It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable influence for many musicians included, introducing classic groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then when it was featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon 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 lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved more than half a million units upon release, and demand for their songs rose significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
