Marking two decades after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who has nailed Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, however when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record remained unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group more money than any of their records. It moved well over half a million units in its first week, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
