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That Dragon, Cancer is described by it’s creators as an immersive narrative video game that retells Joel Green’s 4-year fight against cancer through about two hours of poetic, imaginative gameplay that explores faith, hope and love.
I have not played the game but have read several reviews about the experience including a very detailed account of the game by Wired magazine in their article titled “A Father, a Dying Son, and the Quest to Make the Most Profound Videogame Ever” which you can read here [2]. Since learning that the soundtrack was available I had to listen to it. Read on for my review of the game’s music.
On my first listen of the soundtrack I noticed that it opened with a beautiful stringed song titled “Spring Forth” that had a playtime of 45 seconds, which to me sounded like what would play during a birth when a life begins. The music continues with soft piano and light stings with “Feeding The Ducks” which evoked for me caring images of rocking back and forth.
The positive lighthearted sound continues until you reach “In The Shadow of the Dragon” which is a short low toned string piece that triggered some uneasiness in me.
As the soundtrack progresses there is a sense the music is moving towards a darker or more somber sound with “Awake, Oh Awake My Joel” which is a long noted piece of sustained piano. This leads to “I’m Sorry Guys, It’s Not Good” where the sparse piano overplayed with synth tones really made me feel that I was in a doctor’s office receiving bad news. The synth tones reminding me of feeling winded, and blood pressure spiking – the music definitely makes an emotional impact.
The longest piece of music on the album titled “Get In The Boat” was hard for me to listen to. The piece contains digital sound that reminded me of a distant blowing wind, and some single piano chords that sporadically echo throughout and at times intentionally distorted which visually triggered images of a painful journey and a life struggling to hang on.
The album’s final track “Picnic At the Edge of the World” opens with chimes, and the sound of vibrating crystal that sound like a ghostly choir which eventually fades away.
The music for the game was written by Jon Hillman, and is a musical score that will tug at your heartstrings and awaken your emotional core. Since I have not played the game, the music reminded me of the Robin Williams film What Dreams May Come which was expertly scored by Michael Kamen for a powerful film about love, and loss. That Dragon, Cancer Original Soundtrack is a powerful score for a powerful subject which will trigger your emotions. If the music alone can do that, I can only imagine how it can enhance the game.
You can purchase the soundtrack digitally on bandcamp [3] for $7.00. The game itself is also available from the game’s creators [4] for Windows and Mac for $14.99.
Have you played That Dragon, Cancer? What did you think of the music in the game?