Music in games, is it necessary?
- Thread starter JambalayaBob
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For large titles like Oblivion, Mass Effect and similar, music is essential. The final scene in Mass Effect 2 was one of the most incredible cutscenes I have ever seen. And walking through the country in Oblivion, with the subtle orchestral music in the background was bliss.
Dude, when I'm playing virtual reality fallout, sure, no music.
But when I'm playing virtual reality final fantasy, I'm gonna want some god damn music.
One of my favorite games of all time is Shadow of the Colossus, and that game had a fucking maniacally good soundtrack. It was so good I went insane for 2 months after hearing it. It would not at all be the same game without it. If virtual reality Sotc came out with no music, I would not play it.
I'm completely serious.
But when I'm playing virtual reality final fantasy, I'm gonna want some god damn music.
One of my favorite games of all time is Shadow of the Colossus, and that game had a fucking maniacally good soundtrack. It was so good I went insane for 2 months after hearing it. It would not at all be the same game without it. If virtual reality Sotc came out with no music, I would not play it.
I'm completely serious.
Alright, let me educate you a bit. In film music studies, which this thread is most connected to, they have come up with the terms "diegetic" and "non-diegetic"--those of us who do work on video game music have similarly adopted those terms. Let me explain them to you.JambalayaBob said:
Diegetic sound/music/noise are things that are happening in the world of the film/play/video game. Three Dog's Music is diegetic music. Non-diegetic sound/music/noise are things that the people within the world can't hear. Some scholars have talked about the moments when those two categories becomes blurred...especially in traditional Golden Age musical styles...sometimes using the term "extra diegetic." A good example would be something like a musical where a person is walking down the street singing with a full orchestra behind them. Are they really singing in the world of the musical? Other people seem to hear them and react to them...but there is clearly no orchestra around...so maybe they are singing diegetically, but the orchestra is non-diegetic? Or maybe the people in the musical hear the music in their mind...but it isn't in the outside reality.
Anyway, the point of all of this is that *all* of that music, diegetic, non-diegetic, extra-diegetic, *all* of it is music. All of it is crafted by a composer, sound designer to create the score. The scores of Bioshock and Fallout are masterful scores...and I must say, both of those games are games where the music is so extremely important. Yeah, it is (mostly) diegetic...but it is done with extreme artistic care in order to advance the artistic overall feeling of the game. Another game with a really necessary and important score? Silent Hill. Now many of the sounds might be called "noise"--but the sounds of that game are basically early-mid 20th Century music concrete/noise music. Also, of course there is more traditional scoring that is really amazing as well...and integral to creating the sense of "horror."
And do not think that scoring doesn't exist in real life. Businesses have learned a lot from the use of music to manipulate people in film. Now we have businesses who create scores for outdoor environments in order to effect certain moods and kinds of immersions from the people there. Go to a department store, or Las Vegas, to see what I mean. When I was in Williamsberg, VA I was walking around this place that is a mix between an outdoor mall and a housing development. As I was walking around...outside...I stopped and listened. I hear, very softly, Ella Fitzgerald crooning softly. I thought, "Where is that music coming from? From a store?" I searched around...and I found the source. There were fake rocks along the street that were actually speakers. The housing development was pumping just the right sort of music to give you a specific sort of feeling. Which is what scores do.
You also seem to think the point of music is to notice it. Not always. Sometimes the most subtle manipulation comes from very subtle things. I was watching the play The Crucible and during the climactic final trial scene, I found my heart racing and myself full of tension...the acting was good...but...then I realized. Someone was playing a kettle drum offstage very quietly and had been doing so for some time. The kettle drum was beating at about the rate of a resting heart beat...and then slowly, as the trial was getting more intense, the drummer started speeding up. But the manipulation worked because the music was almost subliminal.
"Music in games" doesn't have to be unsubtle, non-diegetic, or traditional in order to count as music.
Last example. I'm a big fan of what are called "backstage musicals." In backstage musicals, all the performances are strictly diegetic. That means all songs sung are actually being sung in the real life of the musical--usually on a stage. Glee is mostly like this (though...I'd argue that most of their numbers start diegetic but usually end up extra-diegetic as well)...42nd Street, Streets of Fire, Hedwig & the Angry Inch (the musical not the film), etc. These often follow musicians or other performers whose performances are justified by this being part of their job. This is difference from a standard "book musical" where people burst out into song while walking down the street like West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, Sweet Charity, etc. Both categories are still musicals. And similarly, "I Don't Want To Set the World On Fire" in Fallout 3 or "Beyond the Sea" in Bioshock are just as much music and score as the main orchestral themes of both those games...and as much as the soundscape is.
