It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched in North America, giving players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their records. It sold more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem 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 difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
