It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a significant influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team 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 make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
