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Marking 20 years after Guitar Hero debuted in North America, giving everyday gamers the tools to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing someone who's mastered the epic lengthy guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.

Created by the developers, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match coloured notes moving along the display synchronized to the music. Every sequence mimicked particular chords, creating the feel of a genuine live show.

Harmonix previously experimented in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the foundations for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a significant impact for many musicians included, showcasing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.

Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – even though initial releases mostly used cover versions.

“We rerecorded all the music because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was pretty convinced it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to be in.”

He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became a multigenerational thing.”

Classic Rock Finds a New Audience

Northern Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Typically such music was seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the title young people were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. That legitimised the genre, and got rid of the ‘dad rock’ label. It provided all our music a new life.”

In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased in the US, meaning Guitar Hero was a key medium for exposure for the band during their a North American tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing the song during travel, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact

Rock’s heavyweight names soon capitalised on the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and others starring in dedicated game editions centered around their music collections and associated stories, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of their songs rose significantly at a time when the music business faced decline.

Guitar Hero continues to inspire nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at double speed and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. The streamer claimed requiring nine months of practice.

“The game offers a, imaginary experience. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should pick up actual weapons and enlist,” notes DragonForce guitarist the artist.

The band had already wrapped up a successful tour when their hit appeared on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I remember the record label informing us that our records were moving like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts on the Mayhem festival.”

Indeed, the band's visibility via the game proved so vast that it risked overshadow everything else accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Impact from the Plastic Guitar

The best promotion, be it for cars, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it evokes a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “Precisely what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of being a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to use technology to allow people to do it”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs like the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, corporate focus on peripherals died down, aside from a short-lived revival in 2015.

Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have maintained the community active, with set to be a new product from the original publisher in development. A new studio has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?

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