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Marking two decades after Guitar Hero first launched across the Atlantic, offering players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, but try telling that anyone who has nailed the epic lengthy instrumental break in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.

Created by the developers, the game provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues moving along the screen synchronized to the music. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of an authentic performance.

Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre prior to teaming up with RedOctane, which was purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence for many musicians included, showcasing classic bands to a new generation of younger players.

Michael Dornbrook, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the initial budgetary hurdles in securing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.

“We rerecorded every song because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Despite having the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get acts such as the Who – RedOctane had virtually no money, and our team was fairly certain the project would flop. But once the game became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, all artists desired to participate.”

He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”

Timeless Music Gains a New Audience

Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game the popular installment. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought classic rock to the forefront: “The game provided a bigger, new demographic. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”

In 2008, the Answer’s first record was still not available in the US, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us thanks to the game,” he notes.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence

Music's heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said to have made the band more money compared to their studio albums. It sold more than half a million units in its first week, and sales of their songs saw an increase significantly during an era when the music business was already collapsing.

Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat featuring the challenging track – a notoriously difficult anthem made popular by Guitar Hero – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. The song is difficult enough on expert mode, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting a single one of its near 4,000 notes. They claimed it took months of practice of practice.

“Guitar Hero offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to use a real gun and enlist,” notes musician Herman Li.

DragonForce 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 calling to tell me that we were records were moving like crazy,” he says. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track featured in promotional material for a major film. “Previously I felt otherwise, but now I accept it,” Li says. “If you only listen to a single track, it’s totally cool – each person has their own path in music and I'm pleased we’ve been part of people’s lives”.

Enduring Impact of a Plastic Guitar

Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it inspires a desire. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” he confirms. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. From day one, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive human desire to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.

Most installments came out in just a five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. After that, the publisher’s interest on peripherals waned, except for a short-lived revival several years later.

Titles such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene alive, and there’s expectations of a new product from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following Guitar Hero?

“We thought those games could be similar to sports games where you can update every year,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue for future fans.”