Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered outdated material, however once it got included in the game young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over half a million units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
