Marking two decades since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they loved. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, but then when it was featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained not available in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
