Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series which made a remarkable influence on numerous musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band during their a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million units upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
