It's been a while since I last was here. Hobbies tend to be pushed towards weekends, since that's the time of the week I actually have the space and time. Even though updates from my part are slightly further apart than before, I believe this just levitates the fact that I can press more goodies into each update chunk.

So, what would I like to talk about this time around? Well, one of my friends was playing a game on his laptop today, and by just hearing the glorious 8bit tunes (without looking at the screen) I got curious. Some old games have that nifty touch on their music side what makes this scene glow with the magic of nostalgia. The game was Lemmings by the way.

Henceforth, the theme of my update is game music. This brings forth a throng of really classic bits and bytes people in all ages whose been even remotely interested in video games, get goosebumps. Who can forget the the audible side from for example; Colonization, Command & Conquer, the Mario-series, Final Fantasy, Monkey Island, King's Quest and (let's not forget) Lemmings, just to mention a very very few.

The legend also lives on thanks to the godsend internet radio possibilities. There are many extremely nice sites out there that specializes in this genre through this powerful medium, either in their original form, or by making an art out of it in the form of remixes. Most of which are excellent. Overclocked Remix immediately comes to mind, a large community dedicated to arranging video and computer game music. If you fancy C64 tunes only, Slayradio is one of the choices you have, also with dedicated DJs and live shows. Amiga Remix on the other hand, gives you your daily fix of Amiga tunes, breeding life of the past - into the future. And who would I be if I forgot about VGMusic? Video Game Music celebrated their 10th (!!!!) anniversary on the 19th of December 2006, epitoming what is some of the internet's largest archive of video game music. At the time of writing they seem to feature a mindboggling 21493 music tracks from most consoles you can think of. Big hands everybody, big hands.

Some abandonware sites also carry their own sound section, where you can download and enjoy music from some of your favourite games. Abandonia's comes into mind, even though it's somewhat limited.

Even though we like to think that classic tunes only originates from the titles that are really old, remember that there are some never games too that shows promising feats. The last game I completed, Dreamfall: The longest Journey from the norwegian developer Funcom has a soundtrack that's really solid ([/nationalistic mode:off]. And who can forget Baldur's Gate, Diablo, Halo, the newer Gears of War, Call of Duty and the Grand Theft Auto-series ? The list literally goes on forever.

As you can see, game music is a powerful medium, cross platforms and time of making. Remember it next time you dive into the universe of gaming. For all you know, you might be experiencing a piece of history.

Links

(Updated 01.28.07 CET):
Overclocked Remix
Slay Radio
Amiga Remix
VGMusic (Video Game Music)
2A03.org, NES Music Archive
VORC; Video Game Music Or Chiptunes
Atari SAP Music Archive
Lemmings Music :)
Abandonia's Sound Section

Other

We over at The DOS Spirit have been juggling with flash and retro tunes. We call it "Retroplayer".
Here's a mix of some, please note flash player is required:

Legend of Kyrandia - Speech of the Land
SlaveOne - Arkanoid c64Vibe OC ReMix
DJ Arcas - Bubble Bobble Hill Billie Techno OC ReMix
Cuddly Battleship Kattywampus - Bubble Bobble West Side Homies OC ReMix
Outrun Passing Breeze OC ReMix

Hope that was food for thought, and don't forget to visit the updates above.
Have a happy weekend!