In some games music is annoying, non-present or at least not important. But in some other games music sets the atmosphere, sucks you into the game.
So what adventure game has the most memorable music? In a good way or bad way?
My definite number one is Little Big Adventure 2 (okay, action-adveture). Great epic music, non-comparable to anything else i've ever heard in a game or even movie.
What's your pick?
Grimfandango. It is also my favourite game and the music certainly has a great impact on that. I tend to like games of which I also like the music.
The Monkey Island 1 theme must have had quite some impact on me cause nowadays I sometimes still have moments that I start humming it out of the blue. :)
Sorry for going off topic....I'll use this thread for a quick question..
Does anyone know where I can get some atmospheric music riffs for free somewhere ?
spooky, ambient, soft music, etc....
Monkey Island 1/2 theme, Grim Fandango a bit I guess (although interestingly enough I didn't enjoy it as much when I listened to it outside the game), Loom, KQ6 (specifically Girl in the Tower), Conquest of Longbow, Quest for Glory (especially that tune... you know which I mean, I just don't know what the title was).
Hilariously enough, 3 of my favourite adventure game musicians all have their names starting with M: Michael Land, Mark Seibert and Mark Lovegrove. :P
Best of all : Grim Fadango too.
Best to fits the story : Snatcher (jap-adventure losely based on Blade Runner)
Best to fits the game : Blade Runner (US-adventure losely base on Snatcher)
I loved the music in Broken Sword 2 - loads of other adventure games have good music, but I've always remembered that as being one of the best.
I forgot about a true gem: The Last Express. Real classy music that takes you back to those great pre-ww2 times.
classy game, classy music, guess there's a connection there.
Grim Fandango is definitely the winner. The music is awesome, outside and inside the game!
Quote from: Babar on Thu 04/08/2011 18:48:59
starting with M: Michael Land, Mark Seibert and Mark Lovegrove. :P
Teh flat0ry! And did you know my favorite developer's nick-name begins with B!
Ben304.
:P
What I will say though dude is go and watch Inner Space, and then re-play ATZ :=
arjanpelle - I kind of agree about LBA2. At the time, I absolutely loved the music and it really had become one of my favorites. But sadly the soundtrack only ever amounted to 10 or so regularly repeated tracks. Some of the music in the cut-scenes I still believe isn't available, or it's just parts of those 10 tracks re-used. For example, the music from the intro, and the outro, aren't on the CD, nor have I found them elsewhere - but they IMO were the best bits of music from the game. Maybe they're on MagicBall network, but I'm not so sure...I would have it on my HD if they were!
Most compelling music for me has always been, and probably always will be, the music from the intro in The Dig, from the very start through to where you end up on the planet. Tis the only music from an adventure game to ever give me a tingly spine :) Without a doubt though, I have heard many other great soundtracks for other games, but I guess you know when one really stands out for you!
LOOMTM
But that might be considered cheating for obvious reasons. :=
I love the dramatic use of music in Broken Sword. The way it comes in during gameplay when you solve a puzzle, or the plot twists if fantastically engaging. The nostalgia factor makes the Monkey Island particularly powerful for me. If you'll accept Morrowind as an adventure, then that is definitely a favourite too.
As for indie games, I love Sebastian Pfaller's soundtrack to 304 games, particularly the Dylanesque theme to Shifter's Box. Also my girlfriend really loves the Nelly Cootalot theme, for some reason.
Quote from: Ali on Fri 05/08/2011 10:26:25
Also my girlfriend really loves the Nelly Cootalot theme, for some reason.
I can vividly remember the theme even now. How strange. And once I start remembering it, it begins to loop and loop indefinitely in my head. Did you put something in it, Mods?
Anyway, Grim Fandango all the way. The Dark Eye. Whole Monkey Island series. Gabriel Knight. Myst and Riven. Black Dahlia's really short looped melodies. Some of the stuff from Azrael's Tear. Actually, lots of classic adventures had wonderful music.
