It has been 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who has nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, introducing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then when it was featured on the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon 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 legendary status. 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 in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting every 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 Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, 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 when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
