Marking two decades after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists included, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
