Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the means to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights 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 it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers how the series revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts quickly capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, while sales of their songs rose of up to 40% at a time as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
