Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
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. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine performance.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise which made a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans
Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided our catalog a new life.”
In 2008, the Answer’s debut album remained not available in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact
Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, and demand for their songs saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated it took nine months of practice.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce previously completed a profitable run when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. 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 do it”.
Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community alive, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of the classic?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
