Jeremy-Soule
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SOE Live 2014: Discussing EQN and Landmark music with Jeremy Soule
Who wouldn't want to talk with Jeremy Soule? This composer has brought to life myriad games through his music, both single-players and MMOs alike (even a number of zombie games!). Luckily for Norrathian fans, his attention is now focused solely on EverQuest Next and Landmark, where the worlds are shaping his music while his music, in turn, helps shape those worlds. I had the opportunity to sit down with Soule at SOE Live to discuss the new combat piece revealed during the keynote and delve into his inspirations for the upcoming games' musical scores. He also shared a bit about the composition method he is developing.
Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars Eye of the North's soundtrack
The final Guild Wars soundtrack not only took the first game out in style but instantly became one of the best of the series to date. I'm not willing to put it above Prophecies, but it's not too far behind, either. As a whole, it's a wonderful symphonic journey through new lands and new themes, and just about every track is quite listenable. You can't deny that this is Guild Wars to its very core, as composer Jeremy Soule only adds on to the franchise's legacy rather than supplants it with a different direction. Even so, it represents a mastery that wasn't quite there in past albums. If I listened to this soundtrack without knowing its source, I would have pegged it as a major motion picture release rather than a video game with angry bears. It was definitely a difficult score to pick a mere six examples from; I'd recommend that soundtrack enthusiasts listen through its entirety. For a Guild Wars 2 player, it's really interesting to go back and hear the early versions of tracks that Soule would later reprise for the sequel.
Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars 2's living story soundtrack
I'm going to make a bold statement here that might net me some haters, but here goes: I think that Guild Wars 2 is better off now that it's cast off Jeremy Soule and moved on to in-house composers. Soule's soundtrack was great in parts, but he's not the be-all, end-all of good video game music. And his company's unexplained decision to yank the soundtrack from its store (and not even offer a digital version) irks me beyond the telling of it. Good luck finding it! So today I'm going to give tribute to the two men who have been forging ahead -- spectacularly, I might add -- with scoring Guild Wars 2's ongoing living story updates. Maclaine Diemer and Leif Chappelle have been whipping up a wide variety of tunes to go with the various story elements and events. To ArenaNet's credit, the studio has been posting these downloadable tracks for free on SoundCloud. And while rumor has it that Diemer and Chappelle are already composing music for season two, I thought it'd be worthwhile to go back and share some of my favorites from their season one portfolio. I won't be dipping into Super Adventure Box, however, as we did that last year.
Jukebox Heroes: Elder Scrolls Online's soundtrack
The Elder Scrolls soundtrack is pretty well-known and highly regarded, even outside of our tiny field of video game music enthusiasts. That's what you get when you have smash hit games and a conductor who knows what he's doing. Jeremy Soule helmed the musical side of the franchise from Morrowind through Skyrim, but with the MMO, that streak is broken. Soule returned only for the main theme and then headed off for more SOEish pastures, leaving Brad Derrick (Warhammer Online) and Malukah to carry on the legacy with Elder Scrolls Online. I think that they did a fine job. It took me a while to listen through the 47-track album (and how awesome is it that it got released?), and afterward I let it stew in my brain for a bit. During a discussion with friends, I realized that while it's beautiful, there's little here that really pops out the way that past Elder Scrolls scores did. I think the music here would do a great job to enhance the gameplay experience, but on its own, it is pleasant and often lukewarm. It's also a soundtrack that I could play from beginning to end without it grating on my nerves, which is another testament to how it goes down the ear canals smoothly. There's a good sense of cohesiveness and atmosphere, even if it lacks the rabble-rousing tracks that I was hoping to hear. Let's dig in!
Landmark updates testing blueprint
EverQuest Franchise Lead Dave Georgeson critted Landmark testers with a wall of text late last night, updating the community on the plans for the game's features rollout over the next four months. To sum up the huge list: Early May: The addition of oceans, cave networks, Player Studio, and some quick fixes to help new players catch up such as a progression path diagram and the placement of basic crafting tables at the Hub. Late May: The team will add customer service tools, "crafting 2.0," treasure chests (and loot!), voice chat, underwater effects, map improvements, a minimap, and lots more music from Jeremy Soule. June: June will see a personal interface for Player Studio put in, the advent of glass and water as a building material, a revamp to the claim system, improved character creation, resource swapping, a death system, shields, recipe books, achievements, "chat 2.0," the fog of war on the map, and a "surprise feature." July: By the middle of summer, Landmark will introduce ensemble outfit pieces, the combat system, pathing, craftable abilities, physics, monsters, SOEmote, and bodies of water other than oceans. August: The last month on the blueprint will contain (for now) building tool refinements, mounts, and dynamic water.
