It has been 20 years after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
