Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was acquired by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got included in the game young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record was still not available stateside, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 units in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and enlist,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. 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, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”