It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band more money than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
