Let's make a soundtrack for your indie game
I was that odd kid who would put in the code to get to the BGM select screen in a game, like Sonic 2 or Golden Sun, and listen to that instead of buying music. When I did acquire music, it was sound tracks. TV show themes and the soundtrack to the Mortal Kombat movie got a lot of play.
That isn't to say I only listen to soundtracks (proof!), but I like listening to them, and I like making them.
Major inspirations include:
- Motoi Sakuraba (Golden Sun)
- soundTeMP (Ragnarok Online)
- Koji Kondo (Zelda)
- The various people involved in the Sonic franchise, but especially Sonic 2 and Sonic Advance
- Pixel (Cave Story)
- TobyFox (Undertale)
- DM DOKURO (covers)
Here are some of my own tracks:
Before we start...
If this is your first time thinking about commissioning a game soundtrack, you can save yourself time and trouble and money by having a solid idea of what you want first.
Write a sentence or two each about:
- Genre. This has the most influence on the character of the music. Synthwave/DnB fusion works for a cyberpunk-themed FPS, but might struggle to fit in as an adventure RPG overworld soundtrack.
- Planned length. Is this a short experimental game or a sprawling adventure? There's often a clash between how much budget there is for music and how much the project scope requires. If you have a 120 hour game and budget for unique music for every area, that's great! Most game developers will need to figure out how to fill 10-20 hours of gameplay with a few minutes of music. Scope creep is insidious and has a way of stopping projects dead in their tracks. Don't think of it as settling: many of the best games through history have a small amount of music that loops and varies throughout.
- Style of gameplay. Action-oriented, turn-based, bullet hell, etc. For example: action oriented benefits from context-dependent music like encounters with enemies (example) and NPCs (example) that fades in and out with the ambient music. Bullet hell scrolling shooters benefit from long, powerful loops that drive the action (example).
- Style of game. Top-down, platform, 3D, etc.
- Budget. Ranges from a tiny amount of music you can stretch across a whole game without it getting boring to a full sound track for every level with variations.
- Experience working on games. For example: first time, seasoned industry veteran striking out on their own. This tends to have a direct correlation with realistic project scale.
- Timeline. How long can you wait from initial consult to delivery? This can affect how much music is actually possible, how much it costs, or if the musician can even take the project.
This is highly recommended because the fee is non-refundable if we get to the point where you've paid me half the project rate to make an outline and you decide to go with someone else or not commission music at all. Everything in the Initial Consult before that is free, but your time and my time are not, and this quick self-assessment can make sure we're both investing it well.
This stuff will come up either way!
Prices
I like to point to this video of all the different music from one of my favorite games, the first Wing Commander:
Most of it is variations on the same few themes and motifs; this is the case with most music done for the same project. The difference is who does it.
It's just short of one hour of music and over 40 unique tracks. That would be about $40,000 (USD) if you hired me to do all of it and paid for a rights buyout. This is doable for a Kickstarted project or for an indie studio with a hit or two on its wall, but a bit much for most game projects.
Good news: I offer a license-only discount that's much more affordable.
- The standard rate is $600 (USD) per minute of music, but the license-only price covers most needs.
- $200 (USD) per minute of music. One minute minimum. Comes with a license to use it in games, videos, podcasts, and streams.
- $100 per minute for stems. If you buy the rights, you can do whatever you want with them. If not, you can only use these to create music for the game.
- $400 per minute for the rights. Includes the $100 for stems and you can do whatever you want with it.
- Rights buyout remains possible after the project is done if you don't pay for this option up front.
Options and possibilities
- I have 30+ high-quality emulations of classic synths and samplers. Did you grow up with a Mellotron in the family room? I've got that!
- Orchestral isn't my jam, but I have orchestral libraries if a song calls for it. I prefer blending orchestral with synths, and I have a library for that (a nice demo I found of one of the instruments).
- I don't do vocals, but I have a nice vocal synth that can fill that space.
- I wish this could go without saying, but I won't work on a project for a game or studio that promotes bigotry.
- We'll start out with invoices payable by PayPal or debit card. If we end up working together often or on a big project, I can send invoices with support for direct bank transfers to avoid payment processing fees.
The Process
Initial Consult
- [ ] Discuss example songs you provide to get an idea of what you want and how that fits with your genre, budget, etc.
- [ ] Initial payment (half)
- [ ] Rough (text) outline of the song(s) with all the major elements. This is the first of two opportunities to make big changes.
Draft
- [ ] I'll send you a quick, rough version. This is the second and last opportunity to make big changes.
- [ ] I'll send you the final draft. You can request two minor revisions at this stage.
- [ ] Final payment (half)
- [ ] Delivery of files. You get an archival FLAC and an MP3 you can use as-is.
Send an email to kye@kyefox.com