It has been two decades since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however once it got included in the game young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“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,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
