It has been 20 years after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who has nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant influence on numerous musicians featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost was so high,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of 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 became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been seen as music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record remained unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the group more money compared to their records. It moved more than 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
Most installments came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have kept the community alive, with set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”
