Hey Guys,
As we’ve had the discussion on “what makes an AAA game” yet again and since I am currently studying I came up with something:
What I think makes a good game is the atmosphere. While many care about the graphics (lighting and post fx) what many games currently lack is atmospheric music!
Ofcourse it depends on the game type, so many ppl are listening to online radio stations for their FPS Games, this is exactly the same that my game will follow aswell (simply because i can’t afford good music and crappy music will harm more than no music at all.), but to some games atmospheric music is the key.
Let me take you on a trip into your imagination.
I have to admit, since I used to be a WoW Addict, this music brings up old memorys but back in the days you were simply “standing” in the world, just listening to the music, chatting a bit, waiting for a group to be built.
Listen to World of Warcraft Soundtrack (Full) - YouTube (in particular minutes 22 to 32).
You hear the background music of the “humans” captiol aswell as their forrests around.
Have the keywords “forest, human, majestic” in mind and you will dive into another world. Just listen and close your eyes
What makes it so atmospheric are the thoughts which are in that music. If you listen to “Orgrimmar” which is the captiol of the orcs (brutal warriors), you hear mostly drums and no real dynamic (silent to loud).
Same with “IronForge”, the capitol of the dwarfs/gnomes. They are small and fat, have beards, brew beer, are military oriented, are mostly blacksmiths (hence forge ;D)
Now, to make this more than just some stupid post, how about you? Do you know good OSTs, then feel free to add them to this post
I am curious to see how music of games I don’t know feels
Listen to the Borderlands 2 OST, a mix of unforgettable ambiance and epic action musics (try this one and blow that legion of ulgy robot !). The game also come with an excelent sound design and hilarious dialogs.
Also check the full OST of EVE Online, that is continously released on SoundCloud. This is mainly electronic ambiant. Almost a hundred songs for 8 hours of playing, perfect while coding
…the game which really did impact on me, with properly delivered emotions and balance with music, story and graphics style is Dreamfall: The Longest Journey … i havent play game which did same effect on me yet…
The first game that for me really had the music contributing greatly to the atmosphere was Morrowind. Not sure that can be done again because Morrowind had a bunch of “rules” that made that possible, such as no teleportation (apart from call backs and special tracks), and so, you would wait for the morning to start your adventure and this would play: The Elder Scrolls III Morrowind Theme [HD Quality] - YouTube. Boom! Oh, and the music would vary when under attack etc. Skyrim comes with great music, but teleport ruins it. That and the fact you return to last saved when killed, while in Morrowind, you’ll have to return to and find your backpack.
We will never have that again, because nowadays nobody would produce a game without teleport or such harsh dying consequences.
