Visuals, narrative, and players are some of the most important factors we consider during game development, but one of the most essential elements above all else is music.

Music can significantly impact the game, how people play it, their experience, and even their mood.

We decided to try a bit of an experiment. Below, we have linked to a tweet that contains our newly developed lobby music for SHADOW WAR, the current title we are working on. Hit play and listen to it while you read the article. Did it add to the experience? Let us know your thoughts. If you have come to this article via this tweet, then we hope you already have the music playing.

Lobby Music Tweet

Music doesn't just refer to background ambience; its power can change players' entire experience of the game.

If you took part in one of our recent playtests, you will have already seen how we have started to incorporate music into SHADOW WAR.

In this blog post, we will examine the main effects of music and why they are so important for game development and player experience.

The Research Behind Music For Video Games

Research confirms that music can directly affect the game and its players.

Studies show that it can cause people to get twice as many points with the sound playing on versus playing off.¹ Other studies have also shown that video game music can spike cortisol further when playing games.²

The research behind the impact of video game music is also known as ludo musicology.

There are two ways music tends to be used in game development, according to these two models.

SCI model - The SCI model includes sensory, challenge, and imaginative immersion. An example is loud, immersive sounds and screens close to a player's face.

ALI model - This stands for musical effect, literacy, and interaction. It’s all about the emotional connection music can create for players.

Effects Of Music For Games

Player Performance

Data also shows that music can improve player performance. As players become familiar with certain musical cues, they make actions and decisions faster in the games.

However, extra arousal in video games can also have adverse effects. Take this study by Cassidy and MacDonald (2009), who tested people playing a driving game with car sound effects alone or with car sound and music.

People playing with music drove the fastest but made the most significant mistakes.

Player Experience

It’s known that music in games can facilitate specific experiences for players; this could be a high-pitched bell noise when you win something.

If game music is consistent throughout, this makes the player immersed
in the new world and have a stronger emotional connection to certain elements.

The Psychological Impact Of Video Game Music

The psychology behind video game music has been explored extensively within game development.

It’s well known that music can activate our pleasure receptors, so a game with good music will keep us returning for more.

For example, during the game development for SHADOW WAR, we learned the power of emotional connection to different types of music.

Josef, Audio Director, SHADOW WAR, explained, ‘To create a truly immersive experience, you must appease all possible senses.’

He said, ‘SHADOW WAR takes you into a dynamic universe, even more complex than ours, since it's our world PLUS magic and technology we have yet to only conjure up in our minds.’

Some parts of SHADOW WAR have classical slow music to invite curiosity, drama, and attention. In contrast, other parts have R&B pop to spark arousal and motivation and, most of all, tell a story.

Josef added, ‘Creating the music for SHADOW WAR is some of the most challenging and inspiring things to do as a composer and producer. It touches on many cultural variations, many aspects of our human experience, with a dark undertone of a dystopia.’

Let’s explore some individual effects video game music has on psychology below:

- Memory - Often, games have certain music, which brings players nostalgia for old games they used to play. This powerful emotional connection can evoke more memory than visual stimulation.

- Replayability - Just like memory, some soundtracks behind games are part of why many of us love replaying games. Sometimes, the music is worth listening to more than playing the game!

- Immersion - Sound design in game development tells a deeper story than one could imagine. It helps strengthen the atmosphere you are trying to depict through the imaging.

- Narrating - Game music is a vital part of storytelling; it’s an artistic opportunity to add more subtext to the game without using words or visuals. Often, music for games can add more to the emotion of a story than words can.

Music For Game Development - Critical Component

During the game development phase of SHADOW WAR, video game music development was taken very seriously because it is such an important part of the gaming experience.

Josef, Audio Director at Patriots Division, commented, _‘Creating a coherent and immersive gaming experience is all about context.’_

He added, _‘When composing a piece of music for the menus, for example, it's important to set the tone for the game right away. I'm also introducing strong musical themes that induce emotional responses and can be memorable.’_

We’ve carefully selected several tracks throughout the game to add extra motivation, emotion, and stimulation while playing; by carefully choosing the right music, we know this will add even more substance to the story and experience.

Josef summed this up well, _‘When composing music for the in-game experience, I'm going for a much less intrusive approach. The music should evoke an appropriate emotional response to what's happening in the game, often a sense of urgency or stress, but I deliberately avoid melodies or "top lines". The reason for the music is to put the player in an emotional state and not attract attention from what's happening visually.’_

One final area we have also examined is the role music plays in our marketing. For example, in the game, we tend to avoid lyrics as they can be pretty distracting. However, in our marketing, we have explored the use of music with lyrics to add to the experience and enhance message articulation.

You can get an idea of some of the types of background music we use from a marketing perspective in this game cinematic [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQENYLQMkE8). You can also read more about SHADOW WAR [here](https://www.shadowwar.com/blog/introduction), which features a scintillating tale of ordinary people who become extraordinary.

References:

1: Bluelable Labs

2: DOI