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Best Music
Winner: Total Annihilation
"The soundtrack on the CD was done by a professional orchestra - and sounds incredible. It easily rivals Hollywood's best".... - Jeff Graber, GameSpot Player Review
Developer: Cavedog Entertainment
Publisher: Cavedog Entertainment
Review and Demo |
Beyond a doubt, Total Annihilation delivered this year's most outstanding original musical score in a computer game. The intense symphonic soundtrack stirs the emotions so much that some have gone so far as to criticize it for being too depressing. We can only marvel at how deftly it communicates the theme of the game, a war spanning thousands of years whose purpose has been all but forgotten as the last remaining survivors continue to fight. When you hear deliberate, desolate violins explode to life when shots are fired, the explosive battle theme hearkens everything from Williams' Star Wars to Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.
And it's no wonder the music is this good. Total Annihilation's soundtrack, composed by Cavedog's own Jeremy Soule, was performed by a 95-piece orchestra and a concert choir.
Runner-up: Age of Empires
"If you want a game that offers new challenges,...stunning graphics, and a music score that really draws you in, Age of Empires is for you." - By Len Goforth, GameSpot Player Review
As much as game music should be unassuming, characterized as pleasant yet unobtrusive, it also plays an important role. Music helps set the mood, planting the player's feet firmly in the setting, comfortably filling in quieter moments, and leading the charge when the action erupts. As strange as it may sound, some of the most memorable game music is hardly noticed while playing, yet the melodies stick with you after you're through.
Ensemble Studios, the developers of Age of Empires, seems to understand this well. Its composition for a game that spans the time since the beginning of civilization itself incorporates the primality of tom-toms and tribal "ooh-ahs" with the sounds of pan flutes and more modern instrumentation. The resulting score is as much a part of the game as the interface and graphics. The true test: Turn the music off while you play, and you'll know what we mean.
Next: Best Story
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