It has been 20 years since the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant influence for many musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, however when it was featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band greater revenue than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following the classic?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
