It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the tools to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
