It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, providing players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention played 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. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “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 was so immense that it risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
