I survived FOUR mid-terms. My mind is tired, and I still have a mountain of essays to do..
But I will survive. D:< It does mean that I didn’t get to analyze a soundtrack for you to listen to. Do not fret, however! I will be back with some really exciting news. 😀
Here’s to my school’s Reading Week!
PS
This is the coolest thing I found all week. Check it out!
-FoA
As a game worth $1.99 on the Nintendo eShop, I figured it’d be a pretty cheap and mindless experience with nothing to write home about. And to be honest, at first I thought so too – it’s a simple run-and-gun platformer in the same vein as Megaman, albeit simpler and less demanding. However, once I gave it a few more run-throughs, I realized that it was a great textbook game to teach aspiring game developers on how to create a satisfying challenge while keeping things interesting.
Plus, the music itself is really cool too! Let’s check it out.
As I said, it’s a really simple game. It’s got a simple plot too – Ms. Johnson, your girlfriend, is kidnapped, and you gotta go save her. Brush off hands, we’re done here. It’s all about the gameplay and music from now on.
And the music is quite interesting, for a game that encourages shooting up everything in sight – this includes other cowboys, robots, rabbits, cowboys on horses, and ducks. You’d think the music is going to feature something that will boost your adrenaline, much like Megaman’s soundtrack.
…Nope.
You get a pretty cool and laid back cowboy tune instead. I love the little introduction that the guitar makes – it makes for an instant audio cue to be associated with the game. I will admit, I did not find myself humming along to this song, mainly because the main tune on the synth flute isn’t particularly memorable or interesting. However, this tune does establish a great character and atmosphere for the game – yes, the action on screen is a run and gun, but you’re playing as a cool cowboy. He’s not going to charge head long into battle – he’ll take his damn time.
There are times, though, when the game acknowledges its Megaman roots. Check this one out:
Classic 8-bit stuff, with a bit of the old cowboy guitar playing in the background. It’s a great way for the game to pay tribute to its classic roots in many other run and gun games. Plus, it’s really well put together, much like a Classical period – it has an antecedent and consequent, which leads to a concluding section. It’s simple, but it knows that simple is often the best thing since sliced bread.
Now I will proceed to something I never usually do in Sound in Games – encourage you to buy the soundtrack! This game is being sold for $1.99 at the eShop, and you know how much the soundtrack is being sold for? A single dollar. A DOLLAR!! There should be no excuse. Pick up the music – these guys definitely deserve it.
Plus, the last track on the album is probably my favourite track in the entire game – it’s an 8-bit rendition of the first song I showed on this blog. It is really, really cool.
CLICK HERE TO BUY THE SOUNDTRACK!
And buy the game, for that matter. It’s worth skipping your usual morning coffee for.
-FoA
Driver: San Francisco was definitely last year’s ‘Best Game No One Played’ winner. It is a spectacular game with clever game mechanics, sharp and witty writing, and some style to boot. Its soundtrack is primarily just licensed tracks from artists, but when it does show off its creative muscles, it’s pretty damn good and entertaining music. Not the greatest, mind you. But really good nonetheless.
In this game, you play as John Tanner – the best cop in the business. After getting hit by a truck driven by the nefarious Charles Jericho, you are put into a coma. And because of this, you begin to solve the case with your partner Jones within the confines of your comatose mind.
…It’s the most ridiculous set up for a driving game. But at the heart of it all, this game is essentially a buddy-cop movie, with some crazy psychological twists and really wacky scenarios happening at the same time. It also pays homage to all the great cop car chases of the 1970s, the classic American muscle cars, and their tacky but awfully catchy music. The menu music helps establish this feeling of retro awesomeness right from the get-go:
Right off the bat, you hear the familiar instruments and cues often used for old school cop shows – the low piano setting the mood, the hi-hat rhythms creating the tempo, and the good ol’ rotary organ for increased retro style. I’m also digging the main theme they have for the game – it is instantly recognizable, especially when the brass back it up, and makes for a good victory cue for the entire game.
This song must have struck a chord (pun fully intended) with fans of these old retro movies. In this case, the music here is emulating the main theme from the movie Bullit, and is only heard when you activate something called a ‘Movie Challenge’, where you jump into a classic car chase and relive it in the game. It’s a fantastic idea, and having a remixed version of the theme playing in the background only adds to the awesome.
Despite the strong retro sensibilities, there are times when it uses more modern sounds and techniques for their music. With this track, you can hear a lot of dissonant guitar chords, and quiet, eerie woodwinds in the background. At the same time, the relentless rhythm of the 70’s is there, with the big brass to back it up.
Seriously. You are doing yourself a humongous disservice not picking up this game. Driving/vehicle games rarely excite me these days, but Driver: San Francisco surprised me with its tight driving, solid mechanics, sharp writing, and its great music. It’s for cheap too! Go pick it up soon.
-FoA
This game was my childhood. Every weekend (which is the only time I’m allowed to play games) I’d boot this up on my computer and beat it over and over again. Though I didn’t understand English at the time, trial and error got me through the game, and I loved it. It was a fun point and click adventure with some really great moments and great voice acting. Now that I play it back, I’m rather surprised at how well their soundtrack holds up even until today. Let’s give a listen.
But first, a brief outline of the story. You play as Spy Fox – a secret agent whose mission is to save the cow population so that kids all over the world won’t have dry cereal to eat. The story is filled to the brim with James Bond pastiches – you have the femme fatale, the evil villain, the suave secret agent, and even your own version of M and Q – Moneypenny and Professor Quack.
As such, the soundtrack takes plenty of queues from all the great and classic espionage films – the cool and seductive jazz throughout, loud brass for drama shots, and the obligatory sax for the beautiful and dangerous types.
For the first minute or so, we are introduced to the main villain and his evil, diabolical plot to rid of the world of milk so that people will buy his goat’s milk instead. I love the quiet and sinister bass being played with gentle rims playing in the background. To give it a little more substance, a sax with some crazy reverb effects give a mysterious and shady character to the song.
After the first minute or so, we are then introduced to the dashing and suave secret agent, Spy Fox. The tempo picks up and we are treated to a cool melody by the piano and the brass. It isn’t very dramatic or very Bond-like in its execution, but it’s just enough to help establish the character. Once the textures shift to just the drums, piano, and quiet strings, now we can definitely hear the espionage-agent-film influences kicking in. The quiet piano is worlds away from the percussion, giving a lot of empty space in between – this helps establish the mysteriousness of the character. Who is he, really? And how dangerous is he? I don’t know, but the melody of the piano helps establish his cool and slick character.
Nothing establishes a home base than the chord progression that makes us really feel like we’re at home – the twelve bar blues. Nothing really impressive to say otherwise, to be honest – it’s a good musical trope, and it fits the occassion well.
I forgot where this happens in the game! D: Good excuse for me to replay it again sometime, though. I thought I should bring this track up because it evokes all the right big brass band feelings – you got the brass kicking it in their high medium-to-high register, the drums giving a solid and catchy rhythm, and for the ending: a Cm#7+9. …Mind you, I’m not very well versed on jazz chord theory, so I might have written it wrong. (If I did get it wrong, comment below!) In either case, it’s one of those “mystery” chords that really doesn’t lead anywhere, but sounds really cool and dangerous.
I’d definitely recommend this game for anybody who loves point and click adventures. I don’t know how easy it is to find nowadays, but I’m sure you can pirate it someplace. Don’t feel bad if you do – physical copies are quite rare nowadays. Give it a go!
-FoA
Fins Of Air 