Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among 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 evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their records. It sold more than half a million copies in its first week, while demand for their songs saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“We thought those games might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
