Marking two decades since the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 units upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
