It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
