It has been 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many musicians featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Northern Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however once it got featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased in the US, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
