It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply 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 was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that we were selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept 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 both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
