Marking two decades after the legendary game first launched in North America, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community active, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
