Anime Why aren't there any game devs who use classical music in soundtracks?

[Jick Magger]

 

[Gentle Player]

To answer this thread, music that was meant to be listened for it's own sake doesn't usually fit all that well when used to underscore another medium.

Of course there are a number of great exceptions where the clever use of a certain piece really enhances the film in question. Brief Encounter and Barry Lyndon are great examples. Then again, not everyone is Kubrick or David Lean.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

I've long lost count of the number of 1980s video games that used classical music.

But then again, back then the challenge was getting dedicated sound chips (usually running in the 1 Mhz range) to play half-decent music, getting them to play classical works was part of that experience.

Also, "Ode to Joy" on the Civilization Hall of Fame screen.

 

[Lyric Suite]

But I can live a happy life with this stupidity, enjoying fun things.

So can animals, or the mentally challenged:

 

[J_C]

So can animals, or the mentally challenged:

So? Are you saying that you are an animal?

 

[Neanderthal]

I still use classical in my pen and paper RPGs, agree it's underused in games now. Mars, bringer of war for action sequences or Dance of the Knights from Romeo & Juliet. Weird i'd go with Mussorgsky and something from Pictures at an Exhibition, while dreamlike or peaceful I go with Debussy or Ravel. Pastoral scenes Vaughan Williams or Elgar. Thomas Tallis fantasia is a great intro theme i've found.

Wagner of course has to be daubed on in great big heaps, that Gotterdammerung overture as used at opening of Excalibur for instance, fucking glorious. Stirs my black bitter heart if I do say so mesen.

 

[Makabb]

I'm dissapoint

 

[Machocruz]

Yet another reason film is superior to vidya .

 

[toroid]

There's at least one current game that has an all-classical soundtrack (well a few of the songs are original, so it's all-orchestral at least). War Thunder.
https://warthunder.com/en/soundtrack

 

[Spectacle]

FALALALAA!

 

[Davaris]

Most classical music is boring. They may fit to some slow paced strategy games, but that's it.

Too battle!

 

[Haraldur]

Regarding the familiarity problem, there is plenty of "classical" music that is well out of the mainstream, while not being totally obscure (and therefore likely, still, to be good). Take Monteverdi, for example: the numbers of opera and/or madrigal enthusiasts playing any particular game are, likely, quite low and, more often than not, them recognizing these relatively underused pieces in the game would not be a detractor, but more likely the opposite ("oh! the fanfare from the prologue to Monteverdi's L'Orfeo! Cool!"). As an exercise, last week I did think, for a while, about what types of situations in a game could be addressed just by Monteverdi snippets and I concluded that even just one opera, L'Orfeo, would suffice (barely), assuming one converted the vocal lines to some other instrument (I believe vocals would be too distracting -- here is a more derived example, from an otherwise lost opera).

 

[Lyric Suite]

Take Monteverdi, for example

I like how you pretended you just picked this composer at random.

 

[vonAchdorf]

The Japanese do it the other way 'round. From games to opera / concert hall.

Spoiler

 

[Lacrymas]

Most obvious answer - because most game devs are musically uneducated and they don't know what "classical" music is. Most game composers are as well. Even the people who ARE educated, like Jeremy Soule, are one-dimensional and can't seem to get out of Renaissance voice-leading (sometimes not even that) coupled with a skewed understanding of the logic of Romanticism. They also have boring inventions and just aren't creative. "Classical" music also isn't "in" with the cool kids.

I really think that's the extent of the whole problem. Musically uneducated game devs + composers, the unpopularity of "classical" music, and the inability/unwillingness of actually educated game composers to compose in such a manner. Most of their orchestration is abysmal/nonexistent as well.

 

[Infinitron]

Civilization IV was good for this. Also, older Frogwares Sherlock Holmes games.

 

[vonAchdorf]

Civilization IV was good for this. Also, older Frogwares Sherlock Holmes games.

Yes, but in Civ it's real background music, unrelated to the exact moment. Unlike most games, it actually benefits from people recognizing the music (as part of the era you are playing in), so it enhances the immersion rather than hindering it.

 

[AN4RCHID]

Some weeb games use western classical music. The Catherine soundtrack was all "remixes" of famous classical pieces. Added synth, drums, electric guirars etc, but the overall arrangements stayed pretty faithful. I loved the mood of that game and the music was a big part of it. And then Eternal Sonata of course cribs a lot of Frederic Chopin compositions.

 

[Akratus]

So? Are you saying that you are an animal?

"Let us say I suggest you may be human," she said. "Steady! I warn you not to try jerking away. I am old, but my hand can drive this needle into your neck before you escape me."

 

[AW8]

I was going to call all of you old faggots, but then I remembered I have spent countless hours listening to Radio Classical in Fallout New Vegas.

 

[T. Reich]

Went real well with running people over and police chases.

 

[Cadmus]

So can animals, or the mentally challenged:

he's not wrong, I can only imagine what a horrible existence it is to be the smartest person on Earth
the dumber you are, the happier you can live

 

[a Goat]

he's not wrong, I can only imagine what a horrible existence it is to be the smartest person on Earth

It's pretty cool thing, to be fair.

 

[belated]

Civilization IV was good for this.

Especially as they also had more modern classical music for later eras, not just the usual baroque and romantic stuff etc

 

[A user named cat]