For Mechanical God Saga, the most relevant musical adaptations are linked to the game status and player’s position. These aspects are crucial due to the game’s inherent contrast between tense battle scenes and more relaxed exploratory moments. The music will change as the player moves between different rooms, subtly guiding and marking progress. Regarding the game status, when inevitably confronted with other soldiers, the music will adapt and portray tension, as most often this encounters result in battles. This way the narrative of the game is supported, enhancing the players feeling of tension. A different approach was tested where, depending if enemies were around, tension would be applied in the soundtrack, but as it is possible to avoid them by not running into them, as if they didn’t see the player’s character, and as it is common in gameplay, it was decided to only apply tension when the inevitable encounters happen. The tension may then be kept for a longer period of time after the encounter, depending on the situation. This encounters happen at certain situations in the game, such as when a certain goal, like releasing a friend from prison is achieved, which is then followed by the appearance of the enemies. This system simplifies the approach and makes the tension feel more impactful, otherwise several instances in the game would trigger the tense states, reducing its impact.
Regarding battles, the health status of the player will also be causing a change in musical parameters, so that the player becomes aware of being closer to losing.
How are these changes portrayed in the soundtrack?
- Player’s position
As the player constantly has to get to new map zones in order to progress, new instrumentation is layered on top of the existing one whenever this happens. It subtly signs progression as the music becomes richer and is in harmony with the existing one.
- Game Status
To evoke tension when confronted with enemies, some of the used techniques include adding low percussion elements, raising the cutoff frequency of filters and incorporating horn instruments. Synthesized sounds with a metallic aspect are also associated with the enemy soldiers as for their metallic vests, and its connection to the mystery of a nuclear event. As a reference, Age of Empires enhances tension with low percussion and tremolo strings, while Corrupted Dungeons increases percussion and uses horns when enemies appear.
- Health Status
In order to portray lower levels of the health level during battles, a decay of the musical brightness happens, which comes due to injury often being portrayed by a decrease in sensors, using a low-pass filter to make audio elements less distinct. The reduction of the stereo field, as used in Nier: Automata, is also an interesting technique, although we chose not to use it for aesthetic reasons.
Regarding battle outcomes, different musical endings will be triggered depending on whether the player wins or loses. Drawing inspiration from Final Fantasy VII, a victory will be marked by an energetic and triumphant arrangement, while a loss triggers a more dramatic tone, although not discouraging the player to try again, as players have the opportunity to instantly retry battles.
