It has been 20 years after the legendary game first launched in North America, providing everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish group the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the title young people were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the Answer’s first record remained not available in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Influence
Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice to accomplish.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a profitable run when their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember the record label informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but now I accept 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”.
Enduring Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, clothes or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and newer releases have kept the community active, with expectations of something from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue with new generations.”