Landmark Live showcases tool and template upgrades, offers sneak peek of water
As announced in the latest livestream, Landmark's weekly beta update was pushed out until Thursday in order to get new systems ready to deploy into the game. (Sadly, none of them includes water, although players did get a sneak peak of it!) Today, players will be able to utilize the new tool upgrading system, the new detailed template interface, and the claim gallery. The tool upgrade system adds a level of depth to crafting, allowing players to increase the stats of all tools made after the update launches. Unlike the initial craft that has elements of RNG dictating the final product, the upgrade system shows players exactly how the tool will be altered. The template interface provides many more details, including which and how many materials are needed for each build and which props are involved, and even it provides a screenshot for ease of reference. Also utilizing the screenshot feature is the new gallery section of the showcase; in or out of game, players will be able to search and view claims by tag or owner name, see where they are located, and upvote them. If you missed the special sneak peek of the first phase of water (oceans) or you want to hear even more details about the impending update or other tidbits (like upcoming changes to the EQ Worlds app, including Landmark-themed games and exclusive Jeremy Soule music), you can watch the entire livestream below.
In-game weather is really important to the EQN Landmark community
EQN Landmark's latest roundtable video, hosted by SOE senior brand manager Omeed Dariani and senior producer Terry Michaels, is all about in-game weather. With the new technology behind the game, Michaels explains, SOE can make weather a major gameplay factor. Dariani says that the Landmark community responded with a resounding desire for immersion and for weather to be "a real part of the world." That said, Michaels explains that weather is not on the immediate roadmap for the next few months. It's a core system, he explains, "but it's not something that needs to come in before groups or guilds." Michaels also suggests that Jeremy Soule's music score will change based on seasonal or weather variations. Click past the cut to see the full discussion via SOE's latest roundtable video.
Composer Jeremy Soule reiterates EverQuest Next exclusivity [Updated]
Composer Jeremy Soule won't be going back to Tyria, as he reminded fans today that he has signed a contract to exclusively create MMO music for EverQuest Next and EverQuest Next Landmark. On his Facebook page, Soule responded to a fan's query about his future projects: "No, I won't be returning to Guild Wars. EverQuest has an exclusive with me for the future projects that involve MMOs. [Guild Wars] was a good experience over many years. As with all good things, it had to come to an end." Soule was the main composer for Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2. He has also contributed to The Elder Scrolls Online main theme but will not be doing any other music for that title. [Thanks to Bogotter for the tip!] [Update 3/12/2014: Soule's agent has contacted us to clarify that his exclusivity to the EverQuest games is lime-limited and is unrelated to his abbreviated work on ESO. We may yet see him return to the Elder Scrolls franchise in the future!]
Jukebox Heroes: More of Guild Wars 2's soundtrack
It's been well over a year since I last touched on Guild Wars 2's OST, Super Adventure Box aside. Wow, has it really been that long? Sometimes it seems as if it just came out! At this point in the game's lifespan, there are two categories of music that you'll find: the Jeremy Soule original soundtrack and the in-house pieces done by Maclaine Diemer and Leif Chappelle. I'm going to wrap up my favorite Soule selections in this column and leave the latter category for a later column. Let's get down to making out with our ears, shall we? Here are six more great Guild Wars 2 tracks that are among my personal favorites.
SOE Live 2013: Thursday keynote announces expansions, release dates, and more
SOE Live 2013 kicked off in the new Planet Hollywood venue with a keynote full of information as well as frivolity. The night started with a rap performance by a PlanetSide 2 player and continued with plenty of humor and even prize giveaways. Fan favorite Brasse, aka Linda Carlson, then lit up the stage (literally) in her PlanetSide 2-inspired Dwarven armor set and plugged Player Direct, a way for player-made gaming videos to gain more exposure. And then came the gaming news. Although even more details will be forthcoming as the convention progresses, there were some definite highlights shared by SOE CEO John Smedley, EverQuest Producer Thom Terrazas, and EverQuest II Producer Holly Longdale, including expansion announcements, release dates, and even some EverQuest Next tidbits.
