Marking two decades since the legendary game first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who's mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo before a packed living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing decades-old bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it proved 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, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however once it got included in the title and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated tag. It provided our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up actual weapons and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames appeared on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Impact from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. 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 co-founders believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.
The majority installments came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”
