Try not to do your blog the night before class. I would much rather see you go on the blog a couple of times during the week and discuss each other's comments.
Put a little effort into this and it will pay off. Remember the blogs count as 20% of your final grade.
Blog #1:
Name 3 favorite game soundtracks and submit a report on each citing what about those soundtracks makes them so compelling. Also submit a sample recording (:30 – 1:00) from each soundtrack.
Michael, you are free to do game soundtracks as well or you can choose to do movie soundtracks.
Look at game reviews, music reviews and movie reviews as inspiration for your reports. You can quote reviews of your particular games, but make sure to include plenty of your own impressions of the works listened to.
Off you go.
15 comments:
-Doom 3 soundtrack
(Theme Song)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=hQdIMRhwwZ8
The music fits with the theme of Doom so well. Death and destruction stacked with maximized adrenalin game play.
-ATHF Opening theater theme. I know this is not part of a video game soundtrack, but it should be. As an Animation student I thought it was genius how the creators incorporated movie rules into the show. Enjoy...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=tdP_LnA6bwg
World of Warcraft. I love the game but hate the music. I wanted to post it because the music fits with the fantasy aspect to the game. The epic music theme has been popularized with WoW lore, so I have read in common threads. http://youtube.com/watch?v=Gkg5Q8Vc4bM
I have found as a player that for most people, winamp music in the background can fit with game play as well (personal mix). If I get a chance to fraps a battle ground, I will edit what I listen to and post it with in the next week or 2. A sample fraps mix is...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=87YO0LvLWlg
Metroid prime 3: The music in any of the metroid prime trilogy has many different types of songs that really place the character or gamer in the world in which they are standing in. I often use this music for inspiration when I am designing a level or game character that is futuristic. This style of music is very electronic which suits it’s the environments of the game.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P7jdnU06ew&feature=related
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Oblivion (The Elder Scrolls IV): A game that I still have not finished, but can appreciate its musical approach. The town music, specifically, is one that sets the mood and gives the gamer the feeling that they are in a time period that is within the medieval era. This music also seems as though it could have been used for the lord of the rings orchestra.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EqLHsmDc3Y&feature=related
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Metal Gear Solid 2: This music is very up-beat but can also slow down to relate to the situation going on within the game. Depending on the action that is taking place, like a boss battle for example, one can feel the kind of “double 0 agent” that this music portrays. It often helps one concentrate under stealthy situations and makes people feel like the agent they are controlling.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPv64Y8e52E
by: Joseph Kresz
Game Art and Design
Unrelated to this week's blog I know, but I wanted to pass theses along. We have at least one exercise coming up in class where these could be useful:
To celebrate this week's single release (we still have those in England) Radiohead have broken up the song 'Nude' into pieces for you to remix.
For those of you who enjoy this sort of thing, you can buy the separate components or 'stems' (bass, voice, guitar, strings/FX and drums) and remix your own version of the song. You can do this by adding your own beats and instrumentation or just remixing the original parts. More information here: http://www.radioheadremix.com/information/
You can buy the stems here: http://www.radioheadremix.com/buy/
You can upload your finished mixes here http://www.radioheadremix.com and be judged and even voted on by 'the public'.
You can also create a widget allowing votes from your own website, Facebook or MySpace page to be sent through too.
Hope you enjoy it
For those of you who aren't that way inclined, Nude is also available in its entirety on CD and 7 inch (UK release) at the usual retail outlets.
I usually get the soundtracks for the games I have, and usually I love the songs because hearing the songs remind me of the certain points in the game. That is, I don't think I'd like some of the songs if I hadn't played the game in which they play.
That said, I love listenin' to my video game soundtracks, and whenever I have a CD playing in my car, it's usually a collection of my favorite songs from a game soundtrack.
I actually put together and uploaded my own YouTube video for one of the games on my list. I forgot that you said to only have 30-60 seconds for a sample of the game music until the video was almost finished exporting from Premier. ^__^; So, I'll only have my own video for the first game on the list.
It was hard to choose only 3 games, but my game list is Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean, Super Mario Galaxy, and Tales of Symphonia.
Here's the link to Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean.
