1. #1
    Herald of the Titans Lotus Victoria's Avatar
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    Do you prefer orchestral themes, or "video-game music" in your video-games?

    Hello champions, good to see you.

    I've been listening to some gaming tunes on my cellphone, and I've been wondering: Man, music in gaming surely changed in the last years. Nowadays, most triple-A games just use some generic orchestral soundtrack, most of them being awfully forgettable. They're not bad, they're just...generic, and that is a shame.

    I'm a big fan of "video-gamey" music. I'm not talking 8-bit renditions of songs, no. I'm talking music that fits perfectly in a video-game scenario, and solely there. We have less and less music like that nowadays, and it is a shame. Some companies still make songs/music like that: Nintendo, Capcom, etc, but it's getting rarer and rarer.

    I'd like to hear your opinion on this: Do you prefer orchestral themes, or "video-game music" in your video-games?

    Giving two examples to make myself clear:

    "Video-gamey music":


    Other examples: Street Fighter, Deux Ex (the original one), Unreal Tournament, Castlevania series, Zero Escape


    Orchestal music:




    Other examples: Guild Wars 2, Call of Duty, Gears of War, Batman Arkham Series.


    This is not a thread about one being better than other, it's a thread about preferences. I want to hear your preferences and why you like x better than y. Keep the comments civil if possible.


  2. #2
    3D sonic without buttrock would be literally without merit.

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Lotus Victorya View Post
    I'm a big fan of "video-gamey" music. I'm not talking 8-bit renditions of songs, no. I'm talking music that fits perfectly in a video-game scenario, and solely there. We have less and less music like that nowadays, and it is a shame. Some companies still make songs/music like that: Nintendo, Capcom, etc, but it's getting rarer and rarer.
    Sometimes I wonder if it's mainly more a difference between Western games and Japanese games, rather than the generation of the games, or at least partly generation and partly continent. While many current Western titles seem to lean towards orchestral music, I'm pretty sure most current Japanese games will still have more "video game" like music as you'd call it (and I'm pretty sure I understand your definition).

    In short, I typically agree with you. In my ~13 years of playing WoW and 2 months of playing FFXIV, I have more FFXIV tracks on my phone... but I'm not sure the exact reason why I consider one style catchier. I feel it's more a factor of melody than the instruments used.. and I don't know about you, but I will sing along (or at least try) to video game tracks that I like, and I generally prefer faster and more upbeat stuff, which this orchestral-style doesn't try for as regularly.

    Hmhm. I don't play that many Western games outside of Blizzard titles, but even those, I'm kinda feeling that Overwatch, Heroes of the Storm, and even Hearthstone have more memorable tracks percent-wise than WoW or Diablo 3... I don't know what that tells me.

  4. #4
    Whatever nier automata did cause that OST is yes.

    Also bastion and transistor cause yes.
    ..and so he left, with terrible power in shaking hands.

  5. #5
    Ace Attorney's music is almost always the fucking shit.
    It became clear that it wasn’t realistic to try to get the audience back to being more hardcore, as it had been in the past. -- Tom Chilton

  6. #6
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    I prefer music that fits what I'm seeing, doing and feeling. Music needs to enhance whatever it is I'm experiencing.

  7. #7
    OP, you are mixing up the phrase "generic" with your preferences. Stuff you don't care for tends to sound more similar. To me your example of "Video-gamey music" sounds VERY generic. I am also not sure where to put my personal favorite into either of those 2 categories. Grizzly Hills in WoW is simply stunning and in based around Scandinavian folk music so neither orchestral or video gamey.

  8. #8
    Orchestral, or 8/16-bit gaming music.

  9. #9
    Pit Lord Sigxy's Avatar
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    Hard to pick... it depends on the game and the situation of the game.

    Overall I've heard way more good and memorable "Video game music" than orchestral, but my favorite OST in any game is "The Witcher - Believe" which I... don't think fits Orchestral, but it's not very "video game music" like either.

  10. #10
    Banned GennGreymane's Avatar
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    Depends on the game

    Although this is prob my favorite sound track

  11. #11
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    That's the original menu music for Conan Exiles. Repeat 2000 times, thanks to all the crashes, and it still doesn't get old. Except, they made a new, mellow version of it, which isn't as good.
    Last edited by mmoc3ff0cc8be0; 2017-09-17 at 04:18 PM.

  12. #12
    I like both actually. Like FF7 battletheme song is one of my favorite game song ever. And I know most Megaman song as well. These songs are fast pace, make you want to go fast and motivate you. But on the other and, when you're facing nice a scenery (either beautiful or horrific), orchestral music put the tone and enhance the gaming experience.

    I like both in a game. But after a while I listen to my own music.

  13. #13
    Deleted
    I really love this <3


  14. #14

    I really like orchestral stuff now, its really great, but I do love older video game music as well


  15. #15
    depends on the game really
    some of my favourite game scores (beyond good and evil, world of warcraft, prince of persia: warrior within, ori and the blind forest) are not "video gamey" but arent necessarily "orchestral" either so dont know waht to tell you

    if it's good music then it's good, if it aint then it aint

  16. #16
    Play bloodborne and realize that orchestral > all

  17. #17
    As said above, it depends on the game. In general I would much prefer orchestral themes. Although I do think there are a lot more classifications than the two examples you give. The most important part is if the music fits the game.

  18. #18
    Orchestral without a doubt. Warcraft itself as the biggest reason for that.

  19. #19
    Mechagnome Sheevah's Avatar
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    I'm of the opinion that a solid piece of music will stand on its own regardless of whether it's played with a basic synthesizer or an entire ensemble. I've heard terrible tracks from the NES days and boring symphony tracks from the current generation. That said, I quite enjoy everything from chiptunes to full-blown orchestral pieces (and everything in between) as long as it fits what's going on. If I had to choose, I think I'd have to go with orchestral music.

    Take something like Chrono Trigger. It had an absolutely amazing soundtrack (imo) despite some of the limitations that accompanied the 16-bit era. I enjoy the originals out of pure nostalgia and they certainly have an undeniable charm to them, but it's hard to deny how unbelievably rich those tracks sound when performed by a proper orchestra.

  20. #20
    Legendary! Pony Soldier's Avatar
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    It really just depends on the game and it's art style. Sometimes orchestral music matches really well with the art style the game has got going on and sometimes the more video game-y sounding music matches well with different art styles. I'm fine with either kind as long as it goes with the theme of the game.

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