Do we really need BGM (background music)?

[yanuart]

Hi, I stumbled upon this question after I realize I never turn on the BGM when playing games (well, most of it).
I find it quite annoying, sfx will do just fine for me in most games. I wonder how many of you guys feel the same way ?

Developers (mostly indies) usually struggle with audio production cause making a good song is expensive and with our budget we ended up with crappy repetitive BGM. This is bad cause usually reviewers will bash your audio/sound quality (I read alot about this)

I agreed on making BGM for the opening menu but I'm not so sure about making BGM for the game itself cause I'll probably can't afford to produce several good songs.
So why do we need to make BGM for our games ? Is it really necessary ? What do you guys think ?

[Savant]

I found with Big Kahuna Reef that I really enjoyed turning on the aquarium background noises rather than the music.

[stan]

Funnily enough, the friend who composed the music for Smart Lines says that he doesn't like music in games :). Now, I don't know the answer to your question... Music can contribute a lot to a game if it is good, and it can detract from it if it is bad :]. I tried "Marble Blast Gold" yesterday, and it has a really repetitive music... kind of annoying. But then, a silent game can be boring too. It might be easier/better to find some good background sounds and play them randomly, than to make/find/pay for a good music that isn't annoying :).

[svero]

good background music can enhance the mood in a game. Bad bgm can ruin a game. More often than not i turn music off. There are some exceptions though. Zuma for instance had great mood music that was also context sensitive.

[Rainer Deyke]

I almost always play mp3s in the background when playing games. However, background music is just something that games are expected to have, so a game without background music will seem less professional.

[Daire Quinlan]

I think as pointed out above, that it all depends on the music :)
Most background music I switch off as soon as I start to play. Some I leave on. In some instances however, The BGM becomes an absolutely essential and evocative part of the gameplay. Anybody remember X-wing, Tie Fighter, X-Wing alliance ?? Great use of BGM in those titles, the music was context sensitive. So for example XWA, you'd be floating around having finished what you thought was the last mission goal, music a nice subdued rebel theme, then suddenly the volume ramps up and segues into the Imperial theme. You instantly feel the FEAR. Seconds later the Super Star Destroyer jumps in. AAaaargh ! The BGM goes a huge way toward creating the atmosphere.

D.

[Greg Squire]

I believe it depends on the game and even the context within the game as to whether you need background music or not. Sometimes silence or ambient noises are the best. If you look at film, silence is often used when there is a lot of dialog going on as you don't want it to detract. If there is music during a sequence like this, it is VERY subtle. Music only enhances the emotion of a game, and since some games are more cerebral (i.e. puzzle, strategy, etc.) than emotional, it isn't needed as much in those types of games. That's not to say that background music can't enhance a puzzle or strategy game, but the need isn't as great. Genre's like FPS, Shooters, and Horror are greatly more emotional than cerebral, so the need for mood setting music and sound is much greater. The music needs to "fit" (ie. no Polka music in "Quake"), and it must be subtle enough as to not take "center stage" (unless of course, the music is integral to the gameplay like in "Dance Dance Revolution", "Beatmania", etc.)

Here's an article that discusses some of this further - SUBTLETY AND SILENCE (http://www.zero-g.co.uk/index.cfm?articleid=722).

[etali]

It depends on the game for me and how good the score is - I would expect background music of one type in a retro arcade game, another in a space game, and probably none in a driving game (the roar of the engines would be enough)

No music is better than bad music though!

I don't know much about the business of making games (I'm a degree student at the moment learning the conding / design stuff) but just as a thought could you contact some independant artists and ask them if they're interested in providing songs for the soundtracks - they get credits and publicity, you get a game that sounds more polished.

--
Etali
http://www.myth-games.com
http://www.myth-games.com/forum

[James C. Smith]

I always end up turning off the background music in games I am working on. I often wondered how many end users keep the music on. I have done poles on my forum, which aren’t necessarily very accurate, but I think there must be some truth in them. The overwhelming majority of the players say they keep the music on. Most of the player who don’t listen to the music turn off all sound so they don’t disturb their family members or co-workers.

[Yarlen]

Personally, I enjoy background music - initially at least, though more games need to include volume sliders. ;) The only thing is that most indie games don't have enough of it, so it gets annoying quickly when the tracks start to repeat.

