Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable series that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, 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 hear a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
