Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved 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 gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, let alone played at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label informing us that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
