Marking two decades after the legendary game first launched in North America, providing players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group more money than any of their records. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band had already completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, 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 of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, with set to be something from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work 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 where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
