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Marking two decades after the legendary game hit the market in North America, giving players everywhere the means to feel like a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic living-room audience.

Developed by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the sensation of an authentic live show.

The studio had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable impact on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing decades-old bands to millions of younger players.

Michael Dornbrook, former COO from the developer, remembers the initial financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.

“We rerecorded all the music since the cost was so high,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”

He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was how many parents reached out and thanked us for introducing their kids to the music they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”

Classic Rock Gains a New Audience

Irish blues-rock band one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist recalls the way the game brought older hits to the forefront: “The game provided a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, however once it got included in the title young people were finding it, suddenly it became trendy. That legitimised it, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”

At that time, the Answer’s debut album remained unreleased stateside, so Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.

Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs and Lasting Impact

Music's biggest acts soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the group greater revenue compared to their records. It sold more than 500,000 units upon release, while demand for Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry was already collapsing.

The series continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Recently, an online personality achieved an impressive attempt featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention played at double speed while hitting every one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.

“The game is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.

The band had already wrapped up a profitable run when their hit was featured in the third game, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed just before the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Recently, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we played a role of people’s lives”.

Enduring Legacy from the Plastic Guitar

The best marketing, be it for cars, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of performing as a rock star on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to make music, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to participate”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a five-year period from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a brief comeback in 2015.

Titles like Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the community active, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has begun production on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?

“We thought such titles could be like Madden where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist for future fans.”