However, as a gamer (and a former journalist), I can tell you that most people turn off background music. Instead they'll just run Winamp in the background and listen to their MP3s.

Overall, I think it depends on the game in question. If you don't need it to enhance the atmosphere in your title, you probably shouldn't bother. If you do, then by all means go for it - some people will appreciate it. Or, if possible, use the music sparingly, only playing it at specific points (ala Half-Life).

[Martoon]

Personally, I eventually turn off the music on any game I play, since I can't stand to listen to the same music repeat indefinitely. How soon I turn off the music is a function of how quickly it gets annoying (it all does, eventually, but some much sooner than others). It doesn't bother me at all if a game doesn't include BGM, but most reviews I've seen of games that don't include it seem to complain of its absence, so there is an expectation of it. To me, the real cardinal sin is to not have a way to turn the music down or off, since I do want to hear the sound effects (so I don't want to just turn off my speakers).

Unfortunately, repetitive, annoying music is cheap to license (you can easily "write" techno yourself with sequencing apps like Fruity Loops and a set of royalty-free loops you can string together), but good quality music will cost you.

If you do create background music, or have someone do it for you, often times the best thing to have are fairly indistinct, textural washes of sound that provide more of a soundscape instead of a clear melody. This will provide a subtle audio backdrop while being less obvious that it's repeating, and will be less likely to annoy the player.

[maksum]

I personally turn it off a lot of the time, and even dislike it in my own Add 'em Up. When I play it, I turn it off.

In fact I originally did NOT have music in it, but users were telling me they wanted it and I was "dinged" in a couple of reviews for not having it.... so I put it in.

My opinion is that it's probably generally a good idea to implement it, but definitely make it an option.

Mike

[Mike Boeh]

Music is the easiest thing in terms of production costs. There are many fantastic musicians who will create great music for a reasonable price, like Staffan Melin (http://www.melinmusic.com/)

[george]

as many people have already stated, the music has to be an actual element of the game to be successful. if you just put in a couple random tracks, then it's just that: a bunch of random tracks that were put in to make the game look more "professional" and to follow the stereotypes/trends... if you position the music in a way that enhances the gameplay, such as being "conext" sensitive (adjusting to the gameplay, moods, etc.), then it can greatly enhance the game play. IMHO, music is an EASY way to enhance your game, if done right. think about how movies use music, i think thats exactly how games should... most authors ignore this i think...

[C_Coder]

What about download size? Several music tracks will increase the game size by quite a lot.

[Rebrehc's Industries]

I almost always turn the music off. No matter how long a clip is between repeats, it gets on the nerves big time if you're going to sit and play for an hour or more. I suppose it might not be so bad if you're only playing for 3 minutes in a sitting. My idea would be to include one decent piece of music. If you can't make your own and have to buy it, then I wouldn't even spend the money for exclusive rights. Provide your user a means for putting in their own play list and let them play the music they want if they want music. That will allow you to do another thing the user will really appreciate, keep the prices down.

[BitBoy]

Although the majority of people seem to disable the music (at least eventually), I personally would never consider shipping a game without music. It's all about the first impression these days, especially with casual games, and having a catchy tune that sets the mood for the game could really go a long way.

If I try out a new game and it presents me with silence I must say that I get a bit disappointed. It gives me a feeling that the game is lacking polish or that it's incomplete.

As some people said above, if you don't want to write your own music, it's easy and not that expensive to get somebody else to do it for you. Please consider it. I seriously doubt that it could ever make your game worse, especially if you include the option to turn it off (which you should).

[Reactor]

Music is a powerful tool to use, to draw a player into your gaming experience. That's not to say every game needs BGM, but as Bitboy said, most games can seem incomplete without it. It's a powerful tool, and it makes sense to have it in use, in my opinion.

[Sharpfish]

Although the majority of people seem to disable the music (at least eventually), I personally would never consider shipping a game without music. It's all about the first impression these days, especially with casual games, and having a catchy tune that sets the mood for the game could really go a long way.

If I try out a new game and it presents me with silence I must say that I get a bit disappointed. It gives me a feeling that the game is lacking polish or that it's incomplete.

As some people said above, if you don't want to write your own music, it's easy and not that expensive to get somebody else to do it for you. Please consider it. I seriously doubt that it could ever make your game worse, especially if you include the option to turn it off (which you should).


