SOUNDTRACK: A MAKE-OR-GAMEBREAKER?

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slash
APATHY IS FOR COWARDS
4158
In both the professional games industry and our small indie homebrew game communities, great soundtracks are often passed over in favor of more content or better graphics. Admittedly, for RPG Makerers, who tend to work solo or in very small teams, there is usually no time for an original soundtrack. Creating great video game music from scratch requires a lot of skill and talent, is a lot of work, and often goes completely overlooked by your audience.

However, two indie games I have played recently have made consider the role background music plays: Super Meat Boy, and VVVVVV. Both are stupidly difficult platformers, but if you've played either (or both), you'll know what I mean when I say the music is addictive. It's the kind of music that will keep you playing the game when you've run into the same spikes 50 times. My suggestion is that everyone buy these games so that they experience the music in its natural setting (they're between 10-15$ on steam, and SMB is on Xbox Arcade) as well as some amazing gameplay. That's asking a lot, however, so here are some of the best tracks:

SMB - Betus Blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Kf7ycHajX4
SMB - End Credits: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnOc7YN6dDc
VVVVVV - Pushing Onwards: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGpKOaj_eh0

You may say only platformers need great soundtracks so you don't ragequit them when you die repeatedly. I tend to disagree. RPGs are a haven for beautiful music, probably moreso than any other genre, because you are crafting a world, a story, a mood, and when it comes to setting a mood, music is just as important as art.

Now, I know many of you will say: "Slashphoenix! You know-nothing fool! We would love great soundtracks, but we have no time to make them for our games! I am going to use the Guardia Forest song from Chrono Trigger just to spite you!"

To which I say, "LET THERE BE CREATIVE COMMONS"

http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/
http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/
http://sampleswap.org/mp3/creative-commons/free-music.php?show=all

There you go - an utter shitton of free music for you all to use. Newgrounds especially has some very, very talented mixers. Some of that music requires credit given, some doesn't. If you're not selling your game, it doesn't matter - it's already a lot more legal than what you're using now.
author=slashphoenix
I

There you go - an utter shitton of free music for you all to use. Newgrounds especially has some very, very talented mixers. Some of that music requires credit given, some doesn't. If you're not selling your game, it doesn't matter - it's already a lot more legal than what you're using now.

unfortunately this is true
One I tend to go for is also Jamendo.

Though even with the most lenient of CC-licenses (CC-BY) you always have to credit the original artist.
An interesting topic. I'd have to say music/audio in general is a really big Game-Maker/-Breaker. Yes, fitting music is nice to keep interest but also consider the mood that said music should inspire. Look to the Silent Hill series as an example of good mood music. Quiet at points and vicious in others. The soundtracks are actually quite interesting to listen to on there own. I've not heard it myself, but the music to Castle Crashers is supposedly rather intriguing as well. I think it could be vital to a game, but it could also be horribly out of place and ruin it at the same time. Imagine playing Castlevania in that dark gothic setting and adventure, and being bombarded with Super Mario Worlds main theme.

I also agree, Newgrounds is quite nice for some decent indie music
InfectionFiles
the world ends in whatever my makerscore currently is
4622
Sometimes(most of the time) I wish the current RM game or game in general didn't have music.
As I like to listen to metal, classical, whatever I'm in the mood for, when playing games.
Although the latter usually has an option to turn off in game music.

I always thought it would be a cool feature of RM games to have music optional, that way if someone doesn't like the music they can just turn it off. Without having to shut off the speakers.
I always wondered why people insist on using ripped music when there's plenty of free high quality pieces available.
Newgrounds is my personal favourite, there's basically every musical genre known to mankind, and all is asked is to give credit.

author=InfectionFiles
I always thought it would be a cool feature of RM games to have music optional, that way if someone doesn't like the music they can just turn it off. Without having to shut off the speakers.

Yeah, l like when there's the option to turn off BGM without having to turn off SE and BGS.
I think it kinda depends on the genre, to be honest.

God of War with Britney Spears overlayed? Would still play it.

