Marking 20 years since the legendary game debuted in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, but try convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise which made a significant influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group more money than any of their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
