Marking 20 years after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant impact for many of the artists included, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record was still unreleased in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group more money than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song 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 it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it 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 differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
