Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant influence for many musicians included, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”
