It has been two decades after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, providing players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced every song since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – the publisher 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, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, however once it got featured on the title and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It gave our catalog a new life.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on the song during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of their songs rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed dedication among its fans. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is challenging enough on expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be something from the founders in development. A new studio has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
