EDM Music In Gaming: How Electronic Music Elevates The Virtual Experience

EDM, or Electronic Dance Music, is a form of dance music. It has percussive, rhythmic beats and is produced electronically, rather than acoustically