It has been two decades since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group more money than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and sales of their songs rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
