Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
The studio had already experimented with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, however when it was included in the title young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, and sales of their songs rose significantly during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments were released in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
