The Role Of Procedural Music In A Gamer'S Video Game Performance
Over the past few decades, video games have become more and more prominent in everyday life. They have become a popular hobby, especially with young adults. The average amount of time American gamers play per week is approximately 6-7 hours, about one hour per day. Currently, there are no studies which suggest this average amount playing time has any negative effects on the player. In fact, “Most college students said that going online to join a networked game is a good way to meet people or socialize with friends”. Americans make up a large amount of the audience who play video games, and approximately 58% of Americans play regularly. As of 2015, the average gamer was around 30 years old, and they had at least 13 years of gaming experience. However, recent studies show that more and more people are picking up video games at a younger age.
There is a great amount of history behind gaming, and it will only continue to evolve in unimaginable ways. Video games first became available in American homes in May of 1972, when the popular game Pong was released. When Pong debuted, it was included the Magnavox Odyssey, the first home video game console. Pong expanded into an arcade game by the developers and publishers Atari Inc, on November 29, 1972, making it one of the earliest arcade video games. Pong is a two dimensional table tennis game where the gamer is in control of a tennis paddle that can move vertically to hit a ball onto the opposing player’s side. The goal for the player is to score more points than their opponent, which is either computer generated or a second player, and the points are earned when the gamer or their foe is unable to return the ball to the nother. Pong, the Magnavox Odyssey, and Atari Inc. inspired other companies to start making video games and consoles due to their success.
When Pong and the Magnavox Odyssey became successful, other companies began to create new and improved video game consoles. In the course of 20 years, many new and improved gaming consoles were created. These consoles include: The Atari 7800, Neo Geo, Sega Dreamcast, the Game Boy Advance, the Super Nintendo, and more. As better consoles were released, video game graphics, connection speed, and especially music were greatly improved upon. However, this was just the start of video game consoles. As time went on, Atari stopped making games and consoles altogether, while Sega stopped making consoles and instead decided to just create games. Around the time Sega and Atari stopped making consoles, companies such as Microsoft and Sony wanted to enter the gaming business. Sony made the Playstation in 1994, while Microsoft followed shortly after and created their console, the Xbox, in 2002. Playstation originally began making handheld consoles, but have evolved into making home consoles, such as the PS3 and the PS4. Microsoft continued to make home consoles instead of handhelds, and will most likely stick to their specialty.
Nintendo, on the other hand, makes both handhelds and home consoles, and Nintendo’s newest system, the Nintendo Switch, can be used both ways. As of 2018, Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo are the three biggest companies that are continuing to change the way people and experience video gaming. Although consoles are very important to the advancement of gaming, the video games themselves have also evolved over time. In the 1980s, arcade games were the easiest to access and play. Arcade games like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Centipede were very popular during this time. A specific genre of arcade games, called space shooters, were also prominent. Space shooters like Galaga, Space Invaders, and Asteroids were some of the most popular games of this genre and time period. When gaming moved away from arcades and more into home consoles and handhelds around the 2000s, various genres were created and expanded upon.
The main video game genres of the 2000s are: Platformers, Puzzle games, Fighting Games, Role Playing Games, and First Person Shooters (FPS). Platformers, a popular genre for old and young gamers alike, include Super Mario Bros, Sonic, and Shovel Knight. Fighting games, competitive games with a dedicated fan base, include Street Fighter, Super Smash Bros, and Mortal Kombat. RPGS, a genre with phenomenal characters, include The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, and the Elder Scrolls Series. Puzzle Games, a genre that is niche but still played, include Dr. Mario, the Portal franchise, and the most popular puzzle game, Tetris. The final genre is FPS games which became popular to play on computers and home consoles alike. Popular FPS games include Call of Duty, Counter Strike, and Overwatch.
As video games progressed, so did the music that accompanied them. This music in video games is called procedural music. As the player advances through the game, the audio changes with his/her actions, successes/failures or other events in the game. Procedural music has a similar effect that music in movies has. For example, when the shark is approaching the kids in the movie “Jaws”, intense and frightening music plays. Procedural music has the same effect in video games, which changes the gamer’s stance or emotions on something related to the video game. Over the past 45 years, procedural music has evolved greatly, and has changed the video game experience. Different types of procedural music are identified based on the different pitch, instrumental parts, and the overall structure of the composition. Various composers of video games use different techniques to make the themes of their games feel unique and easily recognizable. The main reason music evolved however, was because of the evolution of soundchips. A sound chip is a circuit designed to produce a specific sound. The original sound chips only produced sounds of simple “bleeps and bloops”, used in the 1970s in games like Atari’s Pong. As technology evolved, however, the sound chips became more advanced, which allowed creators and composers of video game music to become more unique and expressive. In the 1980s, background music in video games became a lot more common, and it started to communicate different feelings to the player. For example, when time is running out in Super Mario on the NES, the music speeds up, signifying to the gamer that they have to hurry in order to complete the specific level. Another tactic composers used and still use is a change of key. For example, the game “Battle of Olympus”, changes keys when the player has to travel to temples, and the music makes the temple seem creepy and mysterious.
In the 1990s, musical technology improved greatly, which allowed composers to become even more creative, while also being able to produce more gaming tunes. Computers like the Sony Mega Drive began to include better sound chips, allowing video game music to become catchier and have a greater overall sound. The improved sound chips included new electronic effects, a clearer sound for basslines, and other musical aspects. This improved gaming music a lot, and it made certain composers famous in video game communities. Some of these composers are Yuzo Koshiro, who made techno soundtracks for the Streets of Rage and The Revenge of Shinobi Series, and Koji Kondo, who made soundtracks for The Legend of Zelda, Star Fox, and the Super Mario Bros. Series. These composers were known for making catchy, repetitive songs for their franchises, and these soundtracks are still critically acclaimed today. In the early 2000s, an innovative technology was created, called the Dolby Digital software. This software as well as many others, allowed video game soundtracks to be longer and more complex, as opposed to being repetitive which was common in 90’s video games. These advanced softwares gave composers an opportunity to improve their music’s quality and emotion.
More and more gaming composers are now gaining recognition due to their recent compositions. These composers include: Akihiko Yoshida, Toby Fox, Mick Gordon, Daniel Rosenfeld, Darren Sugg, etc. With new gaming projects and consoles yet to come, composers will have opportunities to be in the limelight. Video games and the music that comes with them are unique, and they go together quite well. A video game might be popular and successful, but when a player is assisted with procedural music, the game provides an even better and improved experience.
