It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant impact for many musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
