Marking two decades after the legendary game debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the display in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series which made a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was 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 expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million copies in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
