There are plenty of gamers who enjoy a riveting soundtrack to complement their gaming experience, and EA and BioWare are aware of this fact—which is why these two
companies are aiming to create a riveting, captivating, and unique soundtrack for the third installation of the Mass Effect series. They want the right sounds and tunes to accentuate the struggle of Commander Shepard, who needs to take the Earth back from an evil alien race known as the Reapers.
Mass Effect 3 has been named the Most Anticipated Game of 2012 at the Spike TV Video Game Awards, and the developers, producers, and publishers have made sure that the game will be perfect in almost every angle—including the soundtrack. Mass Effect 3 features an entertaining and “gripping” musical repertoire directed and performed by leading composers and artists in the music industry. Like in the previous Mass Effect games, the best composers in the music business are tasked with creating the right auditory landscape for the game.
One of the composers in the Mass Effect team is Clint Mansell, a composer nominated for the Golden Globes for a couple of astounding music work, which includes critical and box office successes such as Black Swan, The Wrestler, and Requiem for a Dream. He is joined by Christopher Lennertz, an Emmy-nominated composer known for the soundtrack of Horrible Bosses (Lennertz also composed for Mass Effect 2: Overlord, Mass Effect 2: Lair of the Shadow Broker, and Medal of Honor); Cris Velasco, who has worked with the amazing God of War scores, Mass Effect 2: Kasumi, and Mass Effect 2: Arrival; Sam Hulick, who has worked with the Mass Effect series, including the first Mass Effect, Mass Effect: Bring Down the Sky, and Mass Effect 2; and Sashca Dikiciyan, another veteran in the video game industry, who has composed the scores for TRON: Evolution, Mass Effect 2: Kasumi, and Mass Effect 2: Arrival.
Casey Hudson, Executive Producer for the Mass Effect series, admits that a big part of the success of their games lies on the music. “The magic of BioWare games has always been the emotional power of the story,” Hudson says, “so music is extremely important to the experience. With Mass Effect 3, we’re taking players on a more personal journey, even though the scope is bigger than ever—an all-out galactic war!”
Hudson goes on to add that each of the composers “has played an intricate role in delivering the combination of epic scope and delicate emotion that will make Mass Effect 3 the best game in the series.
The entire Mass Effect series is set in a sci-fi universe—a game that effortlessly mixes the shooter element with interactive and very cinematic storytelling. The game franchise is one of the most awarded and highly regarded games in the history of video games: Mass Effect is the recipient of over 200 international awards, including the much coveted 2011 AIAS Interactive Achievement Award for Game of the Year.
