Marking 20 years after the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously experimented with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was considered outdated material, however when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on the song during travel, and several recognized us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It sold well over 500,000 copies upon release, and demand for their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
DragonForce previously wrapped up a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “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 their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Games such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene active, with set to be something from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought those games could be like Madden allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”
