Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music 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 brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
