Games Happy

RPG Web site: Properly, there’s no higher approach to begin than asking you to introduce your self, and inform us a bit about what acquired you into music within the first place, extra particularly, composing for video games?

Lorien: So I am Lorien Testard. I’m 30 years previous now, so I’ve three years left earlier than the tip *chuckles*. I’ve a very huge ardour for video video games. I began enjoying once I was like three years previous. My father was working at a online game store once I was younger, so I performed, like, Mario Social gathering and Mario Kart once I was actually, actually younger, and actually liked the video video games for many of my life. I began doing music fairly late – I believe I used to be 16 years previous. And I .. I realized on my own for 3 years, then went to a music college for 3 years. Then I began performing some stuff by myself, like some music for trailers. I knew from the beginning I needed to do music for video video games, as a result of it is actually what I like and what I needed to create. So yeah, nevertheless it’s like a deep love for video video games, and I nonetheless have an enormous love for music in video video games.

RPG Web site: How did you first change into linked with this challenge and with Sandfall Interactive generally?

Lorien: It was Guillaume [Broche], he discovered my subject on the discussion board the place I posted my track. So I posted this track, and in the future, he got here and purchased it after which requested me to compose for the sport.

RPG Web site: About how way back was that?

Lorien: 5 years. Possibly six. No, I believe it was early 2020.

RPG Web site: Expedition 33 clearly has a really French-inspired aesthetic, with the Belle Époque interval being an inspiration. It’s an atmosphere and aesthetic that isn’t actually seen quite a bit in RPGs. How did you go about capturing not solely the French music and types of themes but additionally creating fantastical variations of these sounds and melodies of the interval?

Lorien: I used to be actually targeted on creating an authentic soundtrack, so I don’t actually take into consideration the French references. I really feel that as a result of I’m French and have been listening to the music for twenty years, it has change into a little bit of my music, not on objective, however prefer it’s simply part of me. It was essential to me to create one thing actually authentic and implausible, just like the universe that Nicolas [Maxson-Francombe] created. The very idea is so stunning and provoking that I’ve to provide it my all to make music tied to them, and to make the world across the participant really feel alive. 

RPG Web site: You’ve got created a big soundtrack. Do you keep in mind the primary monitor you made for the sport, and did it affect the evolution of the remainder of the tracks?

Lorien: Yeah, I keep in mind fairly clearly, like, the Lettre à Maelle and the track is within the soundtrack, and we used it for the character trailer of Maelle. So it is actually significant and particular for me to see the primary track I wrote 5 years in the past to, be current and see the track again to that leads the principle tone of the story and environment of the soundtrack, like piano, voice, guitar, swing and melancholia and nostalgia for Maelle and the opposite characters come from this track.

RPG Web site: It is an attractive monitor and, like so many others, packs a lot emotion into this sport. What did you discover to be the toughest, probably the most troublesome monitor to nail and get proper in your thoughts?

Lorien: It was the 33-minute monitor – Nos vies en Lumière. There have been some songs within the sport that simply got here to me actually quick in a single night time, and it was all good and what I needed. So for me, a track like these had been a present. For this monitor, I put in two months of labor on this monitor every single day, ten hours a day. So yeah, it was fairly difficult as a result of there are such a lot of layers on the monitor, so many songs to be collectively. And I needed to place a lot stuff into this track. The ultimate verses of the sport had been actually a problem for me as a result of I put plenty of strain and plenty of love into it. I put like all of the stuff I had in me for like three years into it, I put like all the melodies of the characters into it, and it took plenty of time to get a basis I like. So yeah, I believe this one was fairly difficult.

RPG Web site: One of many issues, particularly with these three tracks and a few of the extra impactful tracks of the sport, incorporates vocals, which I believe aren’t used a lot or are far rarer in video games and RPG soundtracks. The usage of vocals works so effectively in Expedition 33. What did you’re feeling that including vocals would deliver to the monitor, versus leaving it strictly instrumental?

Lorien:  The human voice is like probably the most highly effective and probably the most emotional instrument. So not having vocals, for me, is like shedding emotion. So yeah. So the voice was actually vital for the songs of Expedition 33 for the world. Alice Duport-Percier, the vocalist composer of the sport, actually gave a voice to the world. She’s change into part of the story, part of the world. She tales, she tells love. And she or he gave me a lot emotion when she sings. However I’ll really feel the ache, will really feel the identical. Yeah. The voice is de facto highly effective and robust instrument.

RPG Web site: It positively made me really feel issues, despite the fact that I did not perceive what was being mentioned, you possibly can nonetheless inform the sensation within the emotion coming by, such as you mentioned, like an instrument. It’s extremely highly effective.

Lorien: Yeah, I actually loved writing all of the lyrics for the sport, as a result of if you don’t converse French, you have got some English, nevertheless it’s uncommon – it could be a bit summary. However, if you wish to deep dive, one can find some sense and that means and a few actually cool stuff.

