Marking 20 years after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try convincing anyone who's nailed the epic four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a significant impact on numerous musicians included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.
A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost was so high,” he explains. “Even with the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. But once Guitar Hero took off, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Finds a New Audience
Irish blues-rock band one featured act included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Typically this had been considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the game young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music renewed popularity.”
At that time, the Answer’s debut album was still not available in the US, meaning the game was a key medium for exposure for the group during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money compared to their records. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, while sales of their songs saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band had already completed a profitable run before their hit appeared in the third game, but Li says it made them a household name. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact from the Plastic Guitar
Top-tier promotion, be it for cars, clothes or video games, extends beyond than selling something – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to use technology to allow people to participate”.
Most installments were released in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.
Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue for future fans.”
