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Marking 20 years since the legendary game hit the market across the Atlantic, providing players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not literally, but try convincing someone who's mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.

Created by the developers, the game gave players a guitar-shaped controller to follow coloured notes moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine live show.

Harmonix previously tried its hand in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant influence on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of younger players.

A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – despite the fact the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.

“We rerecorded all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was extremely difficult. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once the game became a hit, and record sales airtime were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”

He continues: “One of the amazing things was the number of parents reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became an intergenerational thing.”

Classic Rock Gains a New Audience

Irish group the Answer had their track in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers how the series brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, new demographic. Typically 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 gave all our music renewed popularity.”

At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.

Major Band Titles Enduring Influence

Music's heavyweight names soon took advantage of the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and associated lore, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the group more money compared to their studio albums. It sold well over half a million copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly during an era as the industry was already collapsing.

The series still motivates nimble-fingered dedication among its fans. Recently, an online personality completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with similar gameplay but an array of personalization features. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed and without missing every one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.

“Guitar Hero offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.

DragonForce had already completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I recall the record label informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it has threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the song featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I thought differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just hear a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.

The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller

Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, goes further mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “Precisely what our team trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere five-year period from 2005 to 2010, including derivative titles like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus in plastic instruments waned, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.

Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene active, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has begun work on their first music game. The initial creators are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?

“Our team believed such titles might become like Madden where you can update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant new music it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible why it can’t persist with new generations.”