It has been two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their records. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
