It has been 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, but try convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record was still not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
