It has been two decades after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact on numerous of the artists featured, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group more money compared to their records. It moved well over half a million units in its first week, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 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, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
