It has been two decades after the legendary game hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish group one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over half a million units in its first week, while demand for their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
