Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the tools to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who has mastered the epic lengthy 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 moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence for many musicians included, introducing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
