Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, offering everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still not available in the US, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies upon release, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
