It has been 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained not available in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”