Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, giving everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, introducing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It sold more than 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone played at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
