It has been two decades since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a significant influence for many of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, however when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
