It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game took off, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered outdated material, however when it was included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units in its first week, and demand for their songs rose significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
