It has been two decades since the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try telling that someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine performance.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable series which made a remarkable influence for many musicians included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group one featured act included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still not available stateside, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions centered around their music collections and related lore, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for their songs saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
