The music in Homeworld 3 feels much more ambient than previous games. That isn't a bad thing by default, but it means the soundtrack doesn't "pop" as much during normal gameplay. There seems to be this trend in games of believing that music isn't meant to be noticed, and I find it really unfortunate that Homeworld 3 is following this trend.
Immediately noticed, because it was good. HW3 original tracks just don't cut it. Not one catchy melody. They've got nothing on Vaygr or Taiidan battle themes of old. My all time favorite is still First Battle from Cataclysm, though.
As much as I pretend 3 doesn't exist I think these are all really good. The variety stands up to Deserts of Kharak's ost and as "ambient" as it is I don't see that as a bad thing, really good and fits in the overall Homeworld battle music of previous games IMO.
I do like the soundtrack and atmosphere of HW3, however ... none of the tracks really stuck with me. They are great background music, but I couldn't really remember even a single track outside of the game. HW1, 2 and Cataclysm however ... I can remember almost every single music track. Mostly because the scenes where they were played were so memorable, while not many HW3 scenes had the same impact. It's a shame really.
As you pointed it out, it's background music to compliment the in game sound FX audio and visuals, but i know what you mean, they're not memorable, however the tracks are very very good. If it was an album and not produced with in-game implementation in mind then i'm sure they would have more of a memorable feel and sound to them.
@@Axatar yeh thats true.. though i understand why that is.. as in game its used as addaptive music and not linear.. meaning the music start and end points have to 'fit' seamlessly as the ingame dynamics change.. i.e. transitioning between a more relaxed feel and then an incoming attack on screen.. the music will develop more intense. So the transitions musically need to reflect that.
I'm sorry but this just doesn't do it for me. Hold any of these tracks against HW2's Battle for Sajuuk and it's not even close. There's no energy in this game's music...
I have a couple theories going in my head as to why the soundtrack is so mellow compared to the other games, since I don't believe it's Ruskay's fault completely. Either he was forced to make this at the very, very last minute and he had no time to actually experiment or make anything bombastic. Or, this was all initially just experimental/practice work that wasn't even made for a game in mind that they pulled out at the last minute. Or, and this is a BIT of a *S* *T* *R* *E* *T* *C* *H*, but maybe Ruskay just gave up when he saw where the whole thing was going and this is his way of saying "please help me". That all said, I don't believe the OST is necessarily bad, I liked the Adagio for Strings piece and the Titanship Combat pieces on their own merits, but compared to previous Homeworlds or for instance Strike Suit Zero, this is just bland.
Btw it is a good music There is a lot of Br 2047 influence and Paul Ruskay did a good job It needed one thing - Chant. Just listen to the mark of Sajuuk SPIRIT OF THE HOMEWORLD IS HERE. They could not burn it as rest of the game.. ... I can wait another 10 years for Homeworld 4 or Homeworld relaunch. Homeworld have the same place in my heart as Warhammer....
I tend to agree it's more chill and the soundtracks for HW 1 and 2 were amazing, but I *really* like a few in here, like Storm Strike, and l appreciate some of the Blade Runner 2049 vibes here and there.
The officially released soundtrack has the same problem as Deserts of Kharak - they make the battle music seem way too tame. This is a mistake as the actual music ingame hits a lot harder. I don't know why the people in charge of the soundtrack releases keep doing this and don't try to make a mix which is closer to what you'd hear ingame.
At this point, it'd be better to just go ingame, turn off all other sounds, and record the music that plays there for a good solid 10 minutes or so and then upload a video with that music instead.
