It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene alive, with set to be something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”
