Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, introducing classic groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
