Music is a wonderful art which I greatly appreciate in all its’ myriad forms. Music certainly has it’s place in all the different types of computer games across multiple platform formats. It is obvious from reading the reviews of any top selling game that music is an important piece of the overall experience for many players. It is not uncommon now to see game soundtracks sold separately and they do very well. Many of your epic fantasy games now have amazing soundtracks and a lot of time, money, and energy goes into the creation and development of that soundtrack. There are many of you that very likely have a favorite game soundtrack that holds a special place in your heart. Except when it doesn’t.
The personal quest that I have embarked on has taken me on a journey back to 1975. In 1975 the cost of a gallon of gas was only 44 cents. The average cost of a new car was $4000.00 “Love Will Keep Us Together” by Captain & Tennille was #1 on the Billboard magazines top 100 hot songs in 1975. However in the games that I am currently playing, there is no music at all. As a matter of fact there are no sound effects either. Not even a single beep.
I am currently mapping Level 14 in Game of Dungeons. It is imperative that while you explore you collect gold and slay monsters to gain experience. You must build your character up in preparation for the encounter with the game’s big boss: a dreaded dragon!
When these older games become tedious and you have to spend time building your character up might I suggest listening to music. It can help to set the mood and also serve to fuel your imagination; something which is sorely needed in these older dungeon crawl games. So in much the same way that a GM may use music to help create atmosphere during a gaming session; you can do the same with a good set of headphones and a play list.
Now here everyone’s musical tastes may vary. One person might prefer to listen to current hits or his or her favorite artist. There are many who seem to prefer a heavy metal soundtrack playing in the background while they explore a dark dungeon. Iron Maiden’s Seventh Son of a Seventh Son comes to mind. There are many wonderful movie soundtracks that would work very well to set the mood. The Conan the Barbarian original soundtrack by Basil Poledouris is excellent and the Dracula soundtrack is very good as well. There are a large number of game soundtracks as well that you might want to check out like the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim soundtrack.
Spotify is a free app that allows you to create an account and create your own playlists. I suggest you experiment with different movie and game soundtracks to create your own ultimate playlist. Here is a great Exploration playlist that is almost 6 hours long that you can listen to and save in your own library.
and here is another 6 hour playlist filled with heroic ballads and powerful combat music
Tabletop Audio is a cool free website that lets you play background music with different themes like: Dungeon, Tavern, Combat, Future, etc. Downside: You need active internet connection.
Nerdsourced also has an article with some good Youtube playlists if you want to use that. The specific play lists found there have themes you can choose from.
Reddit: DnD Playlist is a subreddit that always has new content for Dungeons & Dragons Playlists
Midnight Syndicate and Hawkwind are examples of artists who are fan favorites in creating music that heightens any role-playing experience.
I know that in just a little bit as I continue to map out Level 14 in Game of Dungeons I will do so with Thorin Oakenshield from the wonderful Misty Mountains album.
Where do you stand on music in games? Have you ever tried any of these suggestions to heighten overall atmosphere and mood when mapping out one of these older dungeoncrawlers?
Do you have a favorite playlist or soundtrack for just such an occasion that you’d like to share?