Postbug Music by the AIM Videogame Ensemble
George Hemingway
July 14, 2016
Earlier this year, the ensemble team from the Australian Institute of Music (AIM) composed music for Postbug.
The 12 week program was lead by Meghann O'Neill and included a team of 6 students (David Forbes, Amanda Lim, James Mara, Mitchell Munro, Joel Pearson and Tim Steain).
This is the first time AIM have taken on such an initiative, and I feel very lucky that Postbug was selected for the program.
The AIM team showcasing their work at IDGA Sydney Beer and Pixels night
[image courtesy of IGDA Sydney]
The AIM students are very talented and it was a pleasure working with them.
The music adds character and personality to Postbug.
Each room has a name and a particular theme with the hope of creating a subtle narrative.
Now, with the inclusion of the music, this narrative has been extended significantly.
A sombre track is played when you enter a room called Abandoned,
and I believe this music adds depth when the player realises they're delivering mail to empty homes.
The player is presented with a different track for most rooms; some tracks are dark, some are bold, some are chilled, and others add a special touch of tension.
I'd like to thank to Meghann O'Neill for her support of independent artists.
Meghann runs the Interactive Media elective and the Videogame Ensemble at AIM,
reviews independent games for PC Powerplay magazine
and shares her knowledge and experiences composing interactive music.
You can read about Meghann's experiences with the Videogame Ensemble in her featured Postbug - making games, making music for games, and what we can learn article in PC & Tech Authority.
The interactive article covers many aspects of the process, including lessons learned, leadership, collaboration, marketing, baking banana bread, and creating support structures for creative artists.
Meghann O'Neill talking about writing interactive music for Wildfire at Freeplay
[image courtesy of Amy Bennett]
Once again, thanks to the ensemble team for the amazing work they did for Postbug.
I really appreciate the time and effort they put into composing and mastering the music, presenting their work at the AIM Cafe and showcasing Postbug at the IDGA Sydney Beer and Pixels night.
The ensemble team have now started composing music for their second game called Snowflake Moon by Skye Saxon and Elias Nohra.
Sit back, turn up your speakers and click Play Postbug to listen to some cool Postbug tunes!
Most rooms have a different track, so make sure you look around to get the full experience.
Alternatively, you can listen to the tracks directly on the Aus Institute of Music Game Ensembles page.
> Play Postbug