So, what makes this soundtrack so great? Well, before I played this game, I hadn't heard music like this in a video game. I haven't truly played a Final Fantasy game, and those games might have music similar to this game, but since I haven't really played the game, I don't care much for the songs. (see what I mean?)
I particularly loved the strings in the music, so you'll hear some examples of them in the video I made. But aside from this type of music being a new experience in video games for me, something I think that makes these song so engaging is the way that they perfectly set the mood and setting for the game, and that is something that I believe stretches across all of my favorite game soundtracks. The final song that plays in the video is the theme song for Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean.
The next game is Super Mario Galaxy.
My favorite song from that game is the one that plays in the Gusty Garden Galaxy. But that song kinda feels similar to some of those of Baten Kaitos. If you want a more different example of the music in this game, you can check out the song for the Gateway Galaxy.
Whichever song you choose to listen to, you'll notice the orchestrated music. Most of Super Mario Galaxy's music is from from a live recorded orchestra, so it further enhances the game's bold feel. The Gateway Galaxy's song is the one you hear when you take control of Mario on the first true level, and that song perfectly captures that mood for the beginning of Mario's adventure.
The third game's soundtrack I chose is Tales of Symphonia. That is actually my #1 favorite game, although the music sounds more midi-esque than some other games. One of my favorite songs from this game is Beat the Angel. The first time you hear this song is right at the start of a battle against an angel that betrayed your trust, and it's time to kill or be killed. I believe this is the only song in Tales of Symphonia that uses those bells, and it works perfectly in the game because you only hear it when you are battling angelic enemies. The songs in Tales of Symphonia are all very memorable. To help achieve this, each main character (there are 9) has his or her own theme song that plays during important events that pertain to them.
So yea, those are my 3 game examples. Hope you liked them. ^___^;
1.Devil May Cry series (games 1-4)
The series' soundtrack has a, in my opinion, good combination of techno and rock. It also combines a classical feel into it with some of the opera or Gregorian chants. The
audio can also be looped allowing long term use for the music, which is an important part of video game music.
the following is a gameplay video with some of the fight music.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTXDGLQmav0
2.The Guilty Gear series
Guilty Gear is a 2d fighting game that began using a rock based soundtrack over the "classic" fight music of games like snk and street fighter.
example of previous 2d's
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNNU887A-8g
guilty gear gameplay (the music starts after the story begining)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKRLW195qp0
3.Chrono Cross
This rpg like others uses the classical music base for its music, but has a slight gypsy or pirate feel to it. It helps set the mood for the game play that takes place on numerous islands and on the open sea.
Chrono Cross Intro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDnPYoGzW78
My first choice would have to be the opening theme from resident evil by Marliyn Manson because it techno but not to techno and it really help during the opening and ending of the movie sortive giving nothing away to critical to the movie early at the beginning.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqrOGjQC5LI
Matthew Garbatini
Game Art & Design
The Legend of Zelda – Ocarina of Time
The intro music does a very great job of staging what the user will experience in the rest of the game. One major aspect of this game is that players are required to play songs on their ocarina to manipulate things such as travel or even the weather. The clanking of the horse hoofs in the beginning also prepares gamers for the first Zelda where you get to ride and control a horse.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42WwZCUj4Xo
EverQuest
I can’t pass up talking about the first MMORPG that I have ever played. The violin in the beginning isn’t heard at first but it is slowly introduced into the soundtrack. This followed by the beating of heavy drums produces a sublime form of sound that prepares the player for an epic adventure, which will take place 17 inches from his or her own computer.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=yDSh6qYqxxg
Diablo 2
I like the use of tortured voices in the beginning of this soundtrack to set the mood up for the players. This makes the player realize the reason for the title of the game. But to steer away from making the game seem solely satanic, the melody of a piano is introduced as a way to calm down the horror produced by the eerie voices.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=U0kPXdtz_c4
My first favorite soundtrack would have to be the original Mario i mean who doesn't know the music of Mario you here it everywhere especially now on cellphones. I loved the fact that every level had different music to it that helped make the game even funner. Heres a link for it. http://youtube.com/watch?v=lpk5U70MQBg
My second favorite would have to be from another classic game and probably even more addicting than Mario Brothers none other than Tetris. The game and the music will never get old and makes time seem to fly by when our playing it.
