It has been 20 years after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who's nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game took off, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record remained not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold more than 500,000 units upon release, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
