It has been 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant influence for many musicians included, introducing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue than any of their records. It sold more than half a million units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners 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 featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