Silent Hill with Three Doors Down? NOOOOOOOOOOOOooo
InfectionFiles
the world ends in whatever my makerscore currently is
4622
Silent Hill and Britney Spears is where it's at
author=InfectionFiles
Silent Hill and Britney Spears is where it's at

That truly is a horrible thought friend. I tremble in fear of it happening now that its been said.
Gotta do a parody Silent Hill OP using Toxic, now.
No, I don't have the time, damn.
Music isn't that hard to do... With programs such as MIDImaker and such, and I hate to try new music (it's not like that with food tough LOL), however, I still go aganist using well-known RPG music. Alter Aila has a good soundtrack, I didn't recognize any song but "Makubex" (For I love GetBackers) (And I didn't play much of the game, sadly. I ragequitted it after a missing file bug.)

There are great flash games on newgrounds with great osts, too. And I find annoying that AdventureQuest (I played that everyday when I was like 11~12) doesn't have music.
Every great movie or game has memorable music.
What I love about the Xbox (PS3 probably does this too) is that you can plug in your Ipod or install music to your Hard drive to replace the BGM, but it still keeps all the sound effects and what have you. If I fancy listening to Bare Naked Ladies during the final battle in Star Ocean, well, I can!
author=ShortStar
Every great movie or game has memorable music.

Not true.
also on subject of creative commons stuff http://freemusicarchive.org/ has a ridiculous amount of good stuff and i'd definitely recommend having a poke around. jesus christ theres even a page full of old Joe Meek demos and basically everything in the Excavated Shellac collection is worth hearing. archive.org also has a really good selection of old blues, jazz and country stuff from the twenties and thirties. I'd especially recommend some stuff there by the Carter Family and Frank Hutchinson even if youre not trying to find soundtracks.
I don't think music is overlooked in games. As for rips, I use them often too since the stuff on Newgrounds just isn't what I'm looking for (any of it). However, if you do use rips, use rips from games no one knows about. It's kind of like how it's a bad idea to use the enemies from FF6 because they've been in way too many RPG Maker games and everyone knows where they're from.
author=Shinan
author=ShortStar
Every great movie or game has memorable music.
Not true.
pray give an example. any example
author=geodude
author=Shinan
author=ShortStar
Every great movie or game has memorable music.
Not true.
pray give an example. any example
Easy enough with games: Football Manager 20xx (I don't even think the game has any music), Europa Universalis 3, Dwarf Fortress. To name a couple off the top of my head.

For movies it's harder because while I mightn't remember any memorable music the music might still have been great. But googling around gives me "The Birds" apparently hasn't got a score (probably as a gimmick thing) and I think that one is regarded as a pretty good movie.

The docu-style films (Cloverfield and Blair Witch Project for example) probably don't have scores either. But I guess they're not exactly the kind of movies you'd call "great" either. (yet they're good at what they do)
author=Shinan
author=geodude
pray give an example. any example
Europa Universalis 3, Dwarf Fortress
(the dwarf fortress music is customisable, incidentally)

we were talking about great, not good or passable games and i'm not going to pretend football manager is big, lauded or important or that it should have music. football manager is kind of a special case in this regard

the birds doesn't have a score but uses diegetic and source music. cloverfield has this great overture music; it also uses diegetic music, as does the blair witch project. the latter two use the same gimmick so they can be treated as true exceptions
author=geodude
author=Shinan
author=ShortStar
Every great movie or game has memorable music.
Not true.
pray give an example. any example

Of this I could these on a stone wall like some memorial of unmemorable music. Ironically enough, it means the game has to have mundane or unimpressive music. It can't be something like the Cheetaman theme or that annoying loop from the Back to the Future NES game since those are so bad you remember them.

Fallout 3 comes to mind. Yes I said it, I can barely remember a tune from that game, it was all generic ambient apocalypse music. They got some good tunes in New Vegas though, especially when you encounter a battle. The overworld ambient tones from Fallout 3 (which you hear sometimes in New Vegas) wasn't bad though. (unless you turn on the radio to hear oldies).

The only song from Oblivion I can remember is the main theme, the rest of the songs lacked any kick and were too ambient for me to remember them. I hope they get a way better soundtrack in Skyrim.
author=geodude
author=Shinan
author=geodude
pray give an example. any example
Europa Universalis 3, Dwarf Fortress
(the dwarf fortress music is customisable, incidentally)
Does it count as memorable if it's the kind of music that makes you rip your hair out and makes you want to kill people? (like Dwarf Fortress' music does. And EU3's did too occasionally before I turned it off because it was distracting)

and i'm not going to pretend football manager is big, lauded or important
I know sales is a weak argument but... It should give it some... credit.

EDIT: Just listening to the dwarf fortress music now makes me want to strangle someone...
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