Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a significant influence for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over half a million units upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community alive, with expectations of something from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
