Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million units upon release, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“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 musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
