It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others 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, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging 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 stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” says musician the artist.
The band had already completed a successful tour when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
