Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased in the US, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group more money compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician the artist.
The band had already completed a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games might become like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”