Guitar Hero Celebrates 20 Years – How a Plastic Axe Bridged Generations Between Rock Fans

It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the tools to become rock legends. Not literally, but try telling that anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s lengthy guitar solo in front of a packed crowd of friends.

Developed by the developers, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.

Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.

Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.

“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when the game became a hit, and record sales airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”

He adds: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many mothers and fathers got in touch expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”

Timeless Music Finds a New Audience

Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was included in the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”

At that time, the band's debut album remained not available stateside, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium of discovery for the group as they went on a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late during travel, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.

Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Influence

Rock’s biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on their music collections and associated lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue than any of their records. It sold more than half a million units upon release, while sales of their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.

Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention played at double speed and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated requiring months of practice to accomplish.

“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.

The band previously wrapped up a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts at the event.”

Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for Despicable Me 4. “In the past I thought differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar

Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.

Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with set to be a new product from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered 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 Guitar Hero?

“We thought 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. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”