Agreed. Never assume what the end player wants based on your own opinions. Give them everything and options for everything. I do my own music so it is easy for me, but I understand it can be a hassle to "source" original music for those that don't.. in those case I may do as suggested above or tailor the game to use ambient effects instead.

As for my preference, some games I turn the music straight off - others it is part of the experience and the game feels lifeless without it so I leave it on.

options are you freind.

[JubeiDOK]

I'll start with saying Hi! First time post. I too do not keep game music on for most of the games I play. The exceptions are usually Star Wars games.

I just don't think that a game should need musical score. A movie relies on it to establish mood and atmosphere in an envirnment that isn't interactive. A game is, and it should be the game play that moves the player through the intended moods. It should be the gfx and ambient sounds that establish atmosphere. I think that score is just the easy way out in terms of a game. I mean a music score is basicly telling us things like "be scared now", "you're in a hurry now", or "all is well, have no fear till the next encounter". I also think that score takes away from the true emersion into an interactive game world. I don't know about other people, but I can't stand being in a game where my character is standing on the corner of a busy metropolitan street with some cheesy (even if it's good) musical score playing in the background. It makes no sense to me. Why is this music playing? Where is it coming from? These are the questions that are asked in my head, and then I'm no longer standing on that corner of a busy metropolitan street. If you're going to do it then why not do it in ways that make more sense. Like a guy walking down the street holding a ghetto blaster and the music fades in and out as he passes you by. This "blaster man" can be triggered and designed to come out at a time where tension is about run high.

On a final note... Game worlds are interactive and I believe that that gives developers a huge advantage over other methods of story telling. Let's start to take advantage of that advantage =)

[dima]

I think music is essential for setting the atmosphere. Just like graphics and sound help you immerse, so does music. Crap music will be turned off by the most, but not always, and not everywhere. Games like Warcraft3, I cant play without the music, their music is really good, and puts me exactly where I want to be. For some casual games, not all music is great, so I cant blame people for not wanting it up, but what if it was really really good? I think most people will keep the good tracks playing and might get it stuck in their heads, making them wanting to come back to the game to hear the song.

I think good music is a good thing, and games definitely need it.

[Sillysoft]

Just to toss out a counterpoint: my game Lux does not have any background music. A couple people have said it could use some, but not very many.

Some mitigating factors may be the fact that my game does not run in fullscreen, so it's simple to have an MP3 player running at the same time. Also, Lux is the type of game that you can play for hours and hours, so a few minutes of music might not work very well.

I don't think that the absence of background music has adversely affected the sales my game (very much). I could be wrong though.

[dima]

Good music can make the game better, bad music makes it worse. No music is probably better than bad music, but good music is definitely the best.

[Fantus]

I'm currently at a point in development where I'm looking for music for my game, and it's damn hard!

The stuff that we got so far isn't what I looked for, but how can I describe what I want? I'm no expert in sound. Big Kahuna is the only game where I really remember how cool the 'music' was. Perhaps a good atmospheric sound is the best.

[yanuart]

yup, I agree with your thoughts that music can bring good things to your game but like I said before.. it's hard to make/produce good music with low budget, same problem here fantus.. so here's another question :
Where/how do you get your music ?
Do you really spend time n money to make it good ? or it's just something to make your game "complete"?
How much money r u willing to spend on it ?
If I choose to purchase some loops/audio/music for my BGM in some sites, do you think there's a possibility that the music has allready been used in other game (that'll be terrible !!!)?

anyway, feel free to help me out with suggestions :D

[Fry Crayola]

BGM is an integral part of a game's design, and should never be treated lightly. For some genres it's less important, but in virtually every game it's something you need to think about.

My current project has no music - I don't see it as necessary. It's a football management game, where the fun is derived from strategy, and atmosphere is built from crowds reactions and media build-up as opposed to a rousing orchestral score. But I have other ideas for games which I think need a good score.

Games, like it or not, share a lot with films in this regard. A film with a poor score can detract overall, but when the soundtrack is finely selected (or commissioned) to perfectly fit the film the results are amazing. Would Pulp Fiction have been the same with a random selection of tracks? Brad Fiedel's Terminator theme is perfectly fitting and can stir emotions.

