Guitar Hero at 20 – how a plastic axe bridged the gap between rock generations

<p>Guitar Hero’s controllers let anyone become a star in their own living room – and made the bands featured in the game household names again</p><p>It is 20 years since Guitar Hero was launched in North America, and with it, the tools for the everyday gamer to become a rock star. Not literally of course, but try telling that to someone who has nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of a packed living-room audience.</p><p>Developed by Harmonix, published by RedOctane and inspired by Konami’s GuitarFreaks, Guitar Hero gave players a guitar-shaped controller with which to match coloured notes scrolling down the screen in time with a song. Each riff or sequence corresponded to specific notes, creating the feel of a genuine performance.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/games/2025/nov/08/guitar-hero-at-20-gap-between-rock-generations-harmonix-redoctane">Continue reading...</a>