We take a look at the world map theme — the keystone of JRPG music, these propulsive, heroic pieces serenade your party as you travel the expanse. By Thomas Quillfeldt If you’re a fan of role-playing video games, then you almost certainly have a favourite world map (AKA ‘field’ or...
Artist and musician Niklas Åkerblad, AKA El Huervo, talks us through the inspiration for his Absolver vinyl artwork, adding layers to make a piece feel magical and his colourful philosophy. By Thomas Quillfeldt Face it — El Huervo is just cool. He’s definitely cooler than me, and he’s probably cooler...
Horizon Zero Dawn co-composer and long-time Guerrilla collaborator Joris de Man talks Atari music trackers, getting intimate with Aloy’s theme and how to score music in a pseudo-interactive way for the win. By Thomas Quillfeldt ...
We tease out all of the Nobuo Uematsu tunes that went into Jonne Valtonen’s Final Fantasy VII Symphony — from the devilish One-Winged Angel to the delicate Aeris’s Theme. By Thomas Quillfeldt
Video games tend to be noisy. But there are some wonderful examples of when a bit of restraint goes a long way when it comes to a game’s sound and music. By Thomas Quillfeldt The old proverb goes: “Silence is golden.” Claude Debussy said: “Music is the space between the...
We take a look at great tracks from memorable game openings — cues that perfectly set the tone for what’s to follow. By Steve Vancouver and Thomas Quillfeldt Everything begins somewhere. And in the world of video games — where even story-driven games often see as few as 30% of...
Niklas Åkerblad AKA El Huervo AKA Beard talks about the aftermath of Hotline Miami’s breakout success and his emerging artistic philosophy. April 2016 saw success for the Kickstarter campaign for the Hotline Miami Collector’s Edition Vinyl, launched by Laced Records in collaboration with game developer Dennaton and publisher Devolver Digital,...
By Thomas Quillfeldt The inherent unreality of game worlds coupled with the video game industry’s massive J.R.R. Tolkien preoccupation (and through him, Richard Wagner's The Ring Cycle and various Nordic mythologies) means that for decades now, players have been presented with many, many different interpretations of ‘fantasy’. The pursuit of...
Video game podcaster Jeremy LaMont explores the beginnings of dynamic game music and how it manifests in modern soundtracks. By Jeremy LaMont In the same way that video games offer an experience that changes dynamically, a game’s audio—made up of music, sound effects and dialogue—can similarly be non-linear. In terms of music,...
We gather tributes from notable Uematsu superfans from around the video games and game music communities. By Thomas Quillfeldt In June 2017 in Paris and London, Eckehard Stier raised his baton to conduct one of the world’s best orchestras—the London Symphony Orchestra—alongside the London Symphony Chorus, in performances of classical arrangements of music...
Game composer Amos Roddy, AKA ToyTree, chatted to us about synthwave, his favourite scores and his love of "magical" vinyl By Thomas Quillfeldt Picture this: it’s 1996, you’ve just finished setting up your Windows 95 PC which is rocking an Intel 200 MHz P6 processor with 16mb of RAM, CD-Rom...
Composer and orchestrator Jim Fowler talks about his hopes for an increasingly interactive future for games music, the joys of live instruments on soundtracks and the movement for more VGM on national radio. By Thomas Quillfeldt As an art form within an art form, video game music has come a long way...
Writer Jack Gosling brings us up to the modern day with the conclusion of his brief history of VGM. If you haven't already, check out "Part 1: From ‘bip!’ to ‘bwomp!’" By Jack Gosling As the gaming world moves on from its humble musical beginnings, the limitations of technology and...
Rare-alumni Grant Kirkhope, Steve Burke and David Wise talk us through some of their favourite tunes from Yooka-Laylee. By Thomas Quillfeldt Is it 2017, or really 1997 in disguise? The colourful 3D platformers of the late 90’s and early 00’s, so full of character, are back in a big bad...
