It has been two decades after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still 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 had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band more money compared to their records. It moved more than half a million units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says musician the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames 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 we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
