Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many musicians included, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or 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 being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
