Marking two decades since Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, giving everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly 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 their songs rose of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is difficult enough on 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 of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist for future fans.”
