Music Week continues with Bertie meeting a composer whose work had a powerful effect on him, and whose processes aren't at all what he expected.
What is it about the music in Vampyr that appeals to me so much? I've played plenty of games with great music but this was the first to really make me think about it, to listen, to contemplate, to wonder. Maybe it's the loneliness of the cello. There's a powerful melancholy and almost yearning quality to it, in the way the bow sweeps the strings and makes that rasping, sonorous wave of noise; in and out, the sound lapping at your attention. And within it, there's a sense of aching. The more I think about it, the more it seems to be Jonathan Reid, the vampire, alone on the streets of 1918 London. Alone while coming to terms with what he is, what this world is, and where he fits within it.
Not only do I love the sound and the associations of it, I love the confidence I picture behind it. A confidence to do things differently, to strip everything back and just present a naked sound. No orchestra, no overt demonstration of musical power, no insecurity fuelling a need to impress. Instead, a cello. A cello played almost improvisationally, with scraps of melody moving irregularly as if on a whim. A cello not afraid to be ugly, to squeak by being played on the bridge. Who does that? Who commands someone to make those sounds for a game and knows they will be OK, that they will be enough?
A new month means a new Humble Choice offering - and this has to be one of the more tempting ones we've seen for some time.
Members of Humble's gaming subscription service can get 12 games to keep forever this month, including Vampyr, Wargroove, Call of Cthulhu, Hello Neighbour and more for just £10/$12.
Dontnod's Vampyr is quite a good draw here as it hasn't been discounted this low until now. You will find it for under £10 on its own on the PSN Store right now, though.
Focus Interactive has confirmed Vampyr's afore-promised patch to "de-emphasise" combat in the vampire action-RPG will release later this week on 26th September 2018.
"Story Mode de-emphasizes combat, placing a greater focus on narrative so players can enjoy Dr. Jonathan Reid's journey with less challenging gameplay," states an update on Steam.
"On the other end of the scale, Hard Mode makes combat much more difficult. Players will receive less experience from killing enemies too, forcing them to rely even more on embracing citizens to grow in power. Upon starting a new game, players will be given the option to choose from these two new modes or a third 'Normal Mode' if they wish to play the original Vampyr experience."