It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing someone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a remarkable impact for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “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 the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million copies in its first week, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run before their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released 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 in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
