It has been 20 years since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then once it got included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog 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 group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money than any of their records. It sold well over half a million units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music 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. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “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 proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, with expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
