It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their records. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, and sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero 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 – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
