Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving everyday gamers the means to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million units upon release, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved 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 releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
