The Iconic Game Celebrates 20 Years – How a Plastic Axe United the Gap Among Music Fans

It has been 20 years since Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has nailed Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break before a packed living-room audience.

Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the sensation of an authentic performance.

Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with the publisher, which was purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable series that had a remarkable impact for many of the artists featured, introducing classic bands to millions of younger players.

A former executive, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – despite the fact initial releases primarily featured rerecorded tracks.

“We rerecorded every song because the cost prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero took off, and record sales and radio play were going up, all artists desired to be in.”

He continues: “One of the amazing things was how many parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational thing.”

Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans

Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero provided a larger, younger audience. Generally this had been considered music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”

At that time, the band's debut album remained unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting the rock giants. “Their crew were playing the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.

Rock’s Heavyweight Titles and Lasting Impact

Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in specialized spin-off titles centered around their music collections and related stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the group more money compared to their records. It sold well over 500,000 copies in its first week, and sales of their songs rose significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.

The series continues to inspire nimble-fingered fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical gameplay and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed while hitting every one of its near 4,000 notes. The streamer claimed it took nine months of practice.

“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use a real gun and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist the artist.

DragonForce had already completed a profitable run when their hit was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded when we next toured, and we performed just before top acts on the Mayhem festival.”

In fact, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I'm pleased we played a role in fans' experiences”.

Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar

The best marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators believed humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to do it”.

Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, 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 several years later.

Titles such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, with set to be something from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?

“We thought such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”