Marking two decades after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the band during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 units in its first week, and demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, 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. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
