Gaming and music are different disciplines, but there’s an overlap between the two — and the connection is getting stronger all the time. Whereas music and gaming used to be two separate entities, the lines between them are becoming increasingly blurred. Part of this is due to the sheer scale of the gaming industry, which is now worth some $240 billion and has a much broader reach than in decades past. For context, the music industry is worth a comparatively low $30 billion.
Both gaming and music are increasingly reliant on each other for inspiration and creative possibilities. Let’s take a look at how and where the two cross over.
Video Game Soundtracks: Increasingly Respected
Music has always played a role in video games, but in previous decades those musical soundscapes were little more than a few MIDI sounds. Nobody was sitting at home and listening to a gaming soundtrack. Today, that’s all changed. Video games have become much more ambitious in scope, to the point where, now, the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media exists. Some of the leading musical talents of all time, including Paul McCartney and Nine Inch Nails, have created compositions for use in a video game.
Artists with Their Own Game
Some artists are so iconic that they transcend their art. That’s the case with Guns N’ Roses, Michael Jackson, Jimi Hendrix, and Motörhead, to name but a few who have been the subject of their very own video games. Michael Jackson was one of the first to tap into this sector with the release of Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker by Sega back in 1990. That’s one of the few examples of a fully-fledged musician-based video game title, but there are plenty of slot games to choose from. Sites like PokerStars Casino have selections from Guns N’ Roses, Jimi Hendrix, and KISS. In fact, KISS even released their very own pinball machine, which, while not exactly a video game, definitely falls under the same umbrella.
Musical Video Game Characters
Everyone loves a musician, and that includes video game developers. Some of the biggest video games of all time have included characters who may well have been top of the charts if only they weren’t fictional. Think of Link from The Legend of Zelda, who is pretty adept at a range of classical instruments, including the harp and flute. In The Last Of Us, Joel takes time out from teaching Ellie how to navigate the post-apocalyptic world to teach her how to play guitar instead. Javier, the enemy of the Red Dead Redemption series, also knows his way around a guitar neck.
Video Games With Musician Cameos
Musicians aren’t a separate species; they’re human beings — and humans like video games. If a gamer had an opportunity to insert themselves into a video game, then they would absolutely do it. And that’s just the opportunity that a host of famous musicians have taken.
There’s a long list of artists appearing in video games as a character, either directly or by lending their “likeness” to the game. Sometimes, like in the case of David Bowie in The Nomad Soul, it’s little more than a cameo (though Bowie did play a big role behind the scenes). In others, the musician contributes to the overall gameplay and storyline. That’s the case in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, where players have to defend none other than 80’s superstar Phil Collins.
Video Games in Concert
The live touring industry has long turned to Hollywood for inspiration, often hosting nights dedicated entirely to the major movie soundtracks that we all know and love. More and more, musicians are hosting glamorous concerts based on video game soundtracks. Sometimes these concerts see performances of complex versions of relatively simple video game sounds, such as the Super Mario theme, whilst others provide a full orchestra performance of some of the gaming industry’s greatest tracks, including those from World of Warcraft, The Last of Us, and Civilization VI.
