Rock Band Developers Look to the Future
Harmonix Has Been a Player in Music Games Genre Since the Beginning
Jan 12, 2009
Although famous for Guitar Hero, and Rock Band, Harmonix had been making music games far before either of them were released. For those who have not followed Harmonix, here is a little potted history of one of the most successful companies in the rythm action game arena.
Harmonix History
Founded in 1995 by Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy, Harmonix's mission was to invent a way for non-musicians to experience what it feels like to make music. The company started by making interactive displays at amusement parks like Disney's Epcot Center, but soon moved into the video games industry.
"Japanese music games were starting to get some underground attention within the gaming community, and Harmonix was striving to forge an identity aligned with changing the perceptions of how people could interact with both music and technology in a fun and engaging way," said Kasson Crooker, a senior producer at Harmonix in an e-mail interview with Suite 101.
"At Harmonix, we're all fans of music, and wanted to make games that encapsulate rock and electronic and hip-hop and pop equally." That desire brought about the company's games Frequency and Amplitude, which gained an admirable following on the PS2.
Guitar Hero
However, the company's big break came when they partnered with Red Octane to make the original Guitar Hero in 2005. The game was a huge success, and Harmonix went on to make Guitar II, as well.
The smashing success of the franchise caught the attention of companies outside the gaming industry, and MTV purchased Harmonix in 2006, meaning they had to part ways with the Guitar Hero brand.
"Leaving anything behind is full of complexity and emotion," said Crooker. "But, as amazing as working on those games was, our mission was always to innovate, push the boundaries of technology and let non-musicians feel the power and energy of performing music."
"A full band experience is at the epicenter of that power, so when MTV came along, we were thrilled to be given the resources to create a fully realized band game in Rock Band. Since then, we haven't spent much time looking back."
Rock Band
With Rock Band's success, Harmonix hasn't had much need to look back. The original game and its successor, Rock Band II, have some more than 1 million copies, and more than 2 million additional songs have been downloaded as add-ons for the game.
"I think we're all pretty amazed with the level of success in the genre, as well as the explosion of the Rock Band franchise, I think it's due to a really fortuitous set of circumstances that all collided simultaneously" said Crooker.
"The key was breaking down the barriers for the non-gamer and the non-musician to want to try the game...word of mouth was in our favor and lastly, there's been a strong resurgence of rock music over the last five years that has fit in perfectly to this equation."
Despite the huge successes the company has already enjoyed, they are not resting on their laurels by any means.
The Beatles
"We have a few things cooking," said Crooker. "We recently announced that we're developing an exclusive video game revolving entirely around the music from the catalogue of The Beatles."
"Beyond that massive project, we have a few interesting things in the works. We've always been a company that innovates, so I think you can continue to expect huge things from Harmonix."
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