Marking 20 years since the legendary game debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact on numerous musicians featured, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