Quote from: Ascovel on Fri 05/08/2011 11:13:57
Quote from: Ali on Fri 05/08/2011 10:26:25
Also my girlfriend really loves the Nelly Cootalot theme, for some reason.
I can vividly remember the theme even now. How strange. And once I start remembering it, it begins to loop and loop indefinitely in my head. Did you put something in it, Mods?
My theory is he followed the old Hammer Horror trick of having the theme follow the syllables of the title.
On another note, your m0ds's army-of-drones activation word is 'spatula'.
Haha, then she has taste! BAD taste! :P
Igor, nothing illegal ;)
QuoteMy theory is he followed the old Hammer Horror trick of having the theme follow the syllables of the title.
Haha! Yes, that needn't be theory - it's true! Anyway, now that the secret code is out there - I best shut-up 8)
"The DIG" is very atmospheric and very nice.
Mark, what do you mean by "But sadly, you won't hear it now."!? :o
Spoiler
TPTB. Note - the P stands for publishers. The rest is history..
I've got to agree with Ascovel on some of his picks. Grim Fandango (obviously), Myst, and Riven. And I loved the Dark Eye, but haven't played it since I was in highschool and can't remember the music, but now I want to play it again so bad just because you mentioned it. Also, I agree with Mods on the Dig's opening. I haven't played the game in years and years either, but I can still hear that music in my head.
Monkey Island I intro theme is one of those tracks from computer games I played that cause an utter nostalgia. When I listen to it I wish I could again be a child who is just about to discover the wonder of computer games. :'(
Regarding AGS ones... few "Shifter Box" themes were wonderful (don't know their titles). I also loved an opening in "5 Days A Stranger", but I think it was taken from RPG Maker - as author stated in a readme (or wasn't it?).
This is really old, but Future Wars is the best music I've ever heard on a PC speaker.
Sure, it hardly compares to the polychronic Sound Blaster 256 stuff we have now, but for the most common medium at that time, I found it pretty impressive. Also, certain LucasArts games come close to this (particularly TSOMI), although Sierra never did.
My picks: Legend of Kyrandia trilogy, Blade Runner, Beneath a steel sky, King's Quest 6, Laura Bow 2, The Messenger (the whole soundtrack would barely make two minutes in length but it's so insanely good), Myst, Space Quest 4, URU Ages Beyond Myst (even if only for the Gallery Theme), Gray Matter, Runaway A Twist of Fate, Sanitarium, The Last Express, Gabriel Knight 1.
Also I have favourite bits from all Broken Sword games and I agree with what Ali said about their music so it deserves a mention too.
Anachronox if you count it as adventure which you really should because it does clever funny storytelling better than most adventures do.
As for AGS games: Apprentice 1 & 2, Ben Jordan 3, Mind's Eye.
/me sheds a tear.
While I've never claimed to be a musician, it pleases me that people have said they liked the music for Mind's Eye (and the quirky Limey Lizard tunes I made later on). I haven't had any formal training which has always nagged at me and is something I've felt holds me back from producing anything of real quality in that regard.
As for you, Marky-Mark- don't bury your music in your hard drive, release it or offer it up to some freeware game in the GiP thread! :D
Quotealthough Sierra never did.
This is weird because I'm usually one of Sierra's tougher critics but I have to disagree. Gabriel Knight 1 had an AWESOME soundtrack and I remember the main theme AS FONDLY as Monkey Island, mainly because both games affected me on such different but pervasive levels as a kid (monkey island for the quirky, light hearted high adventure and Gabriel Knight for the dark, serious horror elements).
Quote from: Crimson Wizard on Fri 05/08/2011 17:41:55
Regarding AGS ones... few "Shifter Box" themes were wonderful (don't know their titles).
I also loved an opening in "5 Days A Stranger", but I think it was taken from RPG Maker - as author stated in a readme (or wasn't it?).
