Marking 20 years after the legendary game first launched in North America, giving everyday gamers the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who has nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact for many musicians featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game young people discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money than any of their studio albums. It sold well over half a million units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it risked overshadow 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 one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, be it for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
The majority installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
