Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the tools to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact for many musicians included, introducing classic groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” 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 continue with new generations.”
