Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant influence for many musicians included, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band more money than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated 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 a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, with set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
