It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a significant impact for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, and sales of their songs rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously wrapped up 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 calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
