It has been two decades after the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a significant influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, but then when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased in the US, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a profitable run before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
