Marking 20 years after the legendary game first launched in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, however when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, while sales of their songs rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, with set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