Here is a link for it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whBg7IF5JUg
My last pick i decided on a new game and that would have to be the soundtracks the NHL series starting in 2000. They always have good rock songs from current and up and coming bands and have enterdused me to bands that i probably wouldn't have heard of if i didn't pay the games. The soundtracks deffently add to the games. Heres a link to one of my favorite songs from the NHL series "Sweetness" by Jimmy Eat World. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU3KBI5qyEY
1) Quake
Trent Reznor's minimalist score to the first Quake game is very ambient and isolating; perfect for the mood the game conveys. Only the Quake theme song and very jarring moments in the soundtrack betray its industrial rock roots.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3gVOZnNRcJM
2) Aero Gauge
The incredibly catchy soundtrack to Aero Gauge for the N64 is the epitome of J pop electro MIDI-fied. It's total cheese but I love it because you can bob your head to it.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=8Laj0Hsobqk&feature=related
3) Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
This is one of the most enveloping OSTs I've ever encountered. Epic is the only word I can use to define its scope. It would come off as totally up its own ass if it weren't for the fact that the outstanding art style keeps pace with it. The music that accompanies each world define them, and set the mood, and give a sense of peace to the player.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7P7jdnU06ew
The first track I chose is The Music Box by Akira Yamaoka for Silent Hill 2 (http://gh.ffshrine.org/song/107/54 )I didn’t love that game too much but this song stuck in my mind for a very long time. In the game, you have to solve a puzzle to get a music box to start playing and it plays this song over and over never stopping. It only played in one room but as you approach that room, the sound of that song slowly fades in and it sounds very beautiful at first. After a while of running around in that area, the song started to get a really creepy feel and, near the end I actually dreaded going in, or even passing through that room. The effect this simple song with only one to two instruments playing at a time is truly a work of art. From the moment, you first hear it play, it sinks into you and you won’t soon forget it.
The second track I chose is Poem of Everyone’s Soul for Persona Three (http://gh.ffshrine.org/song/107/54 ). This theme is used in the Velvet Room in the game, which is where you can fuse your personas to make new ones. What’s so great about it is that, pretty simply, it is a very beautiful song. It begins with a piano playing a little melody which builds up, lulls, then pauses for a second and a beautiful operatic voice comes in to take over the melody and a few notes here and there are played to back up and accent the melody. It’s very calming and thought provoking. It works well with the game because the room that it plays in is supposed to be the place between the waking world and the dream world and this song adds to that effect.
The final track I chose was Dancing Mad from the American Final Fantasy III and the Japanese Final Fantasy VI (http://bluelaguna.net/downloads/mp3s/ff6music/59+-+Dancing+Mad.mp3 ). I believe this song is probably the most epic or all Final Fantasy songs. It has multiple movements and exists practically as a suite all on it’s own. It goes from slow and ominous to fast and actiony, to something else. You could probably plot out an entire story from it. It’s actually a very long track and it was really REALLY hard for me to find.
BTW, the URLs are all to free download pages for the songs.
-Marlana Moore
Meh the URL for The Persona 3 song was wrong. Her it is: http://gh.ffshrine.org/song/6590/2
I think some of the Halo in game songs are really well composed. Bungie did a great job of giving you the feeling of an intense feeling right before a major fight. It leads the gamers into the battle and not just throwing random fights at you.
The Gerudo Valley theme song in Ocarina of Time is awesome to listen to. While running around exploring its a catchy sort of faster paced song that i felt helped with the exploring feel. Its a string based song with a little tapping beat.
I really like the first levels beat in Golden Eye. It incorpaorates the 007 theme song into the beat and has a spy sort of stealthy feel to it. It made me think i was really creeping around a facility looking for info.
1st. Battle Theme- Halo Combat Evolved
2nd. Legend of Zelda (Ocarina of Time)- Gerudo Valley Song.
3rd. 007 Golden Eye (Classic- Facilty song
All of these game soundtracks have no lyrics so the fact that they are soley based on instrumental sounds and all original is amazing. In my opinion it helps give the game that extra greatness. In all great games that many people play, if you play a song from a game they will know it or remember it right away. Why is that.....
If anyone else wants a website that is loaded with game soundtracks check out
http://videogametunes.net
And damnit i forgot about this so i did it the night before.....sorry Tim
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