Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, 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 from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. 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. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
