It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, with set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
