It has been 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, but try convincing someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant influence for many of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains 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 how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than half a million units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention played at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
