Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable impact for many musicians included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors 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 on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