Jukebox Heroes: Expansion themes
Main themes seem to be a strong favorite among video game music fans (and even the casual set), but I've talked about them a few times already. So instead of puttering around with main MMO themes, why not give expansions some of the credit? Not every expansion gets its own theme tune, of course, but plenty do. We've covered a few of them in this column so far, including Riders of Rohan and EVE Online: Apocrypha. What we haven't done is spend an entire week looking at these upstart themes and see how they compare to the originals. So strap on your headphones and prepare for symphonic excellence. Here are six great MMO expansion themes that deserve a few minutes of your time!
Jukebox Heroes: Starting your MMO music collection
I love seeing people turned on to MMO music, particularly after it's gotten such a bad rap over the years. But for the new fan, it can be a daunting proposition to start up a collection. After all, it's not as if you can go down to your local vinyl shop, peruse a stack of 45s, and come out with a full set of SOE's greatest hits. Only a fraction of MMO scores are available for purchase these days, with the rest being free, packaged in with collector's editions, out of print, or just tucked away inside of game files somewhere. So how do you get started on building up a robust library of MMO music? If you don't have deep pockets, which scores would I recommend you pick up first? Well, my friend, I've given it some thought and have put together a guide to six essential purchases that will get you off to a great start. Don't thank me; thank music. And also me because I did this hard work.
Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars Factions' soundtrack
East Asian-themed music in MMOs is something that I generally welcome. Even if the title isn't an Asian MMO, chances are that sooner or later developers like to work an Eastern zone, class, or city into the game -- and with that comes a specific sound. I'm by no means educated on what instruments are used in these tunes, but the result is so distinctive that you can't help but think of the region. Guild Wars: Factions definitely drew upon the Orient for its theme, and composer Jeremy Soule returned to create a score that would paint a picture of Cantha. Unfortunately, I don't think he was up to the task. While technically sufficient, Factions' score is definitely lacking in the grandeur of Prophecies and the basic catchiness necessary to elevate a soundtrack out of the crowd. The best I can say is that none of the tracks is horrible to hear, but the album as a whole is actually a bit bland and forgettable. I'm by no means besmirching Soule here. His previous and subsequent Guild Wars projects are heads and shoulders above this one, and everyone has an off day. Perhaps Asian music just wasn't his forte. In any case, I sifted vigorously to discover six tracks that best represent Cantha and its people.
Guild Wars 2 composer Soule kickstarting symphony project
Here's an interesting Kickstarter wrinkle for you. Instead of funding the usual indie sandbox game, how would you feel about contributing to the first symphonic work from legendary game music maestro Jeremy Soule? Soule is the prolific composer behind more than 60 commercial scores including memorable soundtracks for Guild Wars 2, World of Warcraft's Mists of Pandaria expansion, the Elder Scrolls series, and BioWare classics like Neverwinter Nights, Baldur's Gate, and Knights of the Old Republic. Soule's next project is called Symphony No. 1 The Northerner (Opus 1), and according to the Kickstarter page, it marks his "first foray into the grand traditions of classical music. This symphonic work is planned to feature live players and singers in addition to the innovative technologies for which Jeremy has become known." Soule's project currently sits at about 75 percent of its $10,000 goal with 30 days to go.
Jukebox Heroes: A few of my favorite MMO soundtracks
I could hear some of you thinking in disbelief last week, "If Age of Conan isn't one of your top MMO scores, what is? And just how much am I not sending you a Christmas card this year, you loser?" You were kind enough to just think it and not say it, but I could hear it even so. As we've mentioned countless times in this column, musical tastes are subjective. What's appealing to you may not be for me and vice-versa. What more is that musical tastes -- and favorites -- are always shifting around. I listen back to the jams that I enjoyed in the '90s and absolutely pity my younger self for such a deficiency in his musical diet. So I thought that I'd take a week off our normal soundtrack reviews to bring to you my current top six favorite soundtracks. This list comes with the caveat that it's always subject to future changes as I continue to listen through more soundtracks for this column.
Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars Prophecies
What's that, you say? A cheap tie-in, you say? Oh, pish posh. It just so happens that I appreciate the rich oeuvre of Jeremy Soule, and the alignment of the planets is... OK, it's a cheap tie-in. I can't help it; Guild Wars has been on my mind this past week, and since the full Guild Wars 2 soundtrack has yet to ship for DirectSong, this will do. Besides, as we well know, music doesn't age at the same pace as games. So why not hit up a soundtrack for the first Guild Wars while we dive into the sequel? At the risk of understatement, I think it's safe to say Jeremy Soule is somewhat well-known in the field of gaming. As a composer, he's tackled projects like Knights of the Old Republic, Icewind Dale, and the last three Elder Scrolls titles. In the Guild Wars community, he is the voice of the musical soul of the game. His compositions are the stuff of heaven: full, ethereal, dreamy. It's almost impossible to separate Soule's work on Guild Wars: Prophecies from the game, especially for those who played Prophecies extensively since its 2005 release. I'll be eager to digest and report on his newest work when it arrives, but until then, let's sample the highlights of his first foray into Tyria.
Guild Wars 2 makes its first soundtrack single available on iTunes
Are you fond of MMO music? If you're not, then you probably won't care that Guild Wars 2 has put its first single from the soundtrack on iTunes. If you're a regular reader of our Jukebox Heroes column, however, that announcement is probably figurative music to your ears. (The actual music to your ears being, you know, the actual music in question.) Fans of Jeremy Soule's work on Guild Wars 2 can now head to iTunes to purchase Fear Not This Night, an anthem of the Sylvari people as sung by the mystical Pale Tree. If you're quick on the draw, the song is available until Monday for just 99 cents. After Monday, it's priced at $1.29. Either way, if you want a taste of the soundtrack before springing for the whole collection (which clocks in at four discs in total), you can head on over and get the first song.
Guild Wars 2 soundtrack available for $30
Just when the wait seems unbearable, something comes along to offer a bit of respite. Although fans eager for Guild Wars 2 still have almost two months to wait to dive into the actual game, they can immerse themselves in the world via music sooner that that; the official GW2 soundtrack is now available for purchase from DirectSong.com for $29.99. Offering even more music than the "best of" soundtrack CD in the collector's edition, this four-disk deluxe set is filled with previously unreleased music. Unfortunately for the digitally minded, there is no download available. While supplies last, each copy ordered will be personally autographed by composer Jeremy Soule, who also did all of the music in the original game. The set will ship within four weeks from the date of purchase, giving quick fans a couple weeks of musical sustenance while waiting for launch.
The Perfect Ten: MMO Jukebox
Earlier this year, I got to expose my musically nerdy side to you all in a one-two shot of MMO theme song countdowns. The truth is that I'm just a huge sucker for video game music, and as such, I've collected a wide range of MMO scores to bolster my MP3 player. I know that we players tend to be pretty vocal about turning off MMO music at some point, usually due to extreme repetition. Unfortunately, that seems to leave a bad association with this music in our minds, and I don't feel that reputation is deserved. MMO scores can be just as good -- if not better -- than their counterparts in film or other video games. So I've decided that every so often I'm going to devote a full Perfect Ten to sharing my favorite MMO music. I'm always open to suggestions, of course, so if you know of a track that you feel really should be in the next list, send me an email or leave it in the comments!
Mists of Pandaria Beta: New music files uncovered
Wondering what your experience in Pandaria is going to sound like? Me, too! I've been happily playing the beta all along with my music turned up -- but unfortunately, most of Pandaria has been absent of any kind of musical track. The few pieces we have been treated to from the Wandering Isle and the login screen had me firmly convinced from the get-go that I wanted the soundtrack, but I've just had a little more convincing. The folks over at MMO-Champion dug up a surprise over the holiday weekend: a full 30 minutes of musical tracks found on a recent beta build. The track names aren't really spoiler-related, they're just named after various races and zones in Pandaria, so you can feel free to listen without fear of plot spoilers. The Sha piece is particularly haunting, but all of the pieces have a certain beautiful flair to them. And if one of these tracks reminds you of another game, you may be right. Joining the team for Mists of Pandaria is none other than Jeremy Soule, a name you might recognize. His most recent work includes the soundtrack for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. If you're interested in hearing what musical treats Mists has to offer, give the video above a listen. As always, remember this is datamined content, so it may not make it into the official game -- but if the video is any indication, we're in for a treat. I can't wait to hear the rest of the music. It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
