its development funded by [[Sony Computer Entertainment]] along with about $2 million in investments in the company. A key factor of Harmonix' contract with Sony was that it was allowed to keep its [[intellectual property]], which allowed
After ''Amplitude'', Harmonix was approached by [[Konami]] to create the ''[[Karaoke Revolution]]'' franchise. Konami, known for their [[Bemani]] line of music games, wanted to distribute their games in the United States, and Harmonix was the only music game developer in the country at the time.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/> Konami was responsible for publishing the ''Karaoke Revolution'' titles, of which Harmonix developed and released three "volumes" between 2003 and 2004. The series was much more successful due to its mainstream music and its marketability.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/>
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Also in 2004, Sony Computer Entertainment released the Harmonix project ''[[EyeToy: AntiGrav]]''. A departure from music games, the title used the PlayStation 2 [[EyeToy]] camera peripheral to enable one's body to perform as a controller for a futuristic extreme sports game. However, the game was poorly-received by critics, despite selling four times as many copies as ''FreQuency'' or ''Amplitude''.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/> These results left Rigopulos and Egozy depressed about the prospects for music games.<ref name="cnn hmx history"/>
At this time, [[RedOctane]], a peripheral manufacturing company
=== Purchase by Viacom ===
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