It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence for many musicians included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got included in the title young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group more money compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
