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Marking 20 years after the legendary game first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the means to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that anyone who has mastered Free Bird’s lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.

Developed by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a guitar-shaped controller to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.

Harmonix had already tried its hand with rhythm games before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they established the foundations for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence on numerous of the artists featured, showcasing classic bands to millions of younger players.

A former executive, former COO from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the songs – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.

“We rerecorded every song since the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions alone, it proved nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain it would fail. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to be in.”

He continues: “Among the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch and thanked us for introducing their children to the songs they adored. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”

Classic Rock Gains Younger Fans

Northern Irish group one featured act had their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician the artist remembers the way the game revived classic rock back into vogue: “Guitar Hero offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered music that was past it, however once it got included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the outdated label. It gave all our music a new life.”

In 2008, the band's debut album was still not available stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the band as they went on a North American tour opening for AC/DC. “The roadies were playing the song on the tour bus, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.

Major Band Titles and Lasting Impact

Music's biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. In the case of, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly to have made the band more money than any of their records. It sold well over 500,000 units in its first week, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.

Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They stated requiring nine months to accomplish.

“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use actual weapons and go to war,” says musician Herman Li.

DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label calling to tell me that we were records were moving rapidly,” he says. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners on the Mayhem festival.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the track was used in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only hear 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 Impact of a Plastic Guitar

Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a desire. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to allow people to participate”.

Most of Guitar Hero games came out over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a turntable controller, and the band-focused game. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.

Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have maintained the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the founders in development. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. The initial creators are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry in the spirit of Guitar Hero?

“Our team believed such titles could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”