Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that someone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.
Developed by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of an authentic performance.
Harmonix had already tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise which made a significant impact on numerous of the artists included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains a New Audience
Irish group the Answer had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist the artist recalls the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however when it was featured on the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the band's first record was still not available stateside, so the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on the song on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, 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 of practice.
“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors 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.”
Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.
Most installments came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, except for a brief comeback several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the scene alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t continue for future fans.”
