Marking two decades after Guitar Hero first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the means to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
