More and more music is being implemented into the L.U.R.K. mod. The music is triggered by certain events or entering certain areas. The first track after leaving the bunker should underline the loneliness and uncertain future of the stalker and his upcoming adventures.
Mhhhh... ummm...... Nope?
I like it. I think it'll make the ambiance much nicer. Though it will need to immediately change whence action happens.
Sounds a bit too peaceful. Maybe a bit more darkish would fit this place.
Yeah, otherwise they could use this instead lol
Youtube.com
Yes, I'm an ***. :)
Nice music! Also I adore the palette of textures!
I like it, but in my eyes it doesn't fit Cordon, it would be exelent for Pripyat.
I really like the music! Very good job you did Yannick. But in my opinion it's a bit too loud.
The music is great, really nice work.
But it needs a different location. I would say something more like a place where people used to live, pripyat, dead city, something like that.
I see it too tranquil too, just doesn't fit for me.
I too, would vote for different audio options (with retaining the original).
Otherwise the player shadow and the colour palette is nice:)
I think this is great, it substantiates the awe of experiencing the outdoors for the first time in the game. It's amazing how much more immersive music like this can make a game feel.
I think it's perfect, but it should be a bit quieter. The song should be subtle enough for the player to pick up on it rather then right in their ears.
It's cool but it would fit a TES game more than it would a Stalker game (mostly because of the piano part)
We HL2 now.
Then we not STALKER. Thanks but the loneliness and uncertain future of the stalker and his upcoming adventures will stay underlined better with no music.
I like it sounds great, got that kind of feel that one is all alone.
Doesn't fits.
I was against the idea of music when you guys first announced it but... I like that. Goes on a bit long just, would rather a 30 second to 1min soundbyte max.
The thing that makes it become a problem when the atmospheric background sound effects have music is how you can go from a mellow stroll into a full on fight for survival while still has the same easy listening background track playing and at that point it no longer fits. As nice as I think the track is it'll have this problem, I have the same problem with some backing I was using in the Merge mod for COP, I've removed it for the next upload for the same reason.
It was good but unless it's use can be controlled in some way it won't always work.
If you could create a script similar to the COP combat music system and have it switch from one type of music (this one) to another when danger is present it would be good.
For me, the problem with the piece, with all its melancholy piano and mournful pipes is that it feels like I'm being told what to feel.
Rather than enhancing and drawing from the existing atmosphere of the level, it feels like I'm being told that I should feel wonder at the breathtaking beauty of the scene, etc
Now, that works in Half Life, it works in Metro, it works in Bioshock and it works in Bastion.
Trouble is, they're all linear games that direct the player down a very narrow path. When I play Stalker, it's just me and the Zone. The ambient music is part of the surroundings. Layering clearly non-diegetic sound over gameplay just draws attention to the fact that it's a game, ruining immersion.
Throughout the original SoC OST the sounds tracks used never as far as I can tell contain the sound of any recognisable instrument. I'm glad you guys aren't feeling restricted just to doing what's been done before, but for me SoC's soundtrack was so suited to the game because it was part of the environment.
Great comment, I totally agree that triggered music is best used in linear games. Because in linear games the music is mostly triggered when a scripted event is happening, and the music then fits the event (e.g. an attack is happening, a building collapses etc.)
I mapped quite a while for the Source engine and also took a look on Half-Life 2's maps and in that game for almost every triggered music piece an event is triggered with it with the same trigger. I only remember 4 songs that were used for enviromental effects, 1 when you exit the trainstation, 2 in the canals, 3 Nova Prospect and 4 the citadel.
Now in STALKER I think it's the complete opposite, 3 or 4 scripted events and everything else is random so I can't see this getting used much outside of 'forcing' players to feel a specific way in a specific enviroment.
The original score already fits perfectly because you hear it most of the time but don't think "Now music is playing" because it almost sounds like the enviroment giving a great effect.
Also with Daemonion's sound work I think I'll mute the music anyway, more immersive, no offense.
So all I can say to Yannick is:
Do the original enviromental score justice and/or make it even better and don't use scripted music too much, otherwise it feels forced and linear.
You have your point, but I have to disagree. Have my thumbs up nontheless! STALKER has a lot of "bottle necks", where player is forced to go through specific points - so creation of music traps is not a problem. Not only ambient creates the feeling of enviroment, but music does it too.
Maybe you remember going out of Vortex Rikers on Na Pali for the first time?
Music creates the tone, and if player will hear the music when meets the location for the first time, he will associate the feeling with surrounding enviroment for next visits.
Sometimes you don't need the real enviroment to associate with music. For me, for example, I imagine frozen forest at dusk with small lake in the center filled with blood red water when I hear this:
Youtube.com
Only thing that should be mentioned: STALKER doesn't need melodies like Half-life, it needs textures: drones, piano textures, guitar ambient, and yannickzenhaeusern did a pretty damn good job about it.
I like the music choice. Really appreciated it in Secret Trails 2 and Photographer. Looking forward to seeing it in LURK in its own way. Don't listen to the haters--some of them seem to only want to play stalker in one way and don't appreciate variety
It's an intersting idea, but in my opinion this track would be better suited to a place where you can see the remnants of life before the creation of the Zone, like Pripyat. Even so, I'm looking forward to hearing how the scripted music events play out throughout the rest of the mod.
What a beautiful evening stroll! But i'm not sure if this is what i expect from Stalker.
It's wonderful! It still mantaine the Dark atmosphere of the game, mixing it with the feeling "hei, there's still hope out there... Or not?" at least it's what I fought listening to it.
Thanks for the great emotions.
Keep up the good work, waiting for the release!
To my mind if you even notice the music in STALKER it's already missing the point. I like the track in a vacuum but I just don't think blatantly non-diegetic audio fits the game very well.
The head bobbing needs to be reduced a little bit, make it a little more subtle or it could get very annoying very fast.
i like it :)
I must admit, I do like it. I'll be playing a good amount of this when it comes out. Keep the mod how you want it, at the end of the day we're all the STALKER community and everyone likes different things. It is your mod after all :)