Marking 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, providing players everywhere the means to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band greater revenue than any of their records. It sold well over half a million units upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of something from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
