It has been two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating 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 laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million units upon release, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
