Marking two decades since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group more money than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, and sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
