Marking two decades after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant impact on numerous musicians included, introducing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band more money than any of their records. It sold well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
