It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, offering everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists included, introducing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on their music collections and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group more money than any of their studio albums. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“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,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that we were selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. 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 in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games 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 hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
