The Iconic Game Celebrates 20 Years – The Plastic Guitar That Bridged the Gap Between Music Generations

Marking two decades after the legendary game first launched in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not literally, but try telling that someone who has mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.

Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the screen in time with the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.

The studio previously experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact for many musicians included, introducing classic groups to a new generation of gaming enthusiasts.

Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.

“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, all artists desired to participate.”

He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”

Timeless Music Gains a New Audience

Irish blues-rock band the Answer had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”

In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased in the US, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.

Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Influence

Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen 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, it was said to have made the group more money than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.

Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved 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 no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They stated it took nine months to accomplish.

“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you should use a real gun and go to war,” notes DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.

The band previously completed a successful tour when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that we were selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Legacy of a Iconic Controller

Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.

Titles like the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, and there’s expectations of something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has begun work on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?

“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games allowing annual releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music that it could be evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason for it to continue with new generations.”