It has been 20 years since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold well over half a million units in its first week, and sales of their songs rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
