Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a significant influence for many musicians included, introducing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were 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: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band 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 recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community active, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following the classic?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
