It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
