It has been two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, providing players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated label.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 our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies in its first week, and sales of their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, 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 has threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
