As soundtrack composer for UFHO2, this was the most crucial moment of the production for me, because I knew that the first music piece that I was going to write was kind of defining the whole sound and ambience of the game, and of the entire soundtrack.
The first music is done. After introducing the setting, the music changes dynamically with the actions of the player: the more gems he gains, the more the music changes, introducing the main theme proposed in some variations. This happens because the UFHO inhabitants are divided into different alien races, each one playing the main theme by themselves, in their own way and personality. So you will hear the tune repeating with different instruments and orchestrations, from theremin to synths, as well as a Bosendorfer, ending with a choir of funny creatures and then a clarinet.
Through the layers you'll hear a bass line continuum, which is the junction between layers.
For this and for most of the sounds I mainly used some synthesizers, like the FM8 and Massive. With these programs you can achieve some of the best, creamiest and punchiest sounds. I am using them through Cubase.
During the research of the sounds (I tried to avoid the use of old fashioned videogame synthetic quirks) I really enjoyed the indie VST scene. For an indie project, it makes sense.
I discovered a bunch of free plugins made by music enthusiasts, music forums are full of them, and there is a so immense panorama of sounds that you can easily go crazy choosing "yours", combining them, and achieving your sound pretty much more easily than using the current major VST products alone, which are abused by everyone nowadays and sometimes flatten soundtracks' personality.
Well, I decided not to post the music yet, just because I like the idea that you will hear it for the first time directly along with the entire experience of the game.
But as soon as UFHO2 will be revealed, I will be glad to put some mix of it and the other tracks to share them with you all.
I hope you'll love it!
Francesco
