It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour when their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
