It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many musicians included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
