It has been two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold more than 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved 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 freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
