It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has mastered the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many musicians included, introducing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game 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, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 units upon release, while demand for their songs rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” says musician the artist.
The band previously completed a successful tour when 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 rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“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 perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”
