The times of a few beeps in the background of a game are long gone. While the classic 8-bit sounds and melodies will forever have a place in our hearts (and ears), nowadays the technical possibilities create a much larger scope for game audio. Some of the melodies, compositions and tunes featured in games have become classics that will always be remembered and played outside of the games they were conceived for.
Battlefield 1942
(Joel Eriksson)
When the first Battlefield – titled Battlefield 1942 – came out in 2002, the developers opted for something a little different in terms when it came to creating a campaign. There is no single player campaign as such, because the whole WW2-themed First Person Shooter is based on multiplayer maps. If a player chooses to play alone, he will play the same maps but with added bots.
Although primarily catering for players that want to play with and against others, the musical score is widely regarded as an excellent display of craftsmanship for video games. The score is so well known that it has been played by small, medium and large orchestras countless times.
Battlefield 1942 spawned one of the most famous and popular FPS series in gaming history and the soundtracks are widely regarded as masterpieces. This goes for both the musical score and the overall use of sound and sound effects, netting different parts of the series a BAFTA and other awards for achievements in original sound design (the original Battlefield 1942 won the BAFTA award for best multiplayer in the year of its release).
With a more humourous approach, the spin-off Battlefield: Bad Company created a side story to the serious Battlefield series while keeping the overall anti-war theme. This franchise also received countless awards for music, sound and gameplay.