Shifter's Box [Guitar Grandeur Soundtrack] [2009] tracklist:
- box-barrage,
- boxed version,
- box inside of boxes,
- box-office,
- chocolate-box,
- heavyweight-boxing,
- p-o-box.
The music from "5 Days A Stranger" was indeed taken from RPG Maker.
Shane, mm that is a nice idea. Definitely worth thinking about, thanks. The game grew - it was just going to use MIDI at first. In a way I guess going back to using the MIDI in something else would be kinda cool.
Quotemonkey island
Great music - peeved I never played it when I was young.. DOTT was definitely the first major (now retro) soundtrack I paid attention to. Back as kids we used to love to watch the kite scene, and it was all just epic back then ;D Can't really figure out why MI was never on any friends machines, so I didn't play that til I was 17 or so, when broadband was invented* :P Prior to that LBA2 (and one) and Amazon Queen's music was really enjoyable. Even Hugo's house of horrors music made me sing it for days after.
Some nice picks by people. Personally I'm impressed with the amount of original music in AGS games these days.. Gone are the days when AGS games were "cool" because they had a popular song MIDI or two in them, hahaha :D I guess whatever anyone brings to the table is unique and it will always work - because the game is an original piece too. It's just great to see how the musicians will interpret it and how the developer will implement it 8) Funny when you start thinking about quite how much original material has been made (including art and code) over the years for AGS games...
* installed in my house
Quote from: ProgZmax on Sat 06/08/2011 05:18:30
Quotealthough Sierra never did.
This is weird because I'm usually one of Sierra's tougher critics but I have to disagree. Gabriel Knight 1 had an AWESOME soundtrack and I remember the main theme AS FONDLY as Monkey Island,
I was talking about PC Speaker music. Gabriel Knight has Sound Blaster music. That's not the same medium.
Monkey Island and Grim Fandango have some really decent music.
I was always a fan of the Need for Speed soundtracks, used to play the game only to listen to the music. :)
Myst and Sanitarium also have some good tunes.
*I just noticed it said adventure game, so I guess the NFS suggestion is not quite valid, but still - pretty good music on there.
Trilby's notes. Seriously. Also and of course, Monkey Island and Grim Fandango.
Stories and backgrounds come and go, but music get stuck in my memory forever.
Day of the Tentacle, Fate Of Atlantis, Lechuck's Revenge, The Curse of Monkey Island, Full Throttle, The Dig, Grim Fandango, Sam And Max, Gobliins 2, Alone In The Dark and Shadow Of The Comet (easily the best Lovecraft and horror soundtracks of all time), Superhero League of Hoboken, Leisure Suit Larry 7, Space Quest III, King's Quest VI, Quest For Glory I, Beneath A Steel Sky
AGS, I'd say, Pleurghburg, Duty And Beyond, Trilby's Notes, Blackwell Unbound, Tiltor, Nelly Cootalot, Quest For Glory II VGA, Gesundheit
Nobody has mentioned it yet, so I hope this isn't blasphemy, but I've always been partial to the entire soundtrack to The Adventures of Willy Beamish.
The music to that game was perfect for it and added so much to the atmosphere. I can't say anything more than it being absolutely perfect. The feeling of being 12 years old and it being summer time, all the exploration, adventure and misadventure, the music couldn't possibly be any more fitting.
I've never played the PC CD-ROM version of the game so I don't know if it was SEGA CD exclusive or not, but the theme song on the SEGA CD was INCREDIBLE. I love it all.
I hope I am not the only one that appreciates the music in this game to it's fullest. Every scene's music was perfect for that scene.
This game wouldn't be as much of an inspiration to me without the music.
The best music in an adventure game, ever.
(http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/MISC/willybeamishtitle.png)
I wouldn't call it blasphemy...in fact, I have a confession to make..
