Marking two decades since the legendary game debuted in North America, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved well over half a million copies upon release, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean 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 appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