So too in games. Would Halo's finale have been as exhilirating without the thumping soundtrack? Hitman 2's orchestral pieces from Jesper Kyd invoked the theme of a man returning to the scene, ready to deal out vengeance, while his work on Hitman Contracts suitably fit the theme of dispair, solitude and confusion on which the game's central story was built. He has been rightly praised for his efforts on both games. Nobuo Uematsu's Final Fantasty VII score goes down as one of the most memorable of all time - not only because of the game's massive sales but also because each individual piece fit the game almost perfectly. And who hasn't marvelled the first time they took Samus onto the Phendrana Drifts in Metroid Prime to be greeted by a tranquil piece (not to mention the ambient sounds of the local fauna)?

Done right, and background music can lift any game.

I only ever turn it off in sports or racing games. I refuse to listen to the garbage pumped out by my speakers when I play Pro Evolution Soccer 4 (same goes for the commentary, but that's another matter), and I select my soundtrack carefully on Gran Turismo 3, limiting it to about four tunes that I actually like. Whereas with Wipeout 2097 the whole soundtrack fits and enhances the game - thundering along Gare D'Europa listening to the Prodigy's Firestarter is a great moment.

It's part of the game. I no sooner turn it off than I would de-activate character animation or skip a cut scene. I know that some people do - I would always include the option - but I would never see that as a reason to give a half hearted effort, as a great soundtrack can never hinder a game.

[Promaginy]

I love background music. I rarely turn it off. To me, I like to experience the game with all of the sounds and music so I can immerse myself in the game. Some of my favorite game music is Dune II, Ultima IV, and Unreal Tournament. I expect music in my games and I would never release a game without some kind of BGM. Yet, some of my favorite games never had music (such as Lords of Midnight or Civilization).

I find it interesting how Lux does not have music. I am wondering if that is because it is inspired by a boardgame medium? Board games don't come with music so perhaps it is not expected. Is it because it is a strategy game and players are too immersed to care about background music? Music is something that can set mood - having no music can create a more contemplative mood...

Our first game will have professional, custom music. So far, I really like what I have heard. I also have a ton of fun with eJay sequencer software. It is amazing how easy it is to create something so professional sounding.

[Christian]

Well, i agree with what people say that music done right can contribute a lot to the fun of the game and music done bad makes the game worse, but that happebs with anything, good gameplay versus bad graphics makes the game worse, good graphics and good gameplay and bad controls ruins the game, and so on... But i think that the most important thing in a game is the interactivity, the more interactive a game is the most fun it is, so, from that rule i say that SOUNDS are better that music, music is linear, even if it changes from situations, screens or levels, sounds in games communicate feels along with grapichs, gameplay and interactivity with the game through the keyboard or mouse rising the interactive feel between game-player, computer-player.
(Sorry for my english, its not my main languaje)

[Nexic]

I pretty much always leave music on, unless I want to listen to other music, but thats quite rare. I think it just depends on the person, and It's my belief that the more casual gamer prefers the music.

Quite often, if I play a game that has no music it feels less polished and less professional. No music at all is definitely a bad thing to me, but I doub't the same feeling would occur if there was menu music and no ingame music, as ingame there should be enough sound effects to keep me happy.

I think overall the best thing is to either buy really great music, or buy cheap music thats 'okay', and make it easy to turn off. (when I say okay I don't mean settle for utter crud, I mean something that won't bore or frustrate the gamer)

[ErikH2000]

There's an hour and a half of music in my game. It switchs depending on the mood of the game, and every song is paired with an alternate so that the player doesn't hear the same song repeatedly if they spend 15 minutes in one part of the game. Myself and another guy spent a lot of time on it, and I really wonder for all that work if it was worth it.

Some players praise the music. One guy said he keeps playing longer because he wants to hear it. Others immediately set out to replace the music with something else they like better. (There is a file they can edit to change which songs are played.) Music is such a matter of taste. You can go for inoffensive ultra-ambient music and nobody will be annoyed by it, but few will actually enjoy it. Take a few more risks in the composition, and the music makes friends and enemies.

What seems ideal to me: Composers make music in a format that can be plugged into any game. Composers then sell the same music to players of many different games. Sometimes a game-ready composition can be bundled with one game, but it will be usable elsewhere too. Then everybody wins...

* Players get to listen to the music they like best.
* Musicians get a new market for their music.
* Devs don't have to spend so much money and time on music.

