It has been two decades since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, producing the feel of an authentic live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a remarkable impact for many musicians featured, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher 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, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their children to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist the artist remembers the way the game revived older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold well over half a million copies in its first week, and sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Recently, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone played at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, with expectations of something from the founders on the way. A new studio has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist with new generations.”
