Marking two decades after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation 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. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies 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 still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire 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 five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
