Hello all! Welcome back to Play It By Ear, a weekly column where every Friday I discuss my thoughts on a different video game’s soundtrack.
You can see the list of upcoming games and their corresponding playlists here. I will try to focus on lesser-known games or games whose soundtracks I feel can be a bit overlooked, but some of the bigger games may sneak their way in.
Today’s Game: The Mummy Demastered
Release Date: October 24, 2017
Platform: Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Developer: WayForward Technologies
Composer: Gavin Allen (aka monomer)
Other Works by Same Composer: Shantae and the Seven Sirens OST (2019) (with Kentaro Sakamoto, Mark Sparling, and Madeline Lim)
Availability: YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Steam
Number of Songs: 16
Approximate Total Time: 51 minutes
Played the Game? No.
What Kind of Game Is This? Based on the 2017 Tom Cruise flop The Mummy (originally meant to be part of Universal’s now-defunct ‘Dark Universe’), the game follows soldiers of the secret society Prodigium as they battle against the undead army of the titular mummy, Princess Ahmanet. Designed as a Metroidvania-type game, it has some interesting design features. For example, when you die you respawn as an entirely new character and you must battle your previous character (now a zombie) in order to get back all your items. The game also has three endings based on how you progressed.
The general consensus is that the game is far superior to the film. (Which is admittedly a low bar, but it does look cool.)
Top Songs or Songs of Note (in Track Order):
Title Theme
Like the best title themes, this one serves as a perfect introduction to the rest of the soundtrack in terms of style (lush, layered chiptune) and tone (dark, brooding, and action-packed).
Salt and Sepulcher
I love the way this one repeatedly peaks and fades back, giving it a bit of a pulsing – and maybe even slightly lonely – feel.
Necrogenic Bloom
There’s something very tense and haunting about this one. It feels like you are being hunted by a monster and are trying to evade capture. (Which could very well be the case.)
Cryptometrics
One of my favorites from the OST, the rising and falling melody is very catchy and, combined with the occasional distorted and layered effects, makes it feel quite epic.
Arid Euphony
The driving beat and ticking clock make this one perhaps the tensest song in the game – even more so than Salt and Sepulcher – and I love it for that.
Obelisk
This is another favorite of mine, for much the same reasons as Cryptometrics. It just feels like such an epic theme.
Hematic Furiant
I’m not sure what the actual context for this song is, but it would not sound out of place as a dramatic boss music with its heavy beat, clearly defined melody, and frequent spikes.
Honorable Mentions: Subterra Omen, Regency of Shadows, Reprise – Melody
Overall Thoughts: Once again, just like Hey Ice King! last week, we have a licensed tie-in game. And once again, the soundtrack goes so much harder than it needed to – especially given, in this case, the much-maligned source material. I have repeatedly seen people say that this game is by far the best thing to come out of the 2017 film, and the music is a large part of that. Very tense, moody, and epic, virtually every song makes excellent use of chiptune and synth to create its atmosphere. There is also a strong sense of rhythm throughout, which is always something I keep an eye out for when hunting down new game soundtracks to listen to. It manages to come across as a throwback to earlier eras of gaming while also feeling fresh and new. My only critique of the soundtrack is that there is a lack of variety compared to some of the previous games I’ve covered, with some of the tracks starting to blend together after a while. The whole thing was composed and produced so well, however, that this ultimately feels like more of a nitpick than anything. I had stumbled upon this soundtrack while searching for recommendations for games with underrated music and was initially skeptical due to its connections to the film. I am glad to have been proven wrong.
Bonus Prompts:
- Do you agree or disagree with my assessment of the soundtrack?
- Are there any tracks, that I mentioned or didn’t mention, that you would like to further discuss?
- What game soundtracks have you been listening to recently? What’s been grabbing your attention?
- Are there any game soundtracks that you would like me to cover in the future?
And there we have it! Thanks so much for reading and listening to this soundtrack with me.
Last Week: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage?!!
Next Week: Dynamite Headdy