It has been two decades since Guitar Hero first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing someone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a significant influence for many musicians featured, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since 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 – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
