It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, providing players everywhere the means to feel like rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who's nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it proved 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 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 how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Northern Irish group the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as outdated material, but then once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.
The band previously completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to persist with new generations.”
