It has been 20 years after the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, the game provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered outdated material, however once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold more than half a million copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon 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 participate”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
