Discussion What do you listen to when doing game dev?

Posho

Member
I was wondering what kind of music do you listen to when you're working on your video game projects. I didn't see a thread so I might as well make one.

I normally just listen to video game soundtracks. They create a comfy ambient and the lack of lyrics is good since those can distract me when I'm trying to focus.

I can't share my whole music library with you, so I'll just leave these here for now.


Share tracks, playlists, links, YouTube videos. Whatever you feel like. :cool:
 
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Brian Heidrich

Guest
Depends on my mood but usually Hard Rock. Sometime I feel like I need some Ariana Grande in my life.
 
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fxokz

Guest
Usually i just open up a tab for pandora and just let it play me wiz khalifa. But as Brian Heidrich said.. Ariana Grande is sometimes the way to go.
 
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Alex Lyons

Guest
It depends on what it is I'm working on.
For example, if I'm doing art for a character, I'll be listening to a song that suits the character. If I'm designing a level, let's say it's a spoopy level, I'm listening to something spoopy.
 

Posho

Member
Depends on my mood but usually Hard Rock. Sometime I feel like I need some Ariana Grande in my life.
Th-this... N-no homo though...
I unironically liked Camp Rock when it came out.


I can stop whenever I want...
I absolutely love the "Owen Was Her" track, but I don't like any of the other songs that much. Can't say I've heard much, to be honest.

It depends on what it is I'm working on.
For example, if I'm doing art for a character, I'll be listening to a song that suits the character. If I'm designing a level, let's say it's a spoopy level, I'm listening to something spoopy.
I do this a lot when I draw concept art.
 
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GhostlyFeline

Guest
I absolutely love the "Owen Was Her" track, but I don't like any of the other songs that much.
You're entitled to your opinion. Personally, I think UN Owen is the most overrated track in the series.
 

Posho

Member
You're entitled to your opinion. Personally, I think UN Owen is the most overrated track in the series.
Yeah, it definitely is. To the point that it became an 2007's something Internet cult classic.
Prove me wrong then if you're so cool.
 
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GhostlyFeline

Guest
Yeah, it definitely is. To the point that it became an 2007's something Internet cult classic.
Prove me wrong then if you're so cool.
I'm not looking for hipster points. Taste in music is subjective, so I can only really express what I think is cool. That said, piano solos for days.
 
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vickyleeps

Guest
I stick with soft rock, just to make sure my blood pressure doesn't go to high. Hahaha
 
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Wraithious

Guest
Actually while I dev i can't listen to any music, it's too distracting, unless im working on graphics, then i usually listen to the entire album The First Snowfall- by Night Conquers Day
 

Jabbers

Member
Sometimes music distracts me and other times it doesn't. I guess it depends what I am working on. If I'm trying to program or figure out how to design a complicated feature, I prefer silence, but if I am bug fixing, working on the interface, or some other drone work, then music really helps. Nothing specifically, but preferably nothing calming or sad because it kills my energy levels.
 

JackTurbo

Member
If I'm coding something tricky it'll usually be something pretty chilled out.
Recently been listening to a lot of Emancipator (who despite how the name sounds are not a metal band).

Other favourites for this are:
Boards of Canada
Nightmares on Wax
Bonobo

If however I'm doing work that laborious but not particularly challenging I'll listen to something higher energy/tempo like a House or Techno mix.

When doing Art stuff I'll try and match the mood/tone of the work I am doing so this often results in me listening to soundtracks.
 
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Ting_Thing

Guest
A lot of Christian worship music, especially when I'm working on sprites.
 
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SyntheticStorm9

Guest
Dubstep and skillet unleashed, starset, we came as romans, family force five, whatever catches my fancy.
 
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Kahvana

Guest
Mostly glitchhop (crytex) dubstep (Klaypex), electronic (too many to mention, but virtual riot & AkU are the first ones to come in mind, as well as starset) and rock (skillet, three days grace, breaking benjamin, red). I also listen to Japanese music (KOKIA, FLAMING JUNE, Hatsune Miku & Other vocaloid songs, anime openign & endings, touhou songs), oriental, trap, future house & bass and other relaxing music ^^.

