Marking two decades since Guitar Hero first launched in North America, giving everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost was so high,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, but then when it was featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still not available stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with set to be something from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
