EPISODE 2: METAL, CHORAL, & DOOM ETERNAL
In contrast to the calmer, more introspective nature of a good bit of our last game, Death Stranding, in this episode we go extreme, and take a long, hard look at the soundscapes that came together for Doom ETERNAL. Unlike our last game, this one doesn't serve to make the player think too hard about any real-world problems, but what it DOES do is reflect the entirety of humanity's musical musings on the biblical Apocalypse. From the archaic ideas of the necessity of repentance, to Medieval use of music for worship, to the tongue-in-cheek obsession with apocalyptic destruction of the heavy metal scene and its various extreme offshoots, we're going to draw a line from basically the earliest ideas of inherent human guilt, all the way up to the modern day. And how appropriate, that a game all about Heaven and Hell working together to kill you would bring together so many different musical conceptions of the Apocalypse throughout time. There's no greater disaster than the end of the world.
EPISODE 1: THE FOUR SOUNDWORLDS OF DEATH STRANDING
Analysis and thought on video game music structured around immersion and narrative has increased greatly in recent years, but there's definitely a lot of work to still be done there. I wanted to come up with some way to demonstrate the connection between gameplay, narrative, music and real-life issues on a broader level. If art is meant to be a reflection of life, I would think that games would provide the among the MOST valuable mediums to create an experience forcing the player to grapple directly with the tough issues of life. In this, I ask: how does music serve as the bridge between the game and the real world? The answer, I hope, lies in these videos. Death Stranding, for those unfamiliar, is the latest creation of renowned game auteur Hideo Kojima, and puts the player in the midst of a sprawling story of ghosts, time travel, strange powers, terrorists, undead soldiers, secret government agendas, dopamine addicts, and monsters. And in the midst of it all, you play as...a postman. The game's story is so varied and enormous, and its narrative threads are so distinct, that it made the most sense to talk about it in terms of individual plotlines. But, as is often the case in Kojima's games, the fantasy doesn't get in the way of exploring some very real themes of alienation, isolation, societal dependence and war. So let's see how the game's Four Soundworlds help to reflect on the many issues the game poses.