It has been 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to become rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. 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 a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already completed a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, 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 all other accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace 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 fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
