Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
