UK: BBC prog on gaming music

[N i g e l]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0009rfp

Radio 3's regular jaunt into the latest, brightest and best gaming soundtracks.

[BigRedX]

Never understood "gaming music". In the days when I did play a lot of computer games the music was always turned off as it was too distracting.

[BJG145]

Don't let Martin hear you say that.

(SOS had a feature on the subject in the September issue if anyone missed it. P126 in the free replica.)

[BigRedX]

Maybe it's because I'm a musician that I find myself concentrating on the musical aspects of any experience over the others (often to their detriment). I can certainly relate Giles Smith's experiences in his book "Lost In Music" when he talks about being perceived as moody and distant at restaurants, when in reality he is trying the figure out what songs are being played on the subliminally quiet music system.

[BWC]

Yup, too distracting for the music obsessed. The simple, repetitive music of the earliest games was fine, but once they started scoring games like movies, I had to go looking for the off switch or the game character wouldn't survive long. I would listen to the soundtrack separately, if I thought it worthy of a listen. I can't fall asleep to music either.

[N i g e l]

Well theres definitely a market for it - Grand Theft Auto has almost 24hrs of soundtrack and then theres another 100 tracks tuneable on the car radio !

I used to have music on when doing homework and I knew other people that didnt.

[BWC]

Well theres definitely a market for it - Grand Theft Auto has almost 24hrs of soundtrack and then theres another 100 tracks tuneable on the car radio !

Oh, absolutely, us "music obsessed" (active listeners) make up a small percentage; for most, it's just background noise. I know several people who can't get to sleep without music playing. I can't stay over at their places.

I actually didn't mind the music in GTA, because it was presented as part of the simulation. It only played in the vehicles, or wherever there was an in-game playback source. I do listen to music while I drive, without issue.

[Luke W]

Never understood "gaming music". In the days when I did play a lot of computer games the music was always turned off as it was too distracting.

It certainly can be distracting in some cases, but when it's done well then it really makes a positive difference to the overall experience for me. My example is always Halo (or at least the first few). The soundtrack is brilliant in its own right, but the way it reacts to whats going on on on-screen with different parts and sections being triggered by what the player is doing or where they are is amazing in my view.

[BWC]

Could never get into Halo, but that kinda makes sense to me. Like with GTA, the more the music is connected to the gameplay, the less it distracts and the more it immerses. But if the music is good (or at least interesting), but not so "connected", my mind will focus on it far too much for the character's well-being.

[BigRedX]

Well theres definitely a market for it - Grand Theft Auto has almost 24hrs of soundtrack and then theres another 100 tracks tuneable on the car radio !

I used to have music on when doing homework and I knew other people that didnt.

I've bought a fair few game sound tracks in the past, but it's always been because there's a track I like on them that isn't available elsewhere. There is certainly zero correlation between the game sound track albums I own and the games I have played.

I think the music being two distracting thing is something that gets worse with age. Back in the 70s I was perfectly able to do homework and listen to the radio. These days I can't have any music on while I work unless it's something that requires very little conscious thought and certainly no calculation or coding.

[ManFromGlass]

I can listen to talking books on long drives but only if they are light fluff. Fascinating and interesting topics totally interfere with driving. I assume it’s a different part of the brain that does deep vs light listening. Same with a killer tune - I sometimes have to turn the radio off if the tune is too good while I’m driving.