Marking two decades since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units upon release, and demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