RPG Web site: With the music being such a crucial and vital half, what had been you supplied because the composer for lots of those moments that you simply’re composing for? Do you get identical to a narrative transient? How a lot info are you supplied with earlier than you’d compose a brand new monitor?

Lorien: I learn the script of the sport, after which I had some idea artwork for landscapes and characters, so I had a worldwide imaginative and prescient of the world. After which I used to be fairly free to do no matter I needed for every scene and occasion. Then we’d discuss if it was good or not. However I wasn’t requested or advised any musical concepts or route, I might actually do no matter I needed, however after we’d take a look at it in-game, like “can we use this monitor right here on this minimize scene”, for instance, to see if the music is in the appropriate place. So, yeah, it was fairly free for me to do no matter I needed.

RPG Web site: It have to be rewarding for an artist to have a lot inventive freedom and liberty in manufacturing.

Lorien: Yeah, it was essential for me. Like, I joined actually early within the challenge, earlier than Expedition 33, so I used to be there from the beginning, so I acquired to see all of the evolution of the characters for the reason that begin, I knew the story, I knew the whole lot, and so I might compose music actually early within the course of and actually upfront earlier than the manufacturing. So typically we’d have the panorama for an atmosphere, and we might have already got music earlier than the occasion tied to that place was made by the dev workforce. So it actually added to the immersive world as a result of, like we’d, we’d have each the idea artwork and the music once they would create the occasion.

RPG Web site: Did a lot change throughout improvement that induced you to must go and redo or rework tracks that you simply had beforehand executed? Conditions such as you’re advised “we’re not essentially going to do that a part of the story or this character’s altering”?

Lorien: There are a number of, however not likely. We minimize some tiny a part of the sport, however I didn’t must redo a track. I’ve a soundtrack playlist with like 200 songs I wrote for the sport. And typically Guillaume would say to me, “I actually like this one track you probably did three years in the past” and had it added to the sport *chuckles*. So it was like stuff like that. To present you an instance, for instance, the Goblu boss theme, I had its draft in my trash. I can’t put it within the sport. It was additionally like a monitor I did 4 years in the past. And in the future he [Guillaume] mentioned to me, “yeah, I actually love this one. Let’s use it!” So we took the track and labored it a bit and used it for the ultimate sport.

RPG Web site: With this being your first challenge and having grown up enjoying video video games, what facet of composing for video video games shocked you probably the most? 

Lorien: I believe it is the scope. I needed to have a full universe to compose. I actually love video games the place you have got character themes, cutscenes, and all of the stuff. And so Guillaume gave me the world of Clair Obscur it was like the largest deal with it as a result of there’s a lot stuff to d. Just like the final track I created for the sport was like 1 or 2 months earlier than the discharge, so it was till the tip that I had stuff to compose, as a result of it’s a 60 hours of sport so I needed to have a monitor for every customized occasion, every character, and background music. So it was actually quite a bit to compose, to create a few of my desires.

RPG Web site: What type of tracks did you have got probably the most enjoyable composing?

Lorien: The simplest tracks had been the landscapes, and the songs that wanted probably the most work had been battle themes, and the songs that I loved probably the most to create had been the character and story themes. I actually liked to create songs tied to the story. So for instance, Kids of Lumière, which is monitor 143. I actually love the lyrics and writing the whole lot in that track. The track is de facto inspirational and emotive for me. I really feel actually linked to this track as a result of I’ve like one thing to share with the participant. I’ve the soul of Gustav and the soul of Maelle to place in music and join actually carefully to the characters within the story. So yeah, it is my consolation zone and what I get pleasure from probably the most creating.

RPG Web site: You talked about that you simply’re conveying the souls of those characters. What all went into the principle theme, your fundamental monitor of the sport, Alicia? What had been you hoping to convey with that monitor particularly? And what’s it like growing a fundamental theme?

Lorien: Yeah, truthfully, I noticed it like a present. For ‘Alicia’, in the future I discovered a video of a dancer. The dancer moved in sluggish movement, and it was so stunning, and the girl regarded actually very similar to Alicia. I felt actually linked to this video, after which I wrote the track. I’d see the motion of the dancer as I wrote the track, and, in a single night time, my portion of the track was completed. I despatched the tracks to Alice, and she or he completed her half actually quick. I believe it took possibly two days to create, and once we shared it with the workforce, all people knew this was the one. There’s something within the temper and within the melody, within the environment of the monitor. It’s what we need to present and share to the participant once they activate the sport. You open the sport and listen to it. The track tells so many issues earlier than you play and begin the sport.

RPG Web site: It’s extremely highly effective and delightful. And such as you mentioned, it places you in a novel mindset going into this sport.

Lorien: Yeah, it was a very particular track for us.

RPG Web site: Thanks a lot for sitting down, talking, and sharing your inventive course of. It has been plenty of enjoyable and eye-opening to see how a lot care you have put into this. Congratulations once more to you and everybody over there at Sandfall Interactive on the upcoming launch.

Lorien: Thanks very a lot for the interview. It was a pleasure.