It has been 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group more money compared to their records. It sold more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge 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 from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”
