Marking two decades after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than half a million units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of something 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 ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
