It has been 20 years after the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who has nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a remarkable influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took months of practice 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 go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce previously completed a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, with expectations of a new product from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”
