Developer PixelHive has shared some details about its game Kaze and the Wild Masks and its classic inspired 90s game music. The game is set to release next month on March 26, 2021, where it will launch on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
The composer of the music and the audio designer is Paulo Bohrer of PixelHive. Bohrer revealed his creative thought process and the art of making 90s inspired game music. In an in-depth interview with Sodesco, he gave a unique view into the connection between music and gaming.
For all aspects of Kaze and the Wild Masks we were very careful to work with references. We wanted to convey a very similar feeling from that of playing a game from the 90s. Talking specifically about music, I went over a lot of research on classic video game composers from that era to understand a little bit of what made them special. At some point in the development, I tried to recreate a few of my favorite songs just for practice (and to have some fun).
Of course I didn’t want the game to sound like a copy of something preexistent but rather inspired by it – and there can be a very thin line between those. So in order to make the music more unique I’ve used my references as a guitar player to include some pop/rock electric guitar elements whenever possible. We also didn’t want the game to sound “chiptunish”, nor use low-quality/limited virtual instruments. So, we recorded some real instruments and went for the best quality samples we could get in order to get high quality audio while still maintaining the essential feeling of our esteemed references.
When asked what his favorite music piece from Kaze and the Wild Masks was, he answered that it is the lava-themed levels.
It is not a complex piece of music, but I really like the melodic passages and the percussive groove during the chorus part. It has a very common (and functional) folk eastern instrumentation to transmit the hot atmosphere, but I’ve also included some Brazilian elements to help with the wiggles.
Features
- Unleash the skills of the wild masks to get powers from the tiger, eagle, lizard and shark
- Uncover the secrets of the Crystal Islands in 30+ levels with over 50 bonus levels
- Relive your childhood memories of classic platformers with high quality frame by frame pixel art
- Pave your way through a satisfyingly smooth, but challenging platformer
- Refresh your ears with 25+ tracks inspired by the musical themes of the 16-bit era
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