How Video Games Music Affects Us

[damselstone]

So I intend to post this on a few different forums but RacketBoy just seems to be a perfect place for this to get started - full of interesting and interested retro-gamers!

I am a games design masters student in the UK currently researching how video game music affects us as gamers. Without going into too much detail right here (I’m trying to avoid priming), the following is a link to a study I am conducting on video game music and player responses. If you feel interested in taking part, the survey will only take a maximum of 15 minutes. You must be 18 or older and you need to have had experiences playing video games, but there are no other requirements. However, the survey may end earlier for some, depending on the answers given.

Here's the link. You can only respond once.

https://openss.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/S ... uT1ZouhDBr


This is my first post on this forum, and don't want it to seem like I am doing a post-and-run - I would be really interested to hear any thoughts on the topic of game music, especially in regards to retro-gaming. How are you affected by game music?

Thanks!

[bmoc]

I really doubt a bot would use Qualtrics. Qualtrics is used heavily in higher ed. Also I wasn't asked for any personal information. More likely that he/she is interested in a very specific demographic and the survey ends early if you aren't in it.

[damselstone]

Hey! Thanks for having a look. Definitely not a bot, but the survey will end early based on certain answers in a screening process. Sorry if that felt a little buggy.

[pook99]

I'm not going to look at the survey but just to add to the topic, old video game music is hardwired into my brain and plays in my head all the time. I literally wake up to random video game music and sound effects playing in my head every day. I don't think modern music is necessarily worse than old music, I think the difference is I tend to play newer games with the sound off while watching tv/listening to podcasts and I typically play through newer games once so the music wont stick in my head like something like contra will which I have played through hundreds of times in my life.

The 2 exceptions to this are new super mario brothers which has very catchy music that gets caught in my head and punch out on wii, although the music is just remixes of old punch outs the sound effects of all the boxers gets stuck in my head randomnly, also when I am lifting heavy at the gym I tend to make bald bull esque sounds as my grunts.

[damselstone]

I'm not going to look at the survey but just to add to the topic, old video game music is hardwired into my brain and plays in my head all the time. I literally wake up to random video game music and sound effects playing in my head every day. I don't think modern music is necessarily worse than old music, I think the difference is I tend to play newer games with the sound off while watching tv/listening to podcasts and I typically play through newer games once so the music wont stick in my head like something like contra will which I have played through hundreds of times in my life.

The 2 exceptions to this are new super mario brothers which has very catchy music that gets caught in my head and punch out on wii, although the music is just remixes of old punch outs the sound effects of all the boxers gets stuck in my head randomnly, also when I am lifting heavy at the gym I tend to make bald bull esque sounds as my grunts.

This is really interesting! So what you're saying is that maybe it's just a matter of exposure to a particular soundtrack? I wonder if you'd feel the same way about modern soundtracks if you'd listened to them for the same amount of time as older titles. I think it's also interesting that you find sound effects can be as much of an earworm as the music...

For me there will be particular gaming moments that are always accompanied by the music that was playing at the time (this isn't always the game ost), and that just seems to make that moment more meaningful.

[pierrot]

That "8 years ago" question was weirdly specific, and even if you pick a few games it ends.

Yeah, this happened to me, too. I'm a bit curious if anyone on these boards would actually get to listen to any music.

[pook99]

I'm not going to look at the survey but just to add to the topic, old video game music is hardwired into my brain and plays in my head all the time. I literally wake up to random video game music and sound effects playing in my head every day. I don't think modern music is necessarily worse than old music, I think the difference is I tend to play newer games with the sound off while watching tv/listening to podcasts and I typically play through newer games once so the music wont stick in my head like something like contra will which I have played through hundreds of times in my life.

The 2 exceptions to this are new super mario brothers which has very catchy music that gets caught in my head and punch out on wii, although the music is just remixes of old punch outs the sound effects of all the boxers gets stuck in my head randomnly, also when I am lifting heavy at the gym I tend to make bald bull esque sounds as my grunts.

This is really interesting! So what you're saying is that maybe it's just a matter of exposure to a particular soundtrack? I wonder if you'd feel the same way about modern soundtracks if you'd listened to them for the same amount of time as older titles. I think it's also interesting that you find sound effects can be as much of an earworm as the music...

For me there will be particular gaming moments that are always accompanied by the music that was playing at the time (this isn't always the game ost), and that just seems to make that moment more meaningful.

I do think if I played video games today with the sound on and as frequently as I did the older games I would get their soundtracks stuck in my head, I have played bloodstained curse of the moon with the volume on several times and did find some of the tunes getting stuck in my head for a bit.

and yes, sound effects definitely get stuck in my head more so than music, especially repetive sounds that I hear alot while playing a game, besides the ones I listed above fighting game moves get stuck in my head like nothing else, after a playthrough of some snk games I find myself muttering stuff like kooh-ken and reppu-ken at random intervals.