It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero hit the market in North America, offering players everywhere the tools to feel like rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Created by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of a genuine performance.
The studio previously tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise which made a significant impact on numerous musicians included, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he says. “Even with the necessary permissions alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, and record sales and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the music they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Timeless Music Gains Younger Fans
Irish blues-rock band the Answer included Never Too Late in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as outdated material, but then once it got included in the game young people discovered it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.
Major Band Titles Enduring Influence
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles centered around each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – a notoriously difficult power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed requiring nine months to accomplish.
“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
DragonForce had already completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them widely recognized. “I recall our distributors informing us that our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow all other the band has done. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller
Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders felt that there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to enable everyone to do it”.
The majority installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have kept the community alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?
“Our team believed such titles could be like Madden allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”