One of the songs I listen to when doing rubberduck debugging:
 
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gibberingmouther

Guest
i like heavy metal. Tristania is one i'm fond of, except for their last two albums with a new singer. i can listen to the entire albums, all the songs are good, and it is stimulating. i also sometimes like to listen to my own soundtrack when i'm working.
 

kburkhart84

Firehammer Games
I have various stuff I listen to, it varies based on what I feel like at the time. It ranges from older classic rock(Journey, Boston) to heavier classic rock(Guns & Roses and similar) to newer rock(Breaking Benjamin, Five Finger Death Punch, etc...). And sometimes I feel more Trance/Techno and the range there goes from slower stuff like Oceanlab into faster stuff like Darude, DJ Tiesto, Scooter, and many things in-between. My music tastes are somewhat unique. Most people I know either like only certain types of music, or a great variety of music, or at the least a range of similar music(like all types of rock for example) but nobody I know(at least that I know of) can say they like slow and heavy rock, metal, and then also like techno, trance, and even the random song by Sting(google it as most of you probably don't know) you would find on my playlists.
 

TehPilot

Member
I just throw my entire library on shuffle most of the time. My selection's largely biased towards classical/modern rock and prog metal. By numbers, Dream Theater / Queens of the Stone Age / Devin Townsend Project are the most common songs I have on rotation. If I have to focus intently or meet a critical deadline, I switch things up and move to heavier, faster-paced stuff. Rise Against and Strapping Young Lad have been favorites for that as of late.

Occasionally there's the odd Caravan Palace song.
 
My coding music playlist changes over time, but right now it consists of:
  • Synthwave (Think Hotline Miami/Furi)
  • Eurobeat (Initial D)
  • Retro game music
 
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Dark

Guest
Youtube commentary when I don't want something too distracting, otherwise metal of nearly all kinds and alternative rock.
Nightwish is the best.
 
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Erdrickgr

Guest
I hold off listening to music--usually metal--till I'm out somewhere like the gym, so if I'm on the pc working I'll usually listen to asmr vids or Let's Plays (currently working through gopher doing The Witcher 3).
 
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Thexel PIN

Guest
Mostly Touhou OST. As there's ton of games (Including the spin-off) and CDs with exclusive soundtrack, I never run out of interesting songs.
 
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Alyxx

Guest
Usually electro house, dubstep or synthwave, or 80's italo disco.
 

Gamebot

Member
I try to come up with my own that meets the mood of the genre.
But, when in the mood anywhere from Yani to Pantera.
 

Posho

Member
I just found out that the recent Super Bomberman R soundtrack is super decent.

Super Bomberman R

Boss Dastardly Bomber

The Five Dastardly Bombers

Battle 2

Great Gattaida: Boss

Great Gattaida: Ultimate Buggler
 
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Feniks

Guest
I may be exception here but I really enjoy the silence. I find that I focus best with no extra noise around. Bit boring I know but I guess what works best.
 
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AverageJoe

Guest
Hey you could listen to my spotify playlist...but you may like it, may not.

Check it out here. It's got quite the variety, from rapping to beebs and boops.
 
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GM029

Guest
Usually the music in my game over and over as I tend to test the game as I go along.
 
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GM029

Guest
Protip: Turn off the music while testing unless you want to go insane.
Lucky it's music I love since it's from classic games (placeholder, they'll be changing). The one track I created myself on the other hand...
 
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Ethanicus

Guest
Honestly most the time I don't really need anything, until it occurs to me that I don't have any music. (Like now.)
 
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sharpie89

Guest
I was wondering what kind of music do you listen to when you're working on your video game projects. I didn't see a thread so I might as well make one.

I normally just listen to video game soundtracks. They create a comfy ambient and the lack of lyrics is good since those can distract me when I'm trying to focus.

I can't share my whole music library with you, so I'll just leave these here for now.
Share tracks, playlists, links, YouTube videos. Whatever you feel like. :cool:
Tutorials
 
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Kuro

Guest
I was about to make a thread asking this question, but then it occured to me that someone else would have beat me to it. So I just did a search and here I am. :D (So: BUMP!)

For me I only listen to music when I'm coding. If I'm doing something other than programming I prefer to have video content of some sort playing in the background, ususally something I've already watched in the past since I'm not paying attention to it. iZombie on netflix is my new favorite thing to barely pay attention to while doing stuff, before that it was Lucifer on Amazon. But I digress.

When it comes to listening to music while programming there are a lot of genres I like and could go to, from classical all the way to super modern stuff. The past week though I've found myself bouncing between Ambient/Electronic and Urban Jazz. Not sure why I'm drawn to those genres, but if I was to take a wild guess its because they are pretty diverse in their sounds and don't tend to be as lyrically heavy as some other genres. I find lyrics distracting when I'm coding. And both these genres are capable of some hauntingly beautiful sounds.
 
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