It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to become a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – even though the first two games mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game took off, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their children to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act included their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, but then when it was included in the game young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money compared to their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue with new generations.”
