Game Musicality

In Japan, video game soundtracks are pretty huge. Sure, even over there, Nobuo Uematsu's latest epic won't top the charts, but at least Japanese gamers care. In America, the only way to get most soundtracks is to import them. A few companies like Atlus will include it in a collector's edition of a particular game, but they're all about the fan service. It's not an everyday occurrence.

Th problem is that good music in a game may not be the kind of music you want to listen to in real life. Plenty of RPG's have sweeping orchestral pieces that may interest people that are into classical music. But besides that... much game music is just game music. It's ambient and it makes a point. You don't want a climactic point made at you while you're driving down the interstate. You just want to enjoy yourself. Instead of being crafted solely for your listening pleasure, game music is supplemental to game action. Taken as a whole, the game experience can be incredible, dramatic, and moving... a total greater than the sum of its parts.

I love the music in Quentin Tarantino films. It plays into the action perfectly in every instance. It's actually one of the things his movies are most well-known for, his perfect ear for scene-stealing music. But I listened to the Pulp Fiction soundtrack the other day, and it's kind of lame. The songs are too long, and they're mostly slow oldies. When taken out of the context of the film, the songs really lose their luster. The same can be said about a lot of game music. Metal Gear Solid had sharp, interesting music. But without Solid Snake's supplemental stealthy shenanigans, it's just hard to care.