Ultimate Guide for VGM Composers

Hello LinkedIn friends!

Thank you so much for the response to this newsletter! February was a good month for new video game music projects, grammy winners, and resources for video game music composers. Despite the tough news on numerous lay-offs I am also seeing a movement of game recruiters who are incessantly sharing lists with gaming jobs. You will find some links in this newsletter. You will also find a deeply useful resource by an AAA VGM Composer. It is aimed at upcoming composers who are serious about taking their craft and business to the next level.

Also, I am open to suggestions on what would you like to see in this newsletter. So hit me up in the comments or send me a DM.

Enjoy!

1. Tamarak Trail

"I wanted the music to feel serene, almost welcoming, like the forest is luring you into a false sense of security" - said Michael Noble, Composer & Sound Designer at Yarrow Games, to start the mood when the game takes you away and into the mystery and danger that has haunted Tamarak Trail.

Treating the world of the game itself as the main character, as composer and musician Alyxandra Guevara mentioned, is an immersive idea to wrap the feeling of the music around. The world of the game is always with the player so it keeps the gameplay always present.

2. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor VGM wins Grammy Award

I have seen a strong movement of VGM being recognized as powerful and influential music. With the recent Grammy Award to Steve Schnur and Gordy Haab for the beautiful music in the game, it is clear that mainstream media is noticing that VGM has a strong imprint on music lovers.

3. The Big Index by Composer Winifred Phillips

I was looking for VGM news, and I found this great blog entry by composer Winifred Phillips on Game Developer . I was amazed by the depth of the resources presented here. I think it is the ultimate guide for people who want to start their video game music composing career. It covers dynamic music in games, game music and cognition, game music business, composition and production, full AMA interviews, and the latest talks about VR in music.

Sunset Devils

This is a game in development but I loved the isometric view. I was an architecture college student for two years and did a lot of isometric drawings so watching this immediately caught my eye. The almost Italo-Western vibe of the music brings so much ambiance to the gameplay. It is not intrusive and it feels deserted and menacing as the Wild West. Keep up with the development updates here: https://twitter.com/sunset_devils

Invisible Flow

The mystery ambient music in this game matches the vibe of the gameplay so well. Also, I am always glad to see two people teams! It shows how much dedication is poured into a project, and how a vision can take you to share something you're proud of with the world! Congrats Andrei Cherniukh !

All in one music production house!

Recently found this video with amazing music by Fulya Ayd?n . Everything you hear is all her work. I loved the guitar mid-melody and the ad-libs. They fit the vibe of a hopeful but dark destiny as the visual suggests.

Sound Effects Master!

I told Manuel that the spidey-sense-like SFX felt great as the menacing enemies lay ahead. Also, the tail of all the sounds is super accurate.

Leap Year (Trailer Hits & Whooshes)

94 tracks of pure SFX quality! Make sure you pull down your volume levels before hearing this collection. It almost blew my eardrum! Love how the hits have a hybrid feel from the riser being resonant to the hit being in your face. Great work Brian McKinney

Donkey Kong Country 2: Hot Head Bop Mandolin Cover

You know when the original composer David Wise retweets (or reexes?) your cover of Donkey Kong Country 2 Hot Head Bop you've made something amazing! Loved the reverb added to the mandolin! As a guitar player, I love playing with scratchy ghost notes when playing a funky line. Here Tommy Norris nailed with the pocket!

Audio Jost Post Board

I've been aware of the flood of lay-offs we've seen in the gaming community. I am happy to share this post for all of the game audio friends who have lost their job recently. A Sound Effect led by Asbjoern Andersen shared this useful post with audio jobs post at many AAA studios.

This is for the Game Devs who are into Dark Horror-Themed games. I have a dark ambient music pack with 110 tracks, loops, short and long versions, as well as light, medium, and high intensities for dynamics in your game. Click the image to download it. It is free!

• Are you into Sound Design? Check out my latest Wavetable Pack for Vital. (.wav files for easy integration on other virtual synths)
• Download my Dark Ambient Preset pack for Vital here!
• I also share my process of how I make Dark Ambient Drone Music on YouTube.
• Gaming Jobs posted by Kelsy Barredo https://www.dhirubhai.net/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7158273701438742528?updateEntityUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_updateV2%3A%28urn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7158273701438742528%2CFEED_DETAIL%2CEMPTY%2CDEFAULT%2Cfalse%29

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As a Game Dev, what is the thing you most appreciate in a Music Pack?

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