It has been two decades after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered outdated material, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, while sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace 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,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