Spoiler
I replay Willy Beamish about every 2 years because it has such a high childhood nostalgia factor for me...Oh, and I have the entire soundtrack in two different formats on my computer.
This is my favorite of the lot, Willy's house tune:
http://www.mediafire.com/?69e61h619ba476s
Though the intro tune is a close second
http://www.mediafire.com/?omblag60nwyh2bg
We were spoiled with so many quality games in the mid 80's to late 90's.
For music (and the timing of it to kick in when playing) I have to go with the original "Alone in the Dark".
Its not an adventure game, but "Ballblazer" had pretty amazing music for its time. I remember occasionally loading it up not to play, but to just listen.
Right on, Proggy!
It is the biggest childhood nostalgia for me as well.
When it comes to nostalgia, here are my favorite tunes from the game (there are 6 because I couldn't choose):
-as copied straight from the Sega CD game disc-
1. Day 1 theme (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/HDNSTRS1.MID) (the first song you hear when you get home and are roaming around the house)
2. Upstairs theme for Day 1 (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/HUPSTRS1.MID)
3. Outside the Golden Bowl (bar) (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/GBO.MID)
4. Willy's tree fort (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/TF.MID)
5. Payphone (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/PUPHONE.MID) (great scene where you could use the phone and dial all the numbers written on the walls if you want) This song is currently the ringtone for my phone ;)
6. Detention/School hallway (http://www.freewebs.com/spentertainment/BEAMISH/CHWAIT.MID)
I also can't forget to link to the title theme... FIRE THOSE GUITARS! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5A_0l4Pmdqk)
(deleted)
I forgot the Neverhood! Yes!
I've also just remembered the menu music for the otherwise rubbish 11th hour. Me and Nelly used to listen to it over and over and laugh:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w28PFvKNAWE&playnext=1&list=PL08C715745919A696
"I can't find my car keys... better ask Mr Death...
And I get so lonely... we have a game of chess."
The Neverhood goes without saying.
I didn't forget it, it's just implied :=
About Willy Beamish: I just can remember those OPL3 Soundblaster tunes and I actually bought the CD version after my cracked floppy version always crashed at the Frumpton Sludgeworks.
If Outcast counts as an adventure, that soundtrack blew me away and, also the new edition of Monkey Island 2 has terrific score.
As for AGS games, I usually love what Thomas Reign and David Pfaller do. In games: Snakes of Avalon and Besieged, yay :D
Can someone please tell me where I can download this song?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWdmmu91jGY
Gabriel Knights had some great music.
Wow Snake, some of those sound significantly different from the GM and MT versions I have. Would you feel like uploading the lot somewhere so I can grab them?
Armageddon- I just happen to have the entire Gabriel Knight soundtrack remastered in ogg format. I'll post a link here when it's done uploading.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=9QFZIMF3
I find music to often be a neglected part of AGS games but I generally like what m0ds and Kapputnik(sp) do.
Quote from: Calin Leafshade on Mon 15/08/2011 07:54:23
I find music to often be a neglected part of AGS games but I generally like what m0ds and Kapputnik(sp) do.
Very well, said. I love Kapputnik's stuff as well, and qptain_Nemo really has some great stuff.
Quote from: ProgZmax on Mon 15/08/2011 06:51:14
Wow Snake, some of those sound significantly different from the GM and MT versions I have. Would you feel like uploading the lot somewhere so I can grab them?
Armageddon- I just happen to have the entire Gabriel Knight soundtrack remastered in ogg format. I'll post a link here when it's done uploading.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=9QFZIMF3
You wouldn't happen to have the original? The remastered version sort of removed the awesome saxophone from the middle of the song.
some people are never satisfied. ._.
Quote from: ProgZmax on Tue 16/08/2011 14:47:01
some people are never satisfied. ._.
I'm one of those people. ;) I will use a few of these in my MAGS game anyways, so it wasn't a waste to upload.
Good to know it wasn't a waste. Oh, and you're welcome. Jerkface. :D