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Is there still a place in gamedev for composer like me ?

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4 comments, last by nsmadsen 6 years, 1 month ago

Hi guys, I'm creating music for couple of years now, since I'm selling a lot on stock websites, I can't get into the big gaming project and I wonder if this is my music quality or just "unity asset store" and "unreal marketplace" just destroyed composers and graphic designers as well. Lately I started to compose longer tracks and huge channels like "Epic Music World" started to promote my music, but I have nothing from this except some spotlight, overall people like my creations, but still looking for this huge freelance job. Here are my latest tracks if you want to listen, Best Regards, Marcin Klosowski

 

 

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Hi Marcin,

I'm not sure if this can help you but here is my experience from the other side. We are making a platformer game and we definitely wanted unique music for it. This January we hired a composer but with lack of experience we didn't know where to find composers so we just picked someone in our country since it was the easiest.

Since then the project is public we don't have much views yet but it's on steam and twitter. Over the last 4 month 6 composer wrote us letters offering their work. I guess that is how it works, you need to hunt down projects watch steam and gamedev sites for opportunity.

I write a list of composers so that when we start our next game we can select from more composers. I've added your name to it.

Anyway your music is great, keep up the good work and have luck!

Thanks Gezu for your kind words I definitely try to find some interesting projects on steam and the other sites. Best regards, Marcin

Hi

 

Becoming a pro composer is hard because there is so much offer compared to the demand. You usually see much more composers creating topics about offering their music for peanuts, than graphists or programmers. Not sure why... Music seems to have this 'fun' factor to create, so people are ok with only their name in their credits, while most developers/artists won't work for free.

I recommend stopping working with music catalogs as they destroy your own business, and they won't get you enough money to make it sustainable.

 

I tried to compose for videogames some years ago (before becoming a full time software developer), I think the problem is related to the tools composers use nowadays .They are so powerful they allow nearly anyone without real talent to make "acceptable" music - IMO more easily than Photoshop would allow a noob to make acceptable graphics -. And that's partly because the expected music level in the industry is pretty low. Hollywood music is nothing close to what classical composers used to create. Most film scores are laughable. Videogame music was much closer until recently when it started to sound like film music. I think we need to create better music and make everyone agree it's better than the generic stuff ! :) 

First off, your music sounds great! You've clearly got talent and know what you're doing! 

Secondly, game music is quite different from linear music due to the interactive aspects of gaming. Study up on middleware and how game engines work. 

Thirdly, you mention looking for a "huge" freelance job. But without previous game credits, it's going to be harder to land a huge game job out of the gate. Not impossible, just harder. Perhaps you need to adjust your scope. 

Finally, consider the type of music you're offering to game clients. Sometimes folks may not want the style of music you're offering. Much of your stuff sounds great for trailers and TV spots but is it good for an in-game experience? You may need to re-evaluate what you're offering and what most game clients seem to want. (With the caveat that game projects and needs can vary greatly.) 

Listening to the three tracks you've posted - they all sound great. But they're all the same basic genre, intensity and vibe. Some clients may want to see how versatile you can be in your writing. Can you create light-hearted, whimsical tracks? Can you create simple, ambient tracks? You can obviously create huge, epic, sweeping tracks. Can you write in ethnic styles? Can you interweave core themes across a whole soundtrack and have it be cohesive? 

I'm not trying to talk down to you - hopefully it doesn't come off that way. You're clearly very talented and do great work. But when changing markets you always need to consider the new needs, trends and tech limitations of that new market. I hope that helps! 

Nate

Nathan Madsen
Nate (AT) MadsenStudios (DOT) Com
Composer-Sound Designer
Madsen Studios
Austin, TX

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