Marking two decades after the legendary game hit the market in North America, providing players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved well over half a million units in its first week, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles 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 production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
