It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band more money than any of their records. It sold more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. 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. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
