There are many elements which are associated with the process of game design. Amongst them is music, which is a factor that most students may not pay much attention to. After all, it has become such a commonplace element in the development process that, sometimes, we often forget just how much work goes into this level of composition. For this reason, I believe it's vital to look into the importance of music, as it relates to game design.
To start off, music helps to captivate a gamer's attention at the onset. It could be done in a few ways, one of them being the excitement factor that comes from racing titles like "Need for Speed." However, soundtracks can just as easily instill feelings of dread in players, provided that's the design. After all, titles such as "The Evil Within" show that you do not necessarily need a catchy soundtrack but rather ambiance that can make an experience greater.
Music should also be created in a way that doesn't detract from the overall experience a game has to offer. The main reason for this - and I am sure that many others can agree - has to do with the fact that some bits of music can drone on a player's mind. After an hour or so has done by, you may be wishing for a change in audio. Fortunately, many composers have recognize this and there are some examples of this which stand out more than others.
Koji Kondo, in my view, stands as one of the most effective video game composers of all time. One of the reasons for this was his ability to create soundtracks that did not annoy the player. When he created a song, be it for "The Legend of Zelda" or another game entirely, he wanted to do so with the idea that players would not tune out. The fact that he would listen to his creations for an hour, to see if they started to grate on his nerves or not, showed just how vital music in game design truly is.
If you want to talk about the most essential elements of game design, no one can overlook music. Not only is this able to bring life to the most pulse-pounding soundtracks, but it's easy to see that music can set just about any scene that can be imagined. Audio is necessary, to say the least, but it must be created with a sense of quality intact. Once this is done, it's easy to see that one's efforts in game design will turn out to be that much greater.
To start off, music helps to captivate a gamer's attention at the onset. It could be done in a few ways, one of them being the excitement factor that comes from racing titles like "Need for Speed." However, soundtracks can just as easily instill feelings of dread in players, provided that's the design. After all, titles such as "The Evil Within" show that you do not necessarily need a catchy soundtrack but rather ambiance that can make an experience greater.
Music should also be created in a way that doesn't detract from the overall experience a game has to offer. The main reason for this - and I am sure that many others can agree - has to do with the fact that some bits of music can drone on a player's mind. After an hour or so has done by, you may be wishing for a change in audio. Fortunately, many composers have recognize this and there are some examples of this which stand out more than others.
Koji Kondo, in my view, stands as one of the most effective video game composers of all time. One of the reasons for this was his ability to create soundtracks that did not annoy the player. When he created a song, be it for "The Legend of Zelda" or another game entirely, he wanted to do so with the idea that players would not tune out. The fact that he would listen to his creations for an hour, to see if they started to grate on his nerves or not, showed just how vital music in game design truly is.
If you want to talk about the most essential elements of game design, no one can overlook music. Not only is this able to bring life to the most pulse-pounding soundtracks, but it's easy to see that music can set just about any scene that can be imagined. Audio is necessary, to say the least, but it must be created with a sense of quality intact. Once this is done, it's easy to see that one's efforts in game design will turn out to be that much greater.
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