Marking two decades after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
