What Modern Games are missing!
I was just sitting around beeing nostalgic about my childhood gaming experience and i asked myself, what is it that newer games lack that made the older games so special. And i finally come to the conclusion.
Music.
In games in the past music was a huge part, with music from Legend Of Zelda, the Final Fantasy tunes and not to forget Frank Klepacki. Music for games where music you could listen too while not even beeing at the computer and still hearing that really catchy tune and get reminded of the awesomeness.
Is anyone here with me on this one? I mean, does anyone even know the Gears of War theme? And how does it stack up to Hell March from Red Alert 2.
EDIT: Post if you know some modern games that have really great songs in them
Music.
In games in the past music was a huge part, with music from Legend Of Zelda, the Final Fantasy tunes and not to forget Frank Klepacki. Music for games where music you could listen too while not even beeing at the computer and still hearing that really catchy tune and get reminded of the awesomeness.
Is anyone here with me on this one? I mean, does anyone even know the Gears of War theme? And how does it stack up to Hell March from Red Alert 2.
EDIT: Post if you know some modern games that have really great songs in them
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But for super catch tunes like tunes of Mario/Zelda I would say the one that stands out most in my mind would be Halo's main theme. That and Portal's still alive.
The only Gears of War music I can even remember is Gary Jules, Mad World and that was just from one of the trailer.
I don't think it's all about the music though. I think you have to be careful when judging new games to old games, because nostalgia plays a big part in clouding judgement!
Apart from music, I'm not quite sure what it was that made those games so good. Was it that we'd simply not played anything like them before? I think it's partly to do with graphics too.. Everybody's so focused on how beautiful the game looks, and don't put any soul in to their games nowadays... Perhaps that's it. A certain lack of character maybe?
I'm not at all saying that all games nowadays are shit, I still love modern games and some of them hold up to the classics. Saying that, I don't play too many games now
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Could never get that out of my head
In regards to putting soul into games I think the very exact thing happened back then too. Look at the horror that is ET for atari. There were plenty of horrible games back then just as there are now its just the good times we remember more readily then the bad.
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As far as music in games? The only game soundtrack that I actually remember is the soundtrack to the game Descent 2. Which I decided to just look up while writing this, just because, and found that it was put together by members of Skinny Puppy and Type O Negative, two bands I enjoy. Granted when the game came out in 96 I had no clue about those guys, however it is a fun coincidence that I would grow up to eventually like them.
I also have the Shadow of the Colossus soundtrack in my head as being good, but that's because I played it like a day or two ago. But it was adequately epic to what you were doing, which is kind of what I look for in a soundtrack.
For the most part game soundtracks aren't really something that leave a lasting impression. However I do hate it when it's a very short loop played repetitively, which is ironic to this thread topic considering it is what you mostly find in older games, haha. Seriously it makes me just turn the music off and listen to something else while playing.
This music and the cutscene it gets played in really got me hyped playing the game.
I agree music is a great thing when done right in games, it can make the simplest of gameplay or levels on "rails" seem absolutely epic. I think Halo 3 did this really well with the last level. You just drive some damn warthog for a minute, but the music really keeps you..."immersed"
I'm a big fan of Movie/game soundtracks, always very inspiring stuff.
WoW has a great soundtrack, and the new cataclysm stuff is coming along great:
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Morrowind immediately comes to mind. It was a great loop, but when that one great (short) loop is the whole soundtrack, it's kind of a bummer. Shame, really, as the music itself, what little there is, was actually pretty epic.
Everything is epicly epic orchestrated, or awkwardly uses popular songs, or has incredibly boring 'uhn-tiss' type music.
Without limitations, game music falls down a notch, imo.
Music in video games was at its peak when the technology was limited. NES game soundtracks are incredibly memorable, the SNES is the same but with more mood, and emotion availabe. Psx had some sweet midi music; but I Dunno.
thats how i feel, i guess
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If modern games lack something it's not art and music.
I think music for games has evloved into such a more complex medium, its like scoring a film yet it all has to flow dynamicly depending on what the player is doing, looping into each other seamlessly, distinct themes and ques when actions are made etc.
I think nowdays you dont think about it / remember it as much untill you really sit down and think of it because its been refined to the point of being a major part of the overall experience, much like film, instead of just being something used to fill dead air noise.
if you check out most soundtracks from modern games like gears, prince of persia, metal gear etc, the music is incredibly rich and without the sensory overload of gorgeous graphics and distracting gameplay your brain can appreciate it even more
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also....god of war, some of the most aggressive use of brass I've heard in a while in their soundtrack, really really suits the themes/tone of the games.
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Has anyone mentioned the Doom music, Doom1 and 2 that is, they were pretty Iconic at the time.
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I like this thread!
That's bollocks.
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Actually, I agree, games' music hasn't changed, just us.
Dont tell me this dosnt get you excited to kick some american ass :P
Things were also so much more simple back then, it was an age where YES, its fine to jump on an enemies head, and thats it... So stuff was fun. These days, a game isn't deemed good unless its got a tripple A blockbuster story...
Its probably the reason why some of my fave games this gen are Mario Galaxy and the like, or the Metroid Prime series. I mean I love me some Uncharted and Gears, but its not the same, at all...
In fact, one thing I've been VERY sure to maintain on OverDose is that its soundtrack makes sense. Each level has two music loops, one that plays as an ambient style track, and another that overlays when you actually enter intense combat, but keeps the same beat. It has a really retro, arcade like feel to it and works really well.
Back in the day, you were GOOD if you could beat a level without losing a life. These days you are good if you prestige via head shotting while taking into account wind direction and speed... Its just a totally different world.
Hagane was another SNES game i loved.
