Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and sales of their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” says musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
