Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
