Harmonix donates to help fansite in need

Harmonix may not be developing the Guitar Hero franchise any longer, but it hasn't forgotten the fan community that helped make its PlayStation 2 rhythm game a breakthrough hit.

Guitar Hero leaderboard site Score Hero has been calling for donations to upgrade the site's servers in anticipation of Guitar Hero III. With the site's goal of $10,000 raised in sight, Harmonix president Alex Rigopolous stepped in and made the biggest contribution yet. On behalf of the entire team at Harmonix, Rigopolous dropped $2,000 into the kitty. While the donation didn't put Score Hero over the top, subsequent contributions have pushed the total to the $10,000 mark and beyond.

In repeating a call for donations earlier this month, a Score Hero administrator said the money will go to a top-of-the-line server and satisfy the site's needs for the next 18 months to two years.

Guitar Hero III is set to be released later this year. It will face a challenge to its rock rhythm game crown from Rock Band, the first post-Guitar Hero Harmonix project. As for what kind of support Rock Band will receive from Score Hero, an administrator said the site needs to see more about how the gameplay and scoring mechanics will work before it can be determined if its style of leaderboards are even feasible.