Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a significant influence for many of the artists included, showcasing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, 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 children to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention played at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
