Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving everyday gamers the means to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that someone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a significant impact for many of the artists featured, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game young people were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money than any of their records. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention played at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
