Video Game Music: Catchy but MIDI or Orchestrated but Forgettable?

[Aelic7]

Basically, what would you rather have in a video game soundtrack: music that is really catchy but not high quality and symphonic (such as Mega Man or Castlevania) or music that is beautifully orchestrated and atmospheric but none of the tunes stick in your head after playing the game (such as Skyward Sword IMO)?

 

[Ventus]

I'd much rather have catchy but standard quality music. Everything in Kingdom Hearts afaik is MIDI'd and it's just good stuff. It's memorable. If I think about Aqua's final battle, I'll remmeber it not because the quality gave me...feelings...but because it was super catchy and I could dance to it. Yes speaking of dancing, this reveals that I'm about rhythm. That's why I don't care for the instruments or lack thereof used in music, I just care about the music itself, what sounds great etc. :yes:

 

[Viral Maze]

Forgettable and orchestrated.


No way would I want a catchy MIDI tune stuck my head for weeks...

 

[JuicieJ]

How about orchestrated AND memorable? You know, like Kingdom Hearts, Super Mario Galaxy, Skyward Sword, Journey, and Darksiders II? Pretty sure that works out nicely. lol

 

[DarkestLink]

MIDI with orchestra used very sparingly. Can barely tell the difference when a piece is MIDI or Orchestrated anyway--but that's just me.

 

[Blue Star]

I also prefer orchestrated and memorable music. Like Dragon Quest VIII. XD
But if I was to pick an option from the above, I would rather more memorable good music in a MIDI than bland orchestrated music.

 

[Hanyou]

As a rule, I tend to prefer catchy, MIDI soundtracks. Castlevania is one great example--the compositions are usually somewhat simple, sparse, and baroque. Unfortunately, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow threw all that out the window for an atrocious, generic action movie orchestral soundtrack that wasn't remotely gothic.

But it's not like the opposite doesn't exist.

JuiceJ named Skyward Sword and Mario Galaxy, which are fantastic examples.

[video=youtube;C6d4lxw9FYM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6d4lxw9FYM[/video]

Let me add that I think most Zelda games actually fall into this category, not because they're actually orchestrated but because they simulate an orchestra. There's a wide gulf between The Legend of Zelda's simple blips and beeps and The Wind Waker's rich pseudo-orchestrations...and there's no reason a quality orchestra couldn't reproduce it. The Final Fantasy series is also a great example--I count the incredibly catchy Final Fantasy IV soundtrack (one of my favorites) as a near-orchestral one.

John Williams, Howard Shore, and other movie composers have also demonstrated that "catchy" and "orchestrated" aren't mutually exclusive.

Need one more example? Shadow of the Colossus.

 

[Musicfan]

Well the music in the game will be memorable if It was used on the right scene. I find my self getting a lot of final boss themes that fit the boss stuck in my head. Or a piece that is used at a key point in the story like this.[video=youtube;wpuAPMs0FQs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpuAPMs0FQs[/video] It is used in the final dungeon as you are chasing down the main antagonist. It just has that seance of urgency.

 

[Salem]

i prefer MIDI, it's just that there's more diverse sound to be found in computer generated music than pure orchestrated sound.

MIDI with orchestra used very sparingly. Can barely tell the difference when a piece is MIDI or Orchestrated anyway--but that's just me.

Neither do I to be honest.

 

[Mellow Ezlo]

As much as I love orchestrated music, I would rather a game had catchy and memorable MIDI oriented tunes than easily forgettable orchestral tunes. To me, a game needs to have memorable music. It's part of what makes a game what it is.

Ideally, of course, like was said in an above post, Catchy and orchestrated is the way to go. Maybe not even catchy, but at least something unforgettable. I actually haven't heard very many "unmemorable" orchestrated songs to be honest.

MIDI with orchestra used very sparingly. Can barely tell the difference when a piece is MIDI or Orchestrated anyway--but that's just me.

It can sometimes be hard to tell, but there is quite a subtle difference. If you listen to the music by itself, and not as a background track, then you should be able to hear it. MIDI tracks are more electronic sounding. In orchestral tracks, such as The Sky, you can clearly hear that it is a recorded orchestra. MIDI's cannot really capture the dynamics and overall musicality that an orchestra can. Listen to the differences between Twilight Princess's Hyrule Field theme and Skyward Sword's The Sky theme. You should hear a pretty subtle difference between them dynamically.

 

[Mercedes]

I think orchestrated but forgettable, really. Because the greatest and catchiest MIDI tune in a game isn't going to stick in my head for long when I put some better music on. Hey Jude will knock that thing out of my brain so hard it won't know what the hell just happened. So I don't look for catchy in game music, I like for it fitting the theme and being good purely at the time. And I'd rather have a really cool, loud, and fitting orchestra than anything else really.

 

[JuicieJ]

I think orchestrated but forgettable, really. Because the greatest and catchiest MIDI tune in a game isn't going to stick in my head for long when I put some better music on. Hey Jude will knock that thing out of my brain so hard it won't know what the hell just happened. So I don't look for catchy in game music, I like for it fitting the theme and being good purely at the time. And I'd rather have a really cool, loud, and fitting orchestra than anything else really.

So you would take Other M's soundtrack over Prime's any day?

 

[Burning Beast]

Orchestrated and Memorable, thank you very much! ^^

Skyward Sword (imo) had a very memorable soundtrack, maybe not for how good each particular song was done, but more for how each song made you feel and blended you into the game world. Each song did an EXCELLENT (imo) job at drawing you into the game and portraying the various happening on screen and making you feel them as well, making you feel apart of the game.

Also, what about Super Mario Galaxy? That was an incredibly catchy and memorable soundtrack and it was orchestrated. That had arguably my favorite soundtrack of any game ever, though I think Skyward Sword just edges it.

 

[Ronin]

Good orchestrated soundtracks are very hard to come by these days, particularly in video games. There are the obscure hidden gems eclipsed by more mainstream franchise titles, such as Mario Galaxy and Skyward Sword. Some of the best of these hidden gems come from MMOs, a couple of outstanding examples being TalesWeaver and Emil Chronicle Online, which are arguably more awe-inspiring than any given track from MG or SS.

Even with that said, I prefer a perfect blend of Midi and orchestration. One of the best titles I've ever played, Xenoblade, features real instruments with a touch of synthesized rhythm for an adventurous background feel. The result leaves something that is greatly desired from many other adventure series (Elder Scrolls, Fable, and The Witcher)--a vibrant pulsation that makes the area come to life as the player explores every nook and cranny of a given area.

 

[JuicieJ]

Good orchestrated soundtracks are very hard to come by these days, particularly in video games. There are the obscure hidden gems eclipsed by more mainstream franchise titles, such as Mario Galaxy and Skyward Sword. Some of the best of these hidden gems come from MMOs, a couple of outstanding examples being TalesWeaver and Emil Chronicle Online, which are arguably more awe-inspiring than any given track from MG or SS.

Even with that said, I prefer a perfect blend of Midi and orchestration. One of the best titles I've ever played, Xenoblade, features real instruments with a touch of synthesized rhythm for an adventurous background feel. The result leaves something that is greatly desired from many other adventure series (Elder Scrolls, Fable, and The Witcher)--a vibrant pulsation that makes the area come to life as the player explores every nook and cranny of a given area.

For shame, Thar.