It has been two decades after the legendary game first launched in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, introducing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, however once it got included in the game young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections 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 moved well over half a million copies upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging even in 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 to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
The band had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following the classic?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