Even amongst shooters, music is take it or leave it. Personally, I turn the music off for SP in Call of Duty, because life doesn't have a soundtrack. If I'm playing, say, Mechwarrior, then the badass music amplifies the badassery that I feel while stomping around in a giant deathbot.
I am failing to see how this discussion has now turned into a heated debate.
I read this and the discussion has turned into an 'intelligible' argument of music in games, and whether or not music will be in them in the future. No party knows exactly what the future holds thus making both parties of this argument invalid. I hope I am missing the point entirely of why people are getting defensive over this discussion as it seems to be fruitless.
One person can look at a pile of shit and find it repulsive while another could become fascinated at it's artistic merit. Music (or lack of) has been proven to affect mood. We humans are receptive to it and we judge it based on our personal experiences. The point being is that whether or not we enjoy music in a game is entirely personal preference.
I look at music in video games just like a spice that you would add to any food. For example, if you are cooking a steak. You could leave the steak as-is and serve it or you add spice to the steak; it will either add flavor or completely change the taste to (hopefully) something you more desire. Some people will enjoy their steak without the spice, however people around the world can and will always add spice to the steak to their discretion. Video games are no different in that respect. Video games to me do not need music in the game to be a good one, however I do like a really good soundtrack when I hear one.
I read this and the discussion has turned into an 'intelligible' argument of music in games, and whether or not music will be in them in the future. No party knows exactly what the future holds thus making both parties of this argument invalid. I hope I am missing the point entirely of why people are getting defensive over this discussion as it seems to be fruitless.
One person can look at a pile of shit and find it repulsive while another could become fascinated at it's artistic merit. Music (or lack of) has been proven to affect mood. We humans are receptive to it and we judge it based on our personal experiences. The point being is that whether or not we enjoy music in a game is entirely personal preference.
I look at music in video games just like a spice that you would add to any food. For example, if you are cooking a steak. You could leave the steak as-is and serve it or you add spice to the steak; it will either add flavor or completely change the taste to (hopefully) something you more desire. Some people will enjoy their steak without the spice, however people around the world can and will always add spice to the steak to their discretion. Video games are no different in that respect. Video games to me do not need music in the game to be a good one, however I do like a really good soundtrack when I hear one.
Even non-video games can benefit from music.
In lasertag they have beating music and a lot of flashing lights. This has the effect of making the body produce adrenalin, making the matches a lot more intense.
And i would never play Unreal Tournament if it wasnt for the same adrenalin-kicking music keeping my heart racing.
Though adding music to Black Ops, Modern Warfare or CS would be stupid. If you can't hear your opponents footsteps, you're dead.
In lasertag they have beating music and a lot of flashing lights. This has the effect of making the body produce adrenalin, making the matches a lot more intense.
And i would never play Unreal Tournament if it wasnt for the same adrenalin-kicking music keeping my heart racing.
Though adding music to Black Ops, Modern Warfare or CS would be stupid. If you can't hear your opponents footsteps, you're dead.
Short answer: Yes. Long answer: it depends on what the setting and story require. If a particular setting/story requires no music, or diegetic (in setting) music only, or a more conventional soundtrack, then that's what's required. Likewise, a boisterous, comedic tune such as Yakety Sax has no place in a horror scene unless its being distorted into a grimacing parody of itself ala ME2's Project Overlord, while a subconsciously creepy tune such as Joker's theme in TDK doesn't have any place in a comedy so lighthearted it could pass for an adaptation of The Family Circus. It all depends on the setting and what the author(s) want/need to do with the scenes written.
i think the music in fallout 3 was incredibly important to set that eerie tone of despair sure its barely there but it was there and made th ewasteland feel that much more sinister, its very similar to the ambience of limbo where less was definately more.
as music is the most direct emotive tool in the artistc world i don;t think we could ever drop it.
as music is the most direct emotive tool in the artistc world i don;t think we could ever drop it.
Video games aren't supposed to emulate real life. They're supposed to be better than real life. And having a sound-track that fits the mood of the scene will always make it better. No matter how good gaming technology gets, a good musical score will improve it.
I really couldn't be in more disagreement with you. To me music is one of the most important aspects of a game, and no game can be great if it doesn't also have great music. In fallout I ended up turning the radio volume up so I could hear it during battle, and in GTA 4 I cannot stand being outside of the car where there is no techno stations.
If it was a VR world kind of thing maybe not, but as games are now the sound/music is a good part of the game, it can help set stuff up and make it just feel more immersive
