It has been two decades after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community active, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
