It has been two decades since the legendary game first launched in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “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 Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million copies upon release, and demand for their songs saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, with expectations of something from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
