The impact of background music in video games
Music doesn't need to be advertised to have an impact when used in a game, therefore background music is important to consider. What if you went further and made it completely optional?
Despite my selection of Needledrops I’ve been picking out, I still feel every use of music has a significant affect on the game, as well as the reputation and feel reflected on the music outside of the game. So…what about background music?
My categorisation of ‘Background Music’.
Examples in Red Dead Redemption 2.
What about ‘Secret’ music?
1. My categorisation of ‘background music’
After writing about Red Dead Redemption, this had led me to think about multiple uses of music inside the game. It’s an established AAA game, and it has a huge soundtrack, with licensed music, background music, instrumental and covered music, used in a variety of ways. All of the sync agents / music superisors / game developers may categorise these differently, but I would split it into 3 primary categories:
Advertising Music:
These tracks are used in marketing materials, trailers, and promotional content. Their primary role is to capture the audience's attention and evoke the game's mood or theme. These tracks are unique as they are used both inside and outside of the game, often played in the main commercial trailers. These usually require a broader licensing agreement and the most budget. An example of this is “Mad World” used in both the Gears Of War 3 trailer and the game itself (Big spoiler alert).
Main Music:
This is integral to the game's narrative and is encountered during pivotal moments or main missions. The tracks are crucial in driving the story and enhancing the player's emotional engagement with the game. I’d classify these as ‘unavoidable’, but will instead say ‘main’ because that’s less negative. They focus on in-game use and work best when they align well with key game moments - see my previous post for evidence. An example of this is “Unshaken” by D’Angelo in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Background Music:
These tracks are used to enrich the game's atmosphere and are typically encountered in less prominent scenarios, such as shops, during exploration, or in secondary game scenes. They might not be as closely tied to the game's core narrative but are essential for creating a cohesive and immersive world. Licensing for these tracks can be more flexible and cost-effective, especially when dealing with ambient or mood-setting music.
Why did I break it down like this? I could have been conditioned from a music industry negotiation background that adding categories to music in games helps with understanding budget allocation and pricing per track. However, I see this more in the mechanical application of music in the game. I get it - that sounds dry, but where the music is going to be used determines its valuation both through the initial deal as well as the reflected value on its impact in popular culture. Making money through a sync is great, but producing unforgettable value through a moment is…priceless? That’s cheesy so let’s move on.
2. Examples in Red Dead Redemption 2
Swiftly changing subject, Red Dead Redemption 2’s entire soundtrack has so many use cases that we need to get specific today. Background music. Let’s go.
While "Red Dead Redemption 2" is rightly praised for its score and the strategic placement of licensed tracks, the game also skillfully incorporates older music into its 1899 setting, often using public domain songs. These public domain pieces, free from copyright constraints, enhance the game's historical authenticity. However, it's not always clear if arrangements with record labels were made for certain recordings. For instance, Georges Bizet's "Carmen, WD 31, Act 1: Habanera. 'L'amour est un oiseau rebelle'" composition is in the public domain, but specific recordings could still be under copyright, as seen in discussions on forums about the game's soundtrack.
But this same Reddit feed sits amongst many similar discussions on the internet, proving there is a demand to learn more about these scene-setting background tracks. It proves that any genre or type of track is appealing when appearing in certain contexts, in this case on a character’s gramophone playing randomly. Warner own this recording they reference in the reddit forum, which suggests there could have been a bigger deal with Warner for the game. Rockstar can therefore license from one party for multiple tracks that all have the same feel, and in turn benefit from people wanting to hear more and perhaps using these tracks as their gateway to similar music.
In my opinion, people listening to songs in shops in real life, is as important as people listening to tracks on gramophones in the wild west on a game. Music inclusion in a game lasts a pretty long time, especially a AAA game that won’t be forgotten as quick as Daniel Ek forgets about you if you have less than 1,000 streams. While real-life plays provide artists royalties through collection societies, video games offer extended exposure and cultural relevance, making them an attractive platform for artists, even if you or your music is only being played to expand the ambience of a moment.
How much ‘impact’ did the inclusion of these background tracks have? It added value to the game and character design of Dutch and his music taste, and there is anecdotal evidence through forum discussion that people want to listen to more of this type of song. It’s also great for record labels with catalogues of music. However it’s ‘impact’ is a little less predictable. For example, do people actually want to listen to that genre rather than the tracks , and therefore forgo the game’s selection as a gateway? Background music is essential when you need background music to play in the background, funnily enough, but from a music standpoint, is there something more impactful than ‘Background Music’.
3. What about ‘Secret’ Music?
Cambridge Dictionary defined ‘Impact’ as “to have a strong effect or influence on a situation or person“. I’m investigating how gaming companies can win ‘popular culture points’ with successful music placements, and music companies can win effective ‘exposure’ with placements - They seem to be correlated.
Here’s the thing right…background music in my above categorisation is too broad because, as I’ve been banging on for a few posts now, context of the use is the Midas touch of excellent placements. These placements lead to excellent reflection on how that track is remembered, and with approximately 100,000 tracks being added to streaming services every day and growing, being remembered is important.
Let’s flip everything on its head. We could go further and have another category, or sub category:
Secret Music:
These tracks are purely optional in the player experience and may not be discovered by the player. Secret music would encompass tracks that players might only encounter if they explore certain areas, engage in specific side quests, or make particular choices. These tracks are not just ambient background music; they're more like hidden gems that reward exploration and add depth to the gaming experience. They can serve as a delightful surprise for players who take the time to delve deeper into the game's world. Can be considered ‘Missable’ tracks.
Why have I created this category?
Secrecy = Scarcity
Let’s put this into perspective. Baldur’s Gate 3 won game of the year award last year. It’s a huge game, but at one point after months of release there was still two hour section of the game that no one had come across.
Can someone tell me the difference between a hard-to-find show that is exclusive, invite only and short notice, and an area in a video game that is difficult to find? Despite not having so many touch points it becomes a real achievement to get there, which I’d consider memorable.
I don’t often see these kind of placements happening, and my guess is that if you could choose to have your track played like “Unshaken” in Red Dead Redemption 2, unavoidable, why would you make your music optionally discovered? But then again, why would you only want to play to 60 people in an exclusive show when you could have made it ticketed and advertised and got a lot more exposure and money?
Portal 2 did this successfully by including the track “Exile Vilify” by the National in a secret area of the game. There are a fair few documented instances of gamers discovering The National via this song and this game which I will explore in a future post. There are surely many instances of music placed ‘secretly’ in games that I can’t think of right this second, so I’m going to add instances of ‘Secret music’ within my ‘Needledrops’ series to evidence this through case studies. Doesn’t that sound exciting!
All in all, secret music can have impact because music discovery in this way is being earned. Other players who don’t come across this may learn of this element of the game through discussion and forums. This community level discovery mirrors similar exclusive events that the music industry holds to its key ‘influencial’ mega fan base that distill this information and experience to others. There are clear similarities here so I’m going to investigate more examples in the future.
TLDR:
I categorise licensed game music into three types: Advertising Music (in and out of game uses), Main Music (big moments or in narrative), and Background Music (ambience). I bang on about how they’re all valuable. I also come up with another category called ‘Secret music’, where music has to be discovered or earned, leading to community-led influence and discovery - similar to ‘secret shows’ by artists for their mega fans. I hint at a future post…not so much of a secret though.