Marking two decades since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was included in the game young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
