It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a significant influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group more money than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer 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 musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
