Marking two decades since the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has mastered Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many of the artists featured, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their records. It sold more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a successful tour before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, be it for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