-Erik

[HairyTroll]

There was a game called "Shadow of the Beast" on the Amiga. The game itself was not particulary good (actually, it sucked), being a standard platformer/sidescroller. However the music (and the parallax scrolling effects) absolutely made it. The game received some of the highest ratings simply because of the excellent in-game music.

[Sharkbait]

Ah yes, but back then Shadow of the Beast was a revolution in terms of visuals and music. Yes, I agree with you that the gameplay was quite limited.. essentially a platform game with hardly any platforms, but the eye and ear candy of the game were totally immersive. I remember playing it over and over just to see the whole thing from end to end. SOTB II and III did improve on the gameplay.. in particular SOTB III featured some simple physics-based puzzles. Ironically I still preferred SOTB I because of the atmosphere, but that's just me.

Getting back to the main subject of the thread, I think BGM is important for some genres of games more than others. I think it is also a central component of the "Polish Factor", especially within the context of casual games where a pleasant user interface, visuals and audio play such an important role.

On the subject of interactive BGM, it is true that movies have a set script for how the music is orchestrated, but for games many strides forward have been made to provide dynamic orchestration that fits seamlesly with the onscreen action. Having said that, I don't think it is really worth pursuing dynamic orchestration for indie games due to the sheer amount of audio assets required.

[Vectrex]

Quake 1 has the best atmos soundtrack I've ever heard. NIN at his best. But Quake 2 had the crappest soundtrack I've ever heard. Why? Because NIN didn't make them 'songs' as such, more atmospheric sounds and subtle tunes, so it could repeat forever and I'd never get sick of it (because it blended into the atmos and didn't stick out). Q2 on the other hand had awful rock songs that were songs with chorus's etc, so I'm walking about casually trying to find a key and this god awful screaming guitar is in my ear.

Shadow of the beast's music blew me away (SOTB 2's music was even better). btw I finished 1, but 2 was IMPOSSIBLE! even WITH the cheats :)

[MingooX]

I find music can make or break a game for me. Good music screams BUY ME, bad music screams SWITCH ME OFF but no music just says GOOD BUT NOT GREAT to me. For example, my memories of mario always have that funky tune playing in the background, the same goes for lemmings (even though they cheated and used classical music) or worms. Ragnarok online is so addictive for me not only because of the visual imagery but because of the music being so crazily well implemented.

Music is a big seller to me.

Steve

[HairyTroll]

the same goes for lemmings (even though they cheated and used classical music)

"How much is that doggy in the window" is now considered classical music? ;)

Music definitely makes a game. Who can't think back on "Bubble Bobble" or "Rainbow Islands" and not have those tunes played back in their head. I cannot imagine those games with just sound effects.

-Luke

[Night Elf]

I think background music is an integral part of the game. I never turn music off as I believe the game maker wants me to hear that particular music when playing, it's part of the game experience.

If I find a game which has crappy music (meaning it's unbearable to hear it,) I will probably just not play that game, as most of the time bad music comes together with a bad game. I think of it this way: if the game developer cares enough about his game, he'll make sure to include music that is at least good enough.

I would regard a game without music as unfinished, unless it's something very, very simple like a card game which is meant to be played in a window. Any game that switches to full screen is trying to immerse the palyer, and in that case music is a must.

[ErikH2000]

Directed at the last 3 or 4 replies...

You know, it's all well and good to say music is a major factor of the gaming experience and give examples of music you think is great. But the problem is that more ambitious music, the kind that can make you love it and remember the game, is more controversial. I'm sure you can find people that particularly appreciated the Quake 2 music for exactly the same reasons Vectrex hated it. Some people really liked the twangy folk rock bits of the Starcraft soundtrack because that music was unique and supported the rednecks in space concept. Not me--it got on my nerves and I shut it off. Some people like sweeping orchestral movie-style soundtracks. Other people go for electronica. Two people can even prefer playing the same game in different moods, i.e. relaxed or visceral, and want music to match.

My point is that game music can't be seen on a linear scale of bad to good. If that were the case, it would be obvious that we'd just aim to have the good stuff, kinda like we do with graphics, which is much less influenced by individual taste than music.

I think in the end if you really want game players to enjoy in-game music, you have to have some mechanism for letting them swap in what they like or they just shut if off. Right now I've just got some INI files that can be edited and I released some extra archives of music that people seem to like. In my dreams of a perfect future, I imagine a standard library function like...

SetMusicMood(MOOD_BuildTension);

...and it uses some player-selected package of game music, with certain clips mapped to different moods and game events, and transitions specified. Maybe the guy who wrote the Shadow of the Beast music releases his music in some standard game-ready format and you as the player choose to hear your beloved SotB tunes while playing, I dunno, Quake 4. This is what I would really like to see!

-Erik

[dima]

I think background music is an integral part of the game. I never turn music off as I believe the game maker wants me to hear that particular music when playing, it's part of the game experience.Specially the NightElf music in WarCraft3 ;). Their tracks are just awesome and pump me up every time I listen.

[Sharkbait]

Erik,

DirectX does offer something on the lines of your dreams via DirectMusic's style-based playback, and it refers to 'mood' as a 'groove level'. You might want to have a look here (http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnmusic/html/dmp_styles.asp).

I guess one could couple such a system with the concept of multiple music themes (consisting of musical piece rendered at different moods) that can be plugged into the game. However I can't see this as something that a gamer with no musical experience would bung up together from a couple of his/her own music tracks. Each theme would need to be professionally designed for the dynamic orchestration system to work seamlessly. It might in fact be an opportunity to offer add-on packs for the game. :)

[dima]

The whole point of BGM is to compliment the games environment. I can't stress enough how good Blizzard's music is. If you have Warcraft3, listen to the tracks again, they are just superb. Music shoud be built specifically for the game, all the mood and tempo switching is good, and people can always just shut the music off and listen to their own tracks if they wanted to.

[Vectrex]

My other all time favorite worst music of all time is the Doom music :D but some people love it (I had an Amiga so I guess I wasn't really ready for midi rock ;) ). But playing Bram Stokers Dracula soundtrack while co-oping Doom 2 single player missions was one of the best team ups ever. Oh yeah Unreal 1's single player+music absolutely blew me away, the atmosphere was unbeatable. Now it's just toy land :(

[destron]

Quake 1 has the best atmos soundtrack I've ever heard. NIN at his best. But Quake 2 had the crappest soundtrack I've ever heard. Why? Because NIN didn't make them 'songs' as such, more atmospheric sounds and subtle tunes, so it could repeat forever and I'd never get sick of it (because it blended into the atmos and didn't stick out). Q2 on the other hand had awful rock songs that were songs with chorus's etc, so I'm walking about casually trying to find a key and this god awful screaming guitar is in my ear.

Shadow of the beast's music blew me away (SOTB 2's music was even better). btw I finished 1, but 2 was IMPOSSIBLE! even WITH the cheats :)

You Have GOT to be kidding. the q2 music was great! I even took the tracks off the cd to listen to them w/o playing the game. Maybe your problem was that the volume was up too loud.

[Vectrex]

haha well there's no accounting for taste ;)

[dflash]

I am a composer and I turn a lot of music off as well, for the same reasons as already stated, so much of it is bad. Cheap and easy tools like Fruity Loops contribute greatly to this proliference of bad music. Everyone's kid brother suddenly thinks he is a composer.

It is often interesting to me to read that some indie developers slap together a quick loop or two personally (when music is not their expertise) for their game, when they wouldn't treat other areas of the project that way. If it is important enough to be included, then it should be important enough to be done well.

If things like budget or file size become an issue, a small amount of quality music used in the right spots can help the overall presentation, like in a start up screen or small themes used in tandem with sound effects.

Don't think I am just lobbying for my craft, if you can't afford good music or write and execute it yourself, leave it out.

[ErikH2000]

I am a composer and I turn a lot of music off as well, for the same reasons as already stated, so much of it is bad. Cheap and easy tools like Fruity Loops contribute greatly to this proliference of bad music. Everyone's kid brother suddenly thinks he is a composer.

It is often interesting to me to read that some indie developers slap together a quick loop or two personally (when music is not their expertise) for their game, when they wouldn't treat other areas of the project that way. If it is important enough to be included, then it should be important enough to be done well.
I get irritated with the "instant composer" mentality as well. It's fine and well to chop-shop a bunch of samples together with one of these programs, but when people put on airs about it... ugh. Ask these guys if they could write classical music with their software. "Uh... I got a Beethoven's 5th sample I could throw in there."

