PlayStation 4

Game Music

Listen to Excerpts from Steven Burke’s Score for HOW WE SOAR

November 28, 2016 | Ryan Paquet | Comments Off on Listen to Excerpts from Steven Burke’s Score for HOW WE SOAR Share this

After E3 this year I wrote about my top five most anticipated soundtracks, and on that list at number three you’ll see How We Soar. The game which is being developed by Penny Black Studios as a title for Playstation VR. Steve Burke has worked previously on the music for the games Kameo:Elements of Power and Viva Pinata.

Over the past couple of days Penny Black Studios has been releasing excerpts from the game’s soundtrack on their Soundcloud page. I imagine that they will continue to release more excerpts leading up to the game’s release. I was actually tipped off about this from a tweet by Graeme Norgate who shared a link to the latest score clip. You can sample all of the clips below.

“The Depths” features some lovely strings and long noted cello, which creates a wonderful sense of awe before the sample ends.

“Across Space and Time” opens with elegant soft piano accompanied by equally delicate strings which play off each other gracefully.

“Romance is like…” to be honest if my favorite piece because it has some lovely high toned woodwinds and warm cello melody.

Keep checking back with OSV as we’ll be sharing further details of the soundtrack when we know more. According to PowerUpGaming How We Soar will be released next week. I for one will happily be enjoying these excerpts leading up to its release.

What do you think of the score excerpts after your first listen?
Game Music

Listen to The Last Guardian just about Anywhere

November 2, 2016 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Listen to The Last Guardian just about Anywhere Share this

Sony is ~~doubling~~ ~~tripling~~ quadrupling down on the audio experience when it comes to the highly anticipated and frequently delayed adventure game, The Last Guardian. The PlayStation Blog announced on Thursday that the game’s soundtrack — composed by Takeshi Furukawa, who you can get to know in this new trailer — will be available on vinyl, on iTunes and through exclusive PlayStation apps.

The vinyl release is being handled by iam8bit and the 2-LP album is available to pre-order now for $35 with shipping estimated to start in Q1 2017. The soundtrack will be released on iTunes “at a later date” but when the game launches on December 6th players will have two unique ways to engage with the music.

‘The Last Guardian Composer’s Choice PS4 Music App’ will be available as a separate download from the PlayStation Store and includes 17 tracks from the game in both stereo and surround formats with the ability to export MP3 files via USB. It’s unknown what else the app may offer — possibly a visual treatment or slideshow to accompany each song? — but it’s an interesting way to offer a soundtrack that could go above and beyond your average MP3 downloads. Finally, owners of PlayStation headsets will be able to turn on an exclusive mode through the rarely-talked-about Headset Companion App that tunes the game’s audio for “maximum immersion”.

For an even more authentic audio experience, fans can journey to Royce Hall in Los Angeles on February 12th, 2017 for a unique (and free) PlayStation performance. The American Youth Symphony will be performing music from The Last Guardian, The Order: 1886 and Journey in a National Endowment for the Arts sponsored concert.

Are you excited for The Last Guardian to finally be released? Ready to hear Furukawa’s take on Ueda’s latest adventure? Do you own a PlayStation headset and have you ever tried that Headset Companion App? What’s that like? Share your thoughts down here in the comments.
Game Music, Indie Music, Reviews

65daysofstatic, Sonic Masters of the Universe: No Man’s Sky Original Soundtrack (Review)

August 9, 2016 | Ryan Paquet | 1 Comment Share this

The music to No Man’s Sky: Music for an Infinite Universe has been something I’ve been excited for since it made my Top 10 Most Anticipated Soundtracks Post E3 2015. 65daysofstatic has been teasing us leading up to the release of their album by sharing tracks “Supermoon” and “Red Parallax” fairly early on.

They have also provided insight into how they created the soundtrack in an article on Kill Screen “The Making of the No Man’s Sky Soundtrack” where they talked about using a variety of techniques including isolation, fancy microphones, a grand piano, and lots of wine. The result in my opinion is an exceptional video game soundtrack that can be enjoyed in your own universe outside of the video game. Read on to hear my thoughts on the album, and my suggestions on how to listen to it.
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Doujin, Game Music, Japanese

Darius and Zuntata Have Returned for Chronicle Saviours

December 8, 2015 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Darius and Zuntata Have Returned for Chronicle Saviours Share this

DariusBurst: Chronicle Saviours — the greatly expanded home version of 2011’s DariusBurst: Another Chronicle EX — was released last week on Steam, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. Along with a new story mode with hundreds of stages, 4-player co-op and support for dual monitors, fans will be getting a new soundtrack from legendary Taito sound team, Zuntata.

The game is on sale now for $60 on PlayStation 4 and $40 on Vita and Steam (regularly $50) but if you’re really just after the music you may want to hold off just a little longer. Dariusburst Chronicle Saviours Original Sound Track is slated for release on January 13th in Japan featuring twelve new songs from Chronicle Saviours as well as tracks from previous entries, Another Chronicle, Another Chronicle EX, and Second Prologue. The new vocal theme, “Freedom”, is also included and can be heard in the trailer above. Check the rest of this post for the full tracklist, read up on Chronicle Saviours at the official English site or catch up on the series’ music with some of our previous coverage.

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Game Music

Music for Battle Soccer: Rocket League Soundtrack Released

July 25, 2015 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Music for Battle Soccer: Rocket League Soundtrack Released Share this

The zeitgeist game of the moment, Psyonix’s Rocket League, is one of the first PlayStation 4 games I’ve seen to use its space on the home screen to advertise a soundtrack. Clicking on the icon loads up this page in the browser with links to get the music from CD Baby and Google Play or to stream it through Rhapsody and Spotify. It looks like they’re planning on bringing it to every streaming service and digital marketplace under the sun which is good because this soundtrack is bangin’!

A little softer than you might expect from a game where rocket-cars wage Battle Soccer in domed arenas, it’s full of thumping bass, chirping synths and smooth vocals. A different singer accompanies almost every track with lyrics about angel’s wings and “flying forever”. It’s very reminiscent of Genki Rockets or maybe the mellow cousin to the old Sega Touring Car soundtrack.

What’s odd is that the music only fades up in the game on the menu screens so you barely get to hear it while playing. What I wound up doing was turning down the in-game music and streaming from the PS4’s Spotify app to listen uninterrupted. It’s a little ironic if you think about that but it keeps the music playing! Check it out on your music service of choice and let us know what you think.