Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a significant influence for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on US tour opening for 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 Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a successful tour before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing 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. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
