It has been two decades since the legendary game debuted in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant impact for many of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
