It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence for many musicians included, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired 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 became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, however when it was included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
