Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was featured on the game young people were finding it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band more money than any of their records. It sold well over half a million units upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
