It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, however when it was featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
