Marking two decades after Guitar Hero hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who has mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the screen synchronized to a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine live show.
Harmonix previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable series which made a remarkable impact on numerous musicians included, introducing classic groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their children to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish group one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the group as they went on US tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and related stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 copies upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era as the industry faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a profitable run before their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has risked eclipsing all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.
Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar
The best marketing, be it for automobiles, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the co-founders felt that humans have a natural human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.
The majority installments came out over a mere half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest in plastic instruments died down, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.
Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has begun production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
