Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the means to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, however when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, and sales of their songs rose significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on their first 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 those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
