Guitar Hero Turns 20 – How a Plastic Axe Bridged the Gap Among Rock Fans

Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, but try convincing anyone who has mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic crowd of friends.

Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to follow on-screen cues scrolling down the display in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic live show.

Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar series which made a remarkable influence on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of younger players.

A former executive, ex-chief operating officer of Harmonix, remembers the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.

“We reproduced every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game took off, album purchases airtime were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”

He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”

Classic Rock Finds a New Audience

Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist recalls how the series revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Typically such music was considered outdated material, however when it was featured on the title and teenagers discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the outdated label. It provided our catalog a new life.”

In 2008, the band's first record remained not available 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. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact

Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved more than 500,000 units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.

The series still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive personalization features. The song is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer stated it took months of practice to accomplish.

“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.

The band previously completed a profitable run before their hit was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”

Indeed, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it has threatened to eclipsing all other accomplishments. Last year, the song was used in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – each person has their own musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Impact of a Iconic Controller

The best promotion, be it for automobiles, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “That thrill of performing as a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.

Most installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, including spin-offs such as DJ Hero, including a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus in plastic instruments died down, except for a short-lived revival in 2015.

Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?

“We thought those games could be like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t continue for future fans.”