It has been two decades after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
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 a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still not available in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
