It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched in North America, providing everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, but then when it was included in the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record remained unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just 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 marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
