Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, but try telling that someone who's mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
