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Featured, Game Music

OSVchannel: Halo 4 Original Soundtrack Limited Edition Unboxing Video

November 5, 2012 | Jayson Napolitano | 4 Comments Share this

There are those who said this day would never come. What are they to say now?

Halo 4 is on the horizon, and people have been wondering what composer Neil Davidge would do in Marty O’Donnell’s and Michale Salvatori’s place. While I personally enjoy the soundtrack album, it is admittedly different. Still, don’t let that dissuade you, as the music in-game is incredibly effective and will have you thinking of Metroid Prime fairly often.

In the meantime, check out the limited-run limited edition soundtrack above. It contains the soundtrack, a remix disc (with arguably better versions of the songs than found on the OST), and a making-of DVD. Also inside is a vinyl record, a code for an exclusive shirt for your XBLA avatar, a signed print, and a massive booklet walking fans through the music production process and each track on the album.

It’s available on the Halo 4 soundtrack website for $74.99, and is definitely worth your consideration.
Game Music

A Soundtrack With Force: Kinect Star Wars

May 21, 2012 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on A Soundtrack With Force: Kinect Star Wars Share this

[Originally posted on Destructoid]

We now know that Kinect Star Wars was not the hardcore Kinect experience that it was originally touted to be. As a collection of Kinect mini-games best suited for younger players, I figured the game’s music would take a similarly lighthearted and playful approach, but the score composed by Gordy Haab and Kyle Newmaster is as hardcore and true to the Star Wars franchise as anyone could have possibly hoped for.

With that in mind, I wanted to highlight this ‘serious’ aspect of the game. Along with some video footage from the recording session with the prestigious London Symphony Orchestra at the legendary Abbey Road Studio where the original film scores were recorded, we also have three full-length music samples on Destructoid’s Soundcloud account for you to enjoy as you read through what the composers have to say about their approach to Kinect Star Wars’ soundtrack. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

“REMEMBER REACH”: The Soundtrack to Make Sure We All Will (Review)

September 29, 2010 | Gideon Dabi | 2 Comments Share this

Since the title screen of 2001’s Halo, the music of the series has been weaved into the fabric of one of the most iconic and successful video game franchises and has become nearly as integral to its success as the Final Fantasy series. The famous theme, sung in the vein of Gregorian chant, has been a staple of video game music for nearly a decade. Like Bioshock and Star Wars, the creators of Halo opted to keep their composers (Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori, in this case) along for each installment of the series giving it an even stronger sense of continuity and character development.

The previous installment of Halo was a departure from the series in both its gameplay and its soundtrack. Substituting vast warzones and fields for the fictional city of New Mumbasa, O’Donnell wisely opted for a noir-like soundtrack heavy on saxophone to highlight the isolated feel of the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODSTs).

The latest outing, (the already record-breaking) Halo: Reach, is not an off-shoot like Halo: ODST or a sequel – but a prequel. There is an interesting musical dilemma in this… (more…)
Featured, Game Music

Halo: Reach Interview With Marty O’Donnell

September 14, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

It’s Halo day! Halo: Reach hits store shelves today, and what better time to sit down with composer Marty O’Donnell to get a better idea of exactly what we’ll be hearing in the game. We really dug what we heard at E3, so we ask Marty if the rock style we heard in the demo will dominate the score. We also ask about his ability to create the “Halo sound” across a multitude of musical genres and mention the 2-disc soundtrack from Sumthing Else Music Works.

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m a huge Halo fan, and am looking forward to some multiplayer action. Hope to see you guys on there, so be sure to pick up the game and the soundtrack this week, and do as Marty O’Donnell says: enjoy it in surround sound! (more…)
Game Music

Comic Con 2010: Teased With More Child of Eden and Halo: Reach Details

July 24, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Comic Con 2010: Teased With More Child of Eden and Halo: Reach Details Share this

Seriously, what a tease. Child of Eden is mine and many others’ most anticipated game for the Microsoft Kinect, and while it isn’t on the show floor, it was at Microsoft’s press event a couple nights ago. I wasn’t expecting it to be there, and I quickly made my way over to watch a young lady move with the music and actually look good while playing the game (I know I’m going to be incredibly awkward). As it turns out, she’s with Microsoft, and they weren’t letting anyone get hands-on with the game, which was a shame. Still, it looks awesome, and we did confirm that we were indeed hearing the Genki Rockets in the background, and that while it may look casual in that you progress through levels without any sort of resistance, enemies will indeed fire back in the final build, and you can die.

Regarding Halo: Reach, we saw 8-player multiplayer in action, and man does this game look beautiful. We saw the return of classic maps from the original Halo, and when we inquired about Marty O’Donnell’s score, we were told that his writing partner Michael Salvatorri is indeed on the project, and that while we heard rock music at E3, there’s a nice blend of all new music for the game, including ethnic Middle Eastern themes as well as rock and other styles. I’m looking forward to a soundtrack release for this one already!

What do you think of Child of Eden and Halo: Reach? Have you enjoyed O’Donnell’s recent experiments with the music of Halo?
Game Music

E3 2010: Marty O’Donnell Rocks Out in Halo Reach

June 18, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on E3 2010: Marty O’Donnell Rocks Out in Halo Reach Share this

While E3 is officially over, we still have a ton of coverage to share with you. We’re going to try to wrap things up through this weekend to get back to our regularly scheduled programming, but we hope you’ve enjoyed the coverage thus far. Today we were able to get a peek at Bungie’s big new Halo prequel, Halo: Reach. The game itself is shaping up quite nicely with a combination of gameplay styles, including squad-based combat and futuristic dogfights in outer space. They’re also touting upgraded firefight mode that was introduced in ODST, now with matchmaking and a lot of customization.

But about that music. Yes, of course Marty O’Donnell is working on it, and he has something very different in store for fans.

Hit the jump for our preview of Halo: Reach’s powerful soundtrack. (more…)
Miscellaneous

XBOX last.fm Update to Feature Gamer Stations

October 27, 2009 | Gideon Dabi | 3 Comments Share this

According to the Last.fm website, the new Xbox dashboard update will feature “Curated tag stations filled with game-inspired content.” In English, this amounts to a separate category in your Last.fm options to access actual game music and/or game-inspired music.

Unfortunately, none of the included updates (Facebook, Twitter, or Last.fm) can be accessed while playing a game. But, we applaud Last.fm’s efforts to promote game music and are interested to see how it works out.

Our friends over at Destructoid have made an excellent video preview where you can see all the aforementioned features.

Are you looking forward to the update or do you think it’ll be just a bunch of features better off accessed through your computer/phone?