It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Not literally, but try convincing someone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their records. It sold more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, let alone played at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
