‘Splosion Man

Game Music

Comic Jumper: The Laughter and Music Save You From Breaking Your Controller

December 10, 2010 | Gideon Dabi | 2 Comments Share this

Following the success of ‘Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel has gone ever further out of the box in delivering Comic Jumper, a side-scrolling romp with some 3D sequences and a sharp sense of humor. Instead of the homicidally, adorable, flaming protagonist, we now have a dim-witted, arrogant nincompoop with a loud-mouthed asshole sidekick, Star. Though I always loved ‘Splosion Man, Captain Smiley holds his own and so does the rest of this rather difficult and musical blast.

The story finds Captain Smiley, a comic book hero, with declining sales numbers of his book, forcing him to guest star in other heroes’ series to regain fame and relaunch his solo title – a brilliant premise. Smiley is forced to run the gamut of different genres and series. In a wonderfully clever move, Twisted Pixel opted to assign different composers for the different worlds. (more…)
Game Music

Editorial: Context Is Everything

August 10, 2010 | Gideon Dabi | 6 Comments Share this Editorial: Context Is Everything

One of the most heated subjects of debate among the writers here at Original Sound Version is whether or not it is essential for one to experience a soundtrack in its original context in order to properly review, enjoy, appreciate, or analyze it critically.

As musicians, music lovers, writers, and music critics, it is imperative that we give this music the opportunity to speak the way the composer intended. With amazingly few exceptions, scores are written for their subjects after – at the very least – the basic concept is fleshed out. In the case of film, most of the time, the movie has finished being edited before the composer lends his hand. If this is the genesis of scores, it must be accepted that these composers are writing this particular piece and this particular score based on something. It is safe to assume that without this inspiration as the impetus to the score, the work would not have been written – at least, it would not have been written the way it was (There have been instances where a piece was originally written for another project and then wonderfully added to the current work [i.e. “Regurgitation Pumping Station,” “Rain Rain Windy Windy,” and “Jelly” from Kyle Gabler’s World of Goo soundtrack], but this is less common).

How, then, can we possibly ignore the very basis of these scores? By definition, they are designed to accompany, enrich, and flesh out the drama in the games and films we love. Listening to an original score for a game without seeing/playing it is like ignoring the lyrics to a song. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Shadow Complex: A Great Game That Tells Its Composer to Shut Up (Review)

October 7, 2009 | Gideon Dabi | 5 Comments Share this

Epic Games’ and Chair Entertainment’s Shadow Complex was a game that caused quite a stir upon its release on the XBOX Live Arcade at the end of August of this year. It was received with near-unanimous acclaim as a great throwback to the “Metroidvania”-styled side-scrolling games. With it, however, came a great backlash from the community as the game’s universe was based on that of Orson Scott Card, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage. Thankfully, the game has no politics in it to speak of, and its soundtrack doesn’t either.

Did you even realize there was a soundtrack? Well, there most certainly is a soundtrack! In fact, it has SIXTY tracks. Click the jump to find out more! (more…)
Game Music

A Conversation With the ‘Splodin’ Josh Mosley

August 25, 2009 | Gideon Dabi | 2 Comments Share this

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of having a lengthy conversation with ‘Splosion Man composer, Joshua Mosley (just a week after having his wisdom teeth removed, ouch), and learned about the genesis of the music for a character that “….has no sense of right and wrong,” says Mosley. We covered a wide array of topics from ‘Splosion Man to favorite game music – even to the dreaded “Games As Art” debate! (And, yes, you silly gooses, we talked about DONUTS and how everybody loves them…) Wait….Mosley doesn’t own an XBOX?!

By now, I’m sure most all of your little hearts have ‘sploded with joy watching our favorite new hero, ‘Splosion Man, stick his arms out like an airplane and ‘splode evil scientists into pieces of deli meat. As I said in my review, I feel the music in Twisted Pixel’s ‘Splosion Man has much to do with the game’s deserved ridiculously high review scores and overall success.

‘Splode on…. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

‘Splosion Man ‘Splodes Our Hearts (Review)

August 3, 2009 | Gideon Dabi | 7 Comments Share this

‘Sploding onto XBOX Live Arcade to kick off “Summer of Arcade” is Twisted Pixel’s ‘Splosion Man. This little gem has caught the attention of gamers everywhere with its surprisingly substantive package of challenging gameplay, artfully zany presentation, and irresistible protagonist. I absolutely LOVED this game and am happy to report that it is in no small part thanks to its composer, Joshua Mosley.

A relatively small game whose premise it is to ‘splode oneself off of walls and onto evil scientists (turning them into various deli meats) would probably not be served best with an 80-piece orchestral sound (i.e. Shadow of the Colossus, Killzone 2). So, what did Mosley do in his score that made our ears and hearts ‘splode with joy?

Click the jump to read on! (more…)