RPG

Chip Music

Fill Up on RPG-Inspired Chiptunes & Electronic Music with Shadow Spirits Vol.1

April 18, 2018 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Fill Up on RPG-Inspired Chiptunes & Electronic Music with Shadow Spirits Vol.1 Share this

It’s always interesting when you see big names break into the VGM and chiptune music scene. Cody Carpenter, musician and son of legendary director and composer John Carpenter, along with game composer Mark Day (Diner Dash, Aqua Kitty) have done just that and released an album of RPG-inspired chiptune/electronic hybrid music titles Shadow Spirits Vol.1.

Carpenter has experience in the music world all his own, having not only co-wrote, co-produced, and performed on the acclaimed Lost Themes (2015) and Lost Themes II (2016) with his father and Daniel Davies, but also released five instrumental progressive rock albums and one synthwave vocal album exclusively on Bandcamp. 2018 saw the release of Cody’s first non-Bandcamp exclusive album entitled “Cody Carpenter’s Interdependence”. Now, he’s delved into the realm of chiptunes.

“I wrote the original versions of these tracks exclusively with the NES chipset. I then passed it over to Mark to arrange into the finished product. We were both inspired by classic game music, with myself also taking a lot of inspiration from the work of Vince DiCola.” – Cody Carpenter, Musician & Co-producer

The album features 14 tracks of original chiptune & electronic music, which lend themselves to the nostalgic themes of the 80s and 90s RPG classics and could easily be slid into any retro-style game and sound inspired.

<a href="http://scarletmoonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/shadow-spirits-vol-1">Shadow Spirits Vol. 1 by Cody Carpenter & Mark Day</a>

“Initially we were going to do a 4 track EP. But the tracks came out so well we decided a full album would be better. I suggested a classic RPG concept as I love the music of Nobuo Uematsu and Hiroki Kikuta and had recently played Final Fantasy VII. I arranged Cody’s pieces along with the pieces I had written using the Commodore SID chip for most sounds and a little Juno 106 here and there for warmth.” – Mark Day, Arranger & Co-producer

Shadow Spirits Vol.1 is currently available for pre-order on Bandcamp for $10 and will be releasing in full on April 24th.
Chip Music, Game Music

Soundtrack to GBC Game Infinity Now Released 15 Years Later

September 6, 2016 | Brenna Wilkes | 1 Comment Share this

I personally love it when games of long-past systems make news decades after their time. In this case, the soundtrack to the Game Boy Color RPG, Infinity, has now received a proper soundtrack release thanks to the efforts of the Materia Collective and composer Eric Hache with sound engineer Mathew Valente.

The game itself was only recently released after years of being in development hell, as developer Affinix continued to struggle to release the game despite the GBC being long past its prime and the company going defunct. Last month, the ROM for the game was released to the public, and now sees its soundtrack available for the first time through Bandcamp, iTunes and soon to be released on Spotify.

“We would like to thank our team at Affinix Software foremost for their efforts in developing this special game. We would also like to thank our families, friends, and Materia Collective for making this release possible! We are excited to bring this soundtrack to RPG fans everywhere and hope you all enjoy it!” – Eric Hache & Mathew Valente

<a href="http://materiacollective.bandcamp.com/album/infinity-original-sound-version">Infinity: Original Sound Version by Eric E. Hache, Mathew Valente</a>

Infinity is currently open source and 90% done, with Affinix stating it has plans to finish the game but encourages fans to build upon the game themselves. You can learn more about the soundtrack itself on the Materia Collective website.
Game Music

Secret of Evermore 20th Anniversary Celebrated with Remastered Tracks

July 20, 2015 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Secret of Evermore 20th Anniversary Celebrated with Remastered Tracks Share this

Secret of Evermore might be one of the less well-known Squaresoft titles, but at least one man is giving the SNES game’s 20th anniversary some much-needed love.

Sean Schafianski, a composer and game enthusiast from Grand Rapids, Michigan who released Final Fantasy VI: Remastered Soundtrack in 2013 and several other since, felt the need to give Evermore the same treatment and recognition. The game’s original soundtrack, composed by Jeremy Soule (Elder Scrolls series), features several ambient pieces tailored to the RPG’s unique fantasy feel.

“With all of my Remastered Tracks albums, I want to stay as true to the source material as possible. The point is to pay tribute to amazing soundtracks by fantastic composers, while giving the music a breath of fresh air and a little artistic twist on my part. I create all of my arrangements by ear, listening closely to the original then trying to recreate the magic. I hope you enjoy listening to these arrangements as much as I enjoyed making them!”

Press Release

The Secret of Evermore: Remastered Tracks can be picked up on Loudr. You can also check out the rest of his Video Game Music Remastered series of game music releases on his Loudr page.
Featured, Game Music, Reviews

Super Chibi Knight OST (Review)

July 18, 2015 | Shawn Sackenheim | 2 Comments Share this Super Chibi Knight OST (Review)

For the sequel to a Flash game created by a 30-something guy and his 8-year-old daughter, you may not expect the music of Super Chibi Knight to be much of anything. From that description, you may not expect the game to be anything either but it promises a nostalgic mix of platforming and action/RPG in the pre-64 Legend of Zelda style. A new wrinkle is the sorcerer/beastmaster dynamic which changes how Super Chibi Knight plays, which areas you’ll see and how the game winds up. It’s super expanded from the original Chibi Knight and looking at this tracklist makes that extra apparent.

Returning composer, Brian Allen Holmes, has created an immense collection of 74 tracks for Super Chibi Knight. Most were designed as loops for the game so many of the tracks are short and fade out just as I started to get into them. It’s an unfortunate concession but understandable even for a digital release when there’s so much excellent music to cover. So grab your sword and shield and let’s explore this album.

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Game Music

D&D’s Sword Coast Legends Score Composed by Inon Zur

May 27, 2015 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on D&D’s Sword Coast Legends Score Composed by Inon Zur Share this

If you’re a fan of fantasy RPGs such as Dragon Age: Origins, then you’ll be happy to know that the upcoming D&D game from n-Space and Digital Extremes, Sword Coast Legends, will have the same composer as many of the staples of the genre.

Two-time winning BAFTA nominated composer Inon Zur (Icewind Dale II, Baldur’s Gate: Throne of Bhaal) will be in charge of the music for the new game, set within the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms universe by Wizards of the Coast. This would seem to be a great fit for the composer, as his history with providing power orchestrations within similar games such as EverQuest makes him a great fit. The game’s music has been recorded by the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra with Zur at the helm.

“Throughout his career, Inon’s music has been integral to many of the game industry’s most memorable experiences and has raised the bar on what we expect from a video game score today. His ability to capture the player’s experience through his music is second to none,” said Dan Tudge, President of n-Space and Director of Sword Coast Legends. “It’s wonderful to see Inon return to Dungeons & Dragons and the Forgotten Realms setting, where I’m confident our deep story, compelling characters, and rich environments will inspire one of Inon’s most memorable works to date.”

Source: Top Dollar PR

To get a taste of what to expect from Zur, you can check out any of his previous works, such as Dragon Age: Origins. A master of creating powerful melodic orchestrations that simply ooze fantasy-adventure feel to them, fans of the Dungeons & Dragon games can bet on good things coming for Sword Coast Legends.

Sword Coast Legends will be on sale for PC later this year, and is currently on pre-order for Steam for $34.99, along with digital deluxe and collectors editions. For more on Inon Zur’s musical repertoire, you can check out his website or follow him through social media.
Game Music

Shnabubula & Soshiro Hokkai Composing for Americana Dawn

November 29, 2014 | Brenna Wilkes | 1 Comment Share this

Chiptune artist Samuel “Shnabubula” Ascher-Weiss and Japanese video game composer Soshiro Hokkai are the two big-name composers who will be working on one of the newest video game Kickstarters circulating the scene, Americana Dawn.

Americana Dawn is a role playing game which explores over two centuries of early American history using a new tradition of folklore and tall tales inspired by Genso Suikoden and Mark Twain. Throughout its story, we follow Foster, the spirit of the sea, a gentle and innocent being who arrives in America with no apparent heritage or home. Lost to the wilderness of Shenandoah Valley, he lives in complete isolation for a hundred years until he is found and recruited in the provincial militia. – Kickstarter Home Page

Shnabubula is known within the gaming music and chiptune scene for his amazing musical talent and composing ability and seems like the perfect choice for such a project as Americana Dawn, and would mark his first game composition debut. Soshiro Hokkai, a guest composer for the game, is known for his work with the Castlevania series; most notably Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. Both men have gobs of ability that lend a lot to this project.

Americana Dawn

So if you’re interested in checking the prowess of both of these amazing composers, as well as funding what by all account looks to be a great game, check out Americana Dawn‘s Kickstarter page and help contribute to gaming diversity and musical genius!

Americana Dawn – Kickstarter
Game Music, Indie Music, Reviews

Dragon Fantasy: Book II OST (Review)

July 3, 2014 | Michael Hoffmann | Comments Off on Dragon Fantasy: Book II OST (Review) Share this Dragon Fantasy: Book II OST (Review)

If you frequent videogame news sites like Destructoid, the name Dale North is probably familiar to you. He’s been a contributor and editor for many news sites across the web, including this one. Currently he is the Editor-In-Chief at Destructoid.com, providing readers with insight on games and gaming events. But did you know that Dale North is also a talented musician and composer? Recently he was tasked with writing the music to the game Dragon Fantasy: Book II. North has done some work with music remixes, including work on Overclocked Remix, but this is his first time writing and releasing an official videogame soundtrack.

The game Dragon Fantasy: Book II is an indie title that pays homage to old-school RPGs. Everything from the combat system down to the SNES era pixel art is meant to evoke the games of the earlier console generations. For this project, North is tasked with producing original music that can engage the players and at the same time contribute to the sense of nostalgia that the game is aiming for. A complicated composition task to undertake. So does Mr. North rise to the challenge? Read on to find out. (more…)