It has been 20 years after the legendary game first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however when it was included in the game young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band more money compared to their records. It sold more than half a million copies upon release, while sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone played at double speed and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to 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 Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
