It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
