Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence for many musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. However, when the game took off, album purchases and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is challenging even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician the artist.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed just before the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other the band has done. Recently, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy of a Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”
