Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, and demand for their songs rose significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority 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 Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
