🔗 Share this article

It has been two decades after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, providing everyday gamers the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try telling that someone who has mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.

Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues moving along the display in time with a song. Every sequence corresponded to specific notes, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.

Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists included, introducing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.

Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.

“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were pretty convinced it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, and record sales airtime increased, everyone wanted to participate.”

He continues: “Among the amazing things was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It became a multigenerational phenomenon.”

Classic Rock Gains a New Audience

Northern Irish group one featured act included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It gave all our music a new life.”

In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact

Music's biggest acts quickly took advantage of the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the band more money compared to their records. It sold well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while sales of their songs saw an increase of up to 40% during an era when the music business faced decline.

Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism among its fans. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult even in expert mode, not to mention played at increased tempo while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.

“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, it doesn't imply you should pick up a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.

DragonForce previously wrapped up a successful tour before 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 our records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”

Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing everything else the band has done. Recently, the track was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got their own path in music and I'm pleased we played a role 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 evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.

The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, featuring derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with 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 Fortnite Festival have kept the community active, and there’s set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered work on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Is the world ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?

“Our team believed those games might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”