It has been two decades after the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, and demand for their songs rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, 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 successful tour when their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero 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. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
