It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies in its first week, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept 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 played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”
