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It has been 20 years after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, giving everyday gamers the tools to feel like rock legends. Figuratively speaking, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of a packed living-room audience.

Created by Harmonix, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff mimicked specific notes, producing the feel of an authentic performance.

Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, which was acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Collaboratively, they established the groundwork for an unlikely massively profitable franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, introducing classic bands to millions of gaming enthusiasts.

Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the recordings – even though initial releases mostly used rerecorded tracks.

“We reproduced all the music since the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it proved extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like the Who – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were pretty convinced the project would flop. But once the game took off, album purchases and radio play increased, all artists desired to be in.”

He continues: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for introducing their children to the music they adored. It evolved into an intergenerational phenomenon.”

Timeless Music Gains a New Audience

Northern Irish group the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon remembers the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a larger, new demographic. Typically this had been considered music that was past it, but then when it was included in the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it became trendy. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave all our music a new life.”

At that time, the Answer’s first record was still unreleased in the US, so Guitar Hero served as a primary platform for exposure for the group during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies were playing Never Too Late during travel, and several knew us thanks to the game,” Mahon says.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence

Rock’s biggest acts quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, reportedly earned the band more money compared to their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 copies in its first week, while demand for their songs rose of up to 40% during an era when the music business was already collapsing.

Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Recently, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar gameplay and extensive customisation options. This track is difficult even in the hardest setting, let alone performed at increased tempo and without missing a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took months of practice to accomplish.

“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. Just as with Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you should use actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.

The band previously completed a profitable run before Through the Fire and Flames appeared in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember our distributors informing us that our selling albums rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged when we next toured, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it threatened to overshadow all other accomplishments. Recently, the song was used in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I’m glad we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar

Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, clothes or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero harness this? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” he confirms. “The excitement of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed humans have a natural urge to make music, and they wanted to use technology to enable everyone to participate”.

Most installments were released in just a half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring spin-offs such as the DJ version, including a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback several years later.

Games like the fan project and newer releases have maintained the scene alive, and there’s set to be something from the founders in development. Recently formed developers has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. The initial creators are both involved in advisory roles. Are gamers prepared to welcome a new entry following the classic?

“Our team believed those games could be similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” Dornbrook says. “There’s so much fresh tracks it could remain perennially popular, so I’ve always been hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist for future fans.”