Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the means to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who has mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic live show.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained not available in the US, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved well over half a million copies upon release, and sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue for future fans.”
