New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Did you know that video games generate more money ($137b) in a year than music ($19.3b) and film ($41b) industries combined? Even with the major difference, video games prove to be significant in the music industry. So, why and how do video games impact the music industry? That is what we will be covering in this article.
The Humble Beginnings
As successful and booming as the video games are today, they were not as successful as such in the early days. By the way, one thing that makes the video games very successful is because they incorporate music in their gameplay. So, music is also a major contributor to video game success.
You already know that a video game is made up of graphics, sound, music, and more. But most people don't know that music is among the prerequisites of a good video game. But earlier on, these video games weren't made with the music.
The sounds used in the early video games were to illustrate actions. For example, Pong was among the earliest video games launched in the 1950s. The game was like a tennis game, and all you needed to do was hit the ball with a virtual bat. When the ball hits the bat, it gave out a bleep sound. It might seem basic, but many people enjoyed the game.
Years later in 1977, the Atari Video Computer System was released. This was a console that enabled the players to enjoy the sound effects as they played the games.
Space Invaders was the game that started to bring some hope in the video game industry. It was a basic arcade game that had a chilling tune meant to put fear into the players.
However, the major transition happened when the first Sony PlayStation was released. Sony releases games with licensed soundtracks from notable hit songs. This has helped to better the demand of the video games, which in turn boosts the earnings.
The Impact on the Music Industry
There are many ways that video games promote the music industry. Let's explore a few, shall we?
They offer marketing opportunities
A lot of musicians and managers turn to video games as a marketing tool. Generally, video games are an essential part of marketing plans in the music industry. Take for example Fifa soundtracks. If you have been a regular player of this game franchise, you will notice just how equipped the soundtrack library is. These soundtracks are considered as one of the leading annual showcases for the current international artists.
EA Sports, a leading game developer, usually have a team that is made up of game developers, professional musicians, and singers/songwriters. These people work along with top music acts in the world to license music for video game series.
These professionals normally begin to work on soundtracks a year before the official launching. The aim is usually to find the perfect music that will define the sound of that game.
When a game is played, and the soundtrack plays in the back, that song will be heard all over the world around 1 billion times. That is how many times these games are played. Even if the popular music channels tried marketing that same song, it wouldn't surpass the number of times a video game promotes it.
If you are playing in an online casino, you can also listen to licensed music in the game. For instance, Syndicate casino is one online gaming platform that lets you play video games with licensed music.
A Medium of Expression and Experimentation
Musicians and composers are also using video games as a medium of experimentation and expression. There are a lot of creative opportunities in the video game that let the music genius do their best work on them. For example, rock band 65daysofstatic created the music for No Man's Sky. This is a sci-fi adventure game that is among the most played. Another band, Daughter, were responsible for the soundtrack for Life Is Strange: Before the Storm video game. This soundtrack gave the band their first ever Ivor Novello award nomination.
Clearly, music experts are using video games to showcase their skills and creativity. It gives them the chance to show their chance to express the game in the song. Too many video games have helped inspire modern musicians and producers. Game series like Fifa, NFL, Need for Speed, NHL, and Madden NFL, all feature music from popular and new musicians.
These video games have greatly impacted the career of many musicians.
Fight Piracy and Promote Financial Success
Video games have helped to better the fight against illegal downloads and piracy. Furthermore, it has helped the music industry to survive through tough times. Some video games have made musicians more money than they got from their album sales. For example, the Aerosmith-themed Guitar Hero version made the band more money than what they made from all their album sales.
More people are purchasing the games to play, and they listen to the music playing as they proceed with the game. Even if some games are pirated, they do have limitations to accessing some features, which will force the player to purchase the original game. The musicians involved in composing the song in that game will get their fair share from the sales. That is why most musicians, both the veteran and the newcomers, are focusing on developing music for games.
Today, video games are integrating with services like Spotify. Some games like Beat Fever help to generate better engagement between the musicians and the players. In Beat Fever, the players will need to tap along to their favorite music, where they'll then be invited to stream the tracks in full. Here, they can stream the tracks on Apple Music or Spotify.
Clearly, video games have proven to be the future of music because they have a major impact on the industry. Whether you are playing casino video games or console video games, you can be sure of hearing some of the music from recognized music geniuses. But don't forget that the aim should be to play and win the game, especially with the casino games, and not just to listen to music.
