It has been 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however when it was featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their US tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a profitable run when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt 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 played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community alive, and there’s set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