Yeah, games are now so easy... and the worst is that i finish a game in a few hours, they are too SHORT (shooters the most), with small levels/campaigns poorly planned. The total content in actual games are ridiculous, a few maps, a few enemies (repeated), and that's all.
Soul Reaver was a good game i enjoyed with, and Baldur's Gate another one (with great music).
Another thing is that AI in actual games sucks a lot. Enemies are not a big deal and they are retarded, they don't give us play. Dungeon keeper had a cool but still simple AI, very functional, but now... why we don't see improved AI systems?.
Music in games are err... sometimes good, sometimes very bad. In general, I would like to hear better music in games, with transitions from relax to combat/surprise, like unreal 1. It's something only a few games have.
And talking about music quality, starcraft 1 OST is way better than Starcraft 2 OST. The same for Baldur's Gate series, the one is the best!.
Red Faction had some good musics too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAmDY8Gt9JI&feature=related
Most memorable one
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/5896/the_real_story_of_torchlights_.php
Interview with the musician.
Edit: this one is also cool:
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And I really like the Mechwarrior2 soundtrack as well.
This.
It's more fun remembering the good times we had playing them, as opposed to actually playing them. They were great for the time, but surely nobody can say with any honesty that games were actually better then.
If people didn't care about graphics, then we wouldn't have made such a fuss over the SNES' Mode 7 capabilities or raved about titles like Starfox, games certainly weren't as immersive as they are now (even over shorter campaigns) and the story / dialogue (or text) in some older games were absolutely atrocious, even compared to the worst examples of today's standards.
The only things many older games probably have over modern titles is accessibility and replay value.
I love retrogaming as much as the next guy, and I feel sorry for the younger kids that missed the 8- and 16-bit days, but let's not get too carried away with the triple-A hating.
I'm not a game soundtrack fan, and don't understand the people that only listen to game soundtracks. I'm just a regular fan. And yeah, let's be honest. Nostalgia is a big part of this.
Some games were better back then. Deus ex, why has no one bettered or even come close to attempting something like that? The games now are extremely limited compared to the games we used to play and to what most average people expect. You have more freedom in the first doom game than you do in almost every subsequent fps to come out.
Its easy to dismiss the older games "ha ha you can see their pixels". But they had it where it counts, focused on gameplay and refined(or not)but at least more uniqueness.
As far as music goes, in the past the music was much more a part of the foreground sound rather than background, and as such, we just recognize classic video-game tunes much more readily. I still believe music has a huge amount to do with how much a player enjoys a game, and I still appreciate good music in any game or movie.
I still have my NES hooked up, and I still play classic games from time to time via emulators, and I can honestly say that many classic games still hold up today. In much the same way, 20 years from now, the best games of this generation will still hold up then.
In this thread alone we have people calling out games from pretty much every generation since the NES, so it's not like all of the great games populated one generation.
On the other note i have been checking your youtube links and i have to admit, some games do have good music. World Of Warcraft dosnt count however beacuse that feels like one example on my theory of music as atmosphere.
Keep posting examples of good game music
EDIT: My modern day game music guilty pleasure is the soundtrack from Katamari Damacy. >,> It's so catchy! And gets stuck in your head.
I'll never forget ;
( the story, music , gore - all works together ! )
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Now we have it seems at least 10 amazing games coming out each year and thousands of pounds of shovel ware and decent/ok games. Once you beat a great/good game now instead of playing it over and over you move on to the next great game because there are just a ton more games out there now then before.
Take my two favorites, Morrowind and System Shock 2, they were complex and fun. The sequels (even though Bioshock was just 'spiritual' sequel) was prettier but simpler and easier, the idea with sequels is that they should improve and apart from graphic, the rest of the game suffered imo.
Bioshock with its "You cant die" and big promises (all your actions has consequences? huh, save or drain little sisters?)
Oblivion with loads of loading screens just to get into a house, the auto levelling monsters so you never would be cool (thank god for mod community).
I do look more towards some of the east union games these days, like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Witcher (can't wait for the sequel for that). Where its ironic that I as an artist would complain about improved graphic in games, I do think that games should try go more 'hardcore' then mainstream. And yes I know, money money money.
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I'd like to comment on Skate's licensed music tracks, the Funeral was such an awesome choice. It changed my mood from "rararragh, I gotta nail this trick!" to just smooth cruising and going with the flow (also, Skate was harrrd compared to Tony Hawk)
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RDR had a stellar soundtrack, one of my favorite songs
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WET had a great score as well, although the soundtrack was padded with alot of licensed music
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And chiptunes used to be awesome. The music in games like Cybernator made my balls fizzle.
Btw, if anyone's checked out the new Scott Pilgrim game, the music evokes crazy nostalgia (awesome game too). Best game soundtrack I've heard in a good long while.
Everyone always comes out with the usual 'Morrowind was awesome, Oblivion sucked' argument, but I really do think that people need to revisit it and play it again. In terms of the story, Morrowind was undoubtedly superior, but everything else was so similar I don't know how opinions can be so polarized about two such similar games.
At least in Oblivion you could actually hit things - Morrowind's melee combat was nothing short of fucking awful.
Disclaimer: I loved Morrowind, thought it was awesome and still play it.
The Starcraft II music really impressed.
Not in game music but it was a blast to hear the stooges playing on the jukebox at the cantina.
I agree for the most part. Oblivion was far better than Morrowind in regards to raw gameplay. Morrowind was superior in story and environmental variety.
Uggh, now I want a new (single player) Elder Scrolls game.
To bring back inspiring coverart.
Lose these...
Reintroduce these...
And stop clinging to this!!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequel
Everything today is just getting a little too repetitive and more complicated.
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