Since well before Kotaku Melodic, Iāve been writing about and keeping an eye on musical video games. Whenever I talk about āmusic games,ā people tend to think of the same kinds of thingsāplastic musical instrument peripherals and dance pads, Rock Band, Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution.
But actually, most of the music games Iāve been writing about are nothing like those music-game stalwarts. Game developers, especially indie developers, have become much more creative in how theyāve started incorporating music into their games. Thereās something of a movement underway, a new game design philosophy that merges video games and music in ways that are more creative, interesting, and fun than ever before.
Taken separately, itād be easy to think that these games are just the work of a bunch of game developers who each wanted to do something musical. But taken together, they show something a bit differentāthe rise of a new type of music game, one that removes peripherals and music āsimulationā and connects players directly with the essence of music.
Taken together, these games suggest developers experimenting with games as a new way to experience music.
A lot of this has been about moving away from music performance simulation and towards regular video gaming. Fantastic music games like Beat Sneak Bandit and the upcoming PS Vita game Sound Shapes are less obviously music games than say, Rock Band or Karaoke Revolution. But by removing the musical packaging that accompanies an instrument or microphone, these new games feel somehow more essential and musical as a result.
Bear in mind, Iām the guy who thinks that all games are music, and that some of their most fundamental aspects can be explained musically. So it makes sense that games can justā¦ be games while also being very musical. They donāt need to dress it up with a plastic guitar. All they need is to provide players with creative ways to interact with music.
Taken together, these games suggest developers experimenting with games as a new way to experience music. More and more, composers are being brought on as creative collaborators, and their music defines many indie gamesā experience just as strongly as any other single aspect. Iām seeing more and more iOS games with the āPlay this game with headphones!ā warning up front. Iām hearing from more and more indie developers who want to talk about their new exciting musical ideas. It seems like I hear a new one every day.
I thought it would be illuminating to round up every musical game weāve covered to get a sense of where things are at. Here goes:
https://lastchance.cc/beat-sneak-bandit-delivers-really-funkin-hard-musical-5885373%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Beat Sneak Bandit Delivers Really Funkinā Hard Musical Puzzles to iOS
Music steals time. Think about it: whether youāre making it or listening to it, youāre devoting ticks of the watch (mental energy away from some other pursuit.) But, what you get back, hopefully, is enjoyment.
https://lastchance.cc/dyad-is-part-mind-bending-racer-part-soaring-video-gam-5894035%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Dyad is Part Mind-Bending Racer, Part Soaring Video Game Drug-Trip
At the end of the Game Developers Conference, everyone is usually exhausted. I sure wasāit had been five long days of standing and walking, of typing and recording and listening, of engaging in long, heated conversations about video games. MoreĀ Ā»
https://lastchance.cc/this-game-puts-you-inside-a-gigantic-synthesizer-5887749%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
This Game Puts You Inside a Gigantic Synthesizer
It took me a long time to understand synthesizers. When I was a kid, I would often think of a synthesizer as being more or less the same thing as an electric pianoāwasnāt a Rhodes or a Wurlitzer basically just a synthesizer?
No, in factāa synthesizer, like a Moog or a Yamaha CS-15, isā¦ MoreĀ Ā»
Pulse: Volume One is a Fantastic Marriage of Music and Motion
While it may look like just another tap rhythm game for the iPad, Pulse: Volume Oneās concentric circles set the stage for a whimsical musical journey with limitless potential. MoreĀ Ā»
https://lastchance.cc/the-actual-best-game-music-of-2011-superbrothers-sw-5871943%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
The (Actual) Best Game Music of 2011: Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP
And so we come to the end of our āBest Game Music of 2011ā series, where tradition dictates we crown a victor. Iām only half-serious, of course; itās all but impossible to say what the best anything is, and thatās doubly true of something as ephemeral and subjective as music. MoreĀ Ā»
https://lastchance.cc/finally-a-music-game-that-lets-you-look-cool-while-pla-5892670%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Finally, a Music Game That Lets You Look Cool While Playing
Itās hard to look cool when youāre playing most music video games. You may think you look cool with your dinky plastic guitar or humorously scale-sized drum set, but in reality you look likeā¦ well, a person playing a plastic instrument. MoreĀ Ā»
https://lastchance.cc/circadia-s-simple-ingenious-puzzles-breaks-down-music-5889667%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Circadiaās Simple, Ingenious Puzzles Breaks Down Music Games to Their Best Parts
Circadia doesnāt look like much when you start it up. Even after the tutorial, all youāre getting is a black screen with a white and colored dots on it.
The goals are simple. MoreĀ Ā»
https://lastchance.cc/sound-shapes-is-the-vita-game-i-want-most-5893371%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Sound Shapes is the Vita Game I Want Most
I have grown to really like my PlayStation Vita. Thatās not to say I didnāt like it when I first started using it, but over the last couple of weeks, my respect for the system has grown into a real fondness. MoreĀ Ā»
And those are games weāve covered over the past few months, for the most part. Iām sure there are plenty Iāve left off, and others that Iāve not yet heard of. Any way I look at it, one thing seems clearāwe are on the eve of a new era of musical video games, and I for one canāt wait to see what comes next.
