Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who has nailed Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music since the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
