Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved well over half a million copies upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue for future fans.”
