It has been two decades after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who has nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of 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. They claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run when their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
