Marking two decades after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the means to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
