Marking two decades since the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a significant impact for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their studio albums. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
