Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the title young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold well over half a million copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that 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 in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
