It has been 20 years since the legendary game debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many musicians included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue than any of their records. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community alive, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”