It has been 20 years since the legendary game first launched in North America, providing players everywhere the tools to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Developed by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues moving along the display in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band greater revenue compared to their records. It moved more than half a million units in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously wrapped up a successful tour before their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked eclipsing everything else accomplishments. Last year, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.
Games like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene active, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
