It has been 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however when it was included in the game young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone played at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice 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 DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority installments came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
