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Marking 20 years after the legendary game debuted in North America, offering players everywhere the opportunity to feel like a rock star. Not in reality, but try convincing someone who's nailed the epic four-minute instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.

Created by Harmonix, Guitar Hero provided users with a plastic guitar peripheral to match on-screen cues scrolling down the display synchronized to a song. Every sequence corresponded to particular chords, creating the feel of an authentic performance.

Harmonix had already experimented in the music genre before partnering with the publisher, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Together, they established the groundwork for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a significant impact on numerous musicians featured, showcasing decades-old groups to millions of gaming enthusiasts.

Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early financial challenges in securing the recordings – despite the fact the first two games mostly used cover versions.

“We reproduced all the music because the dollar figure prohibitive,” he explains. “Even with the publishing rights by themselves, it was nearly impossible. We couldn’t get bands like legendary groups – the publisher had virtually no money, and we were fairly certain the project would flop. However, when Guitar Hero took off, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”

He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was how many parents got in touch and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they loved. It evolved into a multigenerational phenomenon.”

Classic Rock Finds a New Audience

Irish blues-rock band one featured act included Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician Paul Mahon remembers the way the game revived older hits to the forefront: “The game offered a larger, new demographic. Typically such music was considered outdated material, however once it got featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, suddenly it was cool. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It gave all our music renewed popularity.”

In 2008, the Answer’s debut album was still unreleased stateside, so the game was a key medium for exposure for the band during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “The roadies had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them knew us thanks to the game,” he notes.

Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Influence

Rock’s heavyweight names soon took advantage of the game's success, including bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated game editions that focused on each band’s catalogue and associated stories, imagery and legendary status. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly to have made the group more money than any of their records. It sold well over half a million units upon release, and sales of Aerosmith’s music rose of up to 40% during an era as the industry faced decline.

Guitar Hero still motivates nimble-fingered dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem popularized through Guitar Hero – using a fan-made version, a freeware game with almost identical mechanics but an array of customisation options. This track is difficult enough on the hardest setting, not to mention performed at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed requiring months of practice to accomplish.

“The game offers a, fantasy thing. If you play Call of Duty, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up actual weapons and go to war,” notes musician the artist.

DragonForce had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured in the third game, yet he explains it turned them into widely recognized. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our records were moving like crazy,” he says. “It exploded when we next toured, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”

In fact, DragonForce’s exposure via the game proved so vast that it has risked overshadow all other accomplishments. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I felt otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” Li says. “If you only hear one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique musical journey and I'm pleased we’ve been part in fans' experiences”.

The Lasting Legacy of a Plastic Guitar

Top-tier marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, clothes or video games, goes further than selling something – it inspires a longing. Did Guitar Hero tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon on the stage. Since the beginning, the creators believed there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and their goal was to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.

The majority of Guitar Hero games were released in just a half-decade between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a short-lived revival several years later.

Games such as the fan project and Fortnite Festival have kept the community alive, and there’s expectations of something from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game following Guitar Hero?

“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games where you can releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much fresh tracks that it could be evergreen, so I’ve always been optimistic. It's entirely possible for it to continue with new generations.”