EDITORIAL
INTERVIEW
What makes a great video game score? Composer Lucy Hayes breaks it down
Ahead of the 22nd BAFTA Games Awards on April 17, Spitfire Audio’s in-house composer Lucy Hayes tells us about her journey into the gaming world, what it takes to make a brilliant score for interactive media, and how libraries can help would-be game composers get started.
Despite growing up as a keen gamer, working in the gaming industry wasn’t top of mind for Hayes. She studied Jazz (Vocals) at Guildhall School of Music & Drama and chose the course of study for being a “springboard” into a versatile career in music: “I knew that jazz harmony would set me up, musically, for anything,” she enthuses. Primarily a vocalist, Hayes also plays piano and guitar, and says she always felt pulled towards writing and composition over performance – but she wasn’t sure where her journey would take her after graduation.
Luckily, a chance encounter led to a lightbulb moment. At a gig, Hayes happened to meet Duncan Smith, Head of Music at Playstation UK. “We had a whistlestop conversation about games,” she recalls, and it was enough to set her on a path of discovery.
Inspired, she set about teaching herself some of the tools of the trade (including middleware Wwise and the game engine Unreal) and then interviewed, successfully, to become an in-house music designer at Playstation, where she worked on titles including Lego: Horizon Adventures and Until Dawn. But for those of us who still don’t know: what is a music designer?
“You’re the person handling music assets and putting them in the game,” explains Hayes. “You’re planning what the logic behind the music would be.” The role can differ depending on the project: some games require the designer to take on an editorial role, which could include working with external composers and chopping up stems, while other games might need a greater focus on audio programming and implementation. For a more in-depth explanation of these processes, watch Lucy’s guide.
You start to think like a player
She found that working on games required a new mentality as a musician. “You’re scoring to support another medium, and that can pull you out of your head, musically speaking. You start to think like a player.”
Game scores are typically non-linear and interactive, so they are conducted as much by the player’s individual journey as by the composer. She gives an example: in Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2, as in many combat games, the music changes when the player approaches potential conflict. “You know it’s coming because the music gets your blood pressure up, and then it attenuates if you ride away, it goes back to calm. Games are active entertainment, and it’s so special to get to score someone’s experience.”
A truly great game score, Hayes explains, “interprets the emotion and character of the gameplay, and adds an extra layer of artistic sensibility. You need to think: What are [players] doing in the game? And how is the music supporting that?”
Have a go! It’s not as different as you might think.
After Playstation, Hayes became a freelance composer. Alongside working on TV shows such as Dune: Prophecy and MobLand, she is an in-house composer for Spitfire Audio, and is composing a forthcoming game from Hazelight, the Swedish studio behind the enormously successful co-operative game It Takes Two. Her composing portfolio speaks to a time of increasing artistic crossover between the worlds of film, TV and games.
For instance, when Naughty Dog’s post-apocalyptic video game The Last Of Us was adapted into a blockbuster TV series by HBO, Hayes points out how Gustavo Santaolalla’s score, shaped by the sound of his 10-string ronroco, kept the emotional heart of the story intact across both media. [This video, about Santaolalla’s Ronroco pack for Spitfire Audio, takes you inside the world of his distinctive instrument]
As a first step for composers curious about the gaming world, Hayes recommends finding a game walkthrough on YouTube – many unofficial videos have the music stripped out, for copyright reasons – and then scoring it yourself, as imaginatively as you can. “I think string libraries are incredible for this, such a great way of practising and learning,” she says. “There’s still a barrier to entry, as it’s something you have to purchase, but it’s obviously much more accessible than buying time with an orchestra.”
“Have a go!” she encourages. “It’s not as different as you might think.”
Lucy Hayes’ favourite game scores
Hollow Knight (Composer: Christopher Larkin)
The Hollow Knight score grows richer and more cinematic as players dig deeper into its underground tunnels and uncover gamechanging new biomes. Hayes points to the sparkling soundtrack for one environment, Greenpath, as her favourite: “It’s so lush and fun, and almost an onomatopoeia. It sounds like a green path.”
Ori and the Blind Forest (Composer: Gareth Coker)
“It’s just magical, so emotional and whimsical,” Hayes says. “It’s idiosyncratic without trying too hard”. Read Spitfire Audio’s interview with Gareth Coker to learn more about his use of wind instruments to conjure the majesty and loneliness of the forest.
Elden Ring (Composers: Yuka Kitamura, Tsukasa Saitoh, Shoi Miyazawa, Tai Tomisawa, Yoshimi Kudo, Soma Tanizaki)
“I’m always thinking about the Elden Ring score. It’s so vast and understated. I feel like it’s not talked about as much as a score in its own right, but I really love that music.” Hayes points to the score for Malenia, Blade of Miquella as a favourite moment, with its stirring strings, choral voices and chiming church bells setting the scene for a boss fight.
Stardew Valley (Composer: Eric Barone)
Stardew Valley’s music is so popular that a chamber orchestra has been performing the game’s score to international audiences since 2024. “It’s so impressive in so many ways,” says Hayes – and not only because composer Eric Barone also produced and developed the game himself. For a farming game, it’s essential that the music changes with the seasons, and the spring soundtrack is deliciously bright and verdant.
Celeste (Composer: Lena Raine)
Another soundtrack with a cult following, Celeste’s magnetic, synth-driven score is inspired by the game’s 8-bit influences. “Within the context of the game, it seems like the whole team was super aligned,” Hayes says. “The art style, the music, the gameplay – it’s all so likeminded. They have such an awareness of game history, and I really love the music. It’s a great vibe, and I find it really unique.” For insight into Raine’s process, read her interview with Spitfire Audio.
Untitled Goose Game (Composer: Dan Golding)
Behind the 2019 viral game is a complex, reactive interpretation of Debussy’s solo piano Préludes – and it really does sound goose-like. “It’s this super quirky, piano-only score that does so much for the playfulness and humour of the game,” says Hayes. “They’ve implemented it so cleverly that it almost feels generative or spontaneous as you play.”