Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to become rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that someone who has mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing classic groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 copies in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
