Marking 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, apparel 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. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
