It has been two decades after the legendary game hit the market in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, however when it was featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record was still 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 several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their records. It sold well over 500,000 units in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” says musician the artist.
The band had already completed a profitable run before their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star 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 do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
