Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact for many of the artists included, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
