Marking 20 years since Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact for many of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue 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 records. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention played at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, 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 risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