Still, you have to see it from the indie developer point of view. Typically we've got a pocket money budget that precludes hiring a musician. Although everyone would love to commission music for their game, it's one of the first corners to cut. Why? Because although players undoubtedly have a reaction to the music, it is simply not weighted as heavily as graphics and gameplay. With a tiny bit of proficiency the insta-DJ software gets you bland, soulless music that won't really help or hurt you. To an untrained, undemanding ear, it can sound pretty decent. And game music plays in the background, so people tend to pay much less attention to it. By some accounts, what you actually want is bland, soulless music so that the player can listen to it longer without being overpowered by it.

I also think royalty-free music, the other common indie alternative, suffers from the same problems. Almost all of it sounds polished but lifeless. My theory is that there are talented musicians out there that put their throwaway music into the royalty-free pile, and keep the good stuff for themselves. I know, it's a weird theory. In any case, I think the royalty-free music out there is terrifically boring.
If things like budget or file size become an issue, a small amount of quality music used in the right spots can help the overall presentation, like in a start up screen or small themes used in tandem with sound effects.
That is a good idea. I wanted a memorable title screen tune, so I paid a guy to make this cool, harmonizing gregorian chant thing for my last game. I can see that if you couldn't afford interesting, quality music throughout the game, you could be strategic about using smaller amounts of commissioned work. If there is something about your game that really lends itself to some unique music, then a small amount of custom music could go a long way.
Don't think I am just lobbying for my craft, if you can't afford good music or write and execute it yourself, leave it out.
I wouldn't go that far. If the music is bad, then leave it out. But I think it's a reasonable option to include "okay" music. I'm seeing your side of it: music in indie games could be much, much better. The economics are just fighting against it though.

-Erik

[soniCron]

I am a composer and I turn a lot of music off as well, for the same reasons as already stated, so much of it is bad. Cheap and easy tools like Fruity Loops contribute greatly to this proliference of bad music.
Hey now. I, too, am a composer. I've been writing music for around 16 years, and my production software of choice is Fruity Loops. I am quite versed with more advanced packages, such as Cubase and Sonar, but I prefer Fruity Loops' ease of use. Check out this song: The Night Before (http://www.solaristudios.com/the-night-before.mp3) It's quite incomplete, as I just exported it to show you I know what I'm talking about, so it'll end abruptly. But I think you'll get my point.

Everyone's kid brother suddenly thinks he is a composer.
Now, this I agree with. But I think the culprit is less a program such as Fruity Loops, and more like:

eJay
MTV Music Generator
ACID (though it has legit purposes as well)


SHAMELESS PLUG: I know this should go into the "For Hire" section, but if anyone needs some music for their game, I would be more than happy to help out. I can write literally any genre of music (however, my guitar is in the shop right now, so keep that in mind). I am out of a job right now and any extra money would be wonderful, so prices can be negotiated. I'd be very pleased if someone were to contact me. ;)

[dflash]

ErikH2000-

I guess to an average person, having some type of generic music might be better than not having music on a presentation level. Although I know that average people tend to react strongly to music that they dislike.

I think your theory on royalty free music is close if not right on. By definition it is fairly anonymous - it is meant to be used for various applications. Not to get too philosophical here, but as a result it is intrinsicly lacking soul. It is generic. Although it obviously has a place in the market, and is a viable solution for some. Anyway, I'm not sure that we 'keep' the best stuff for ourselves, but I think that people who do royalty free music most likely have better stuff in them. It takes a different situation to develop it.

I understand that budgets are tight on indie games, and I am not suggesting everyone needs to spend top dollar for music, just that with certain types of games I'm not sure that music isn't an important part of the game. It is just a different way of thinking. If everyone is cutting corners with it, I think someone who doesn't has a chance for his game to stand out a little more, as the effect of music is more instantaneous than gameplay.

soniCron-

I didn't mean you can't produce good music with FruityLoops. I just meant the cost and ease lend themselves to people who want to be composers thinking they are because they sequenced two premade loops together.

[Davaris]

Has anyone thought of putting an mp3 player in their game so people can select their own list of tracks to play?

[ErikH2000]

Has anyone thought of putting an mp3 player in their game so people can select their own list of tracks to play?
DROD has a text file that people can edit to put their own MP3/OGG/WAVs in. Some players really like it. It would be nicer to have an in-game UI for specifying, but this is a simple way to let people customize music.

-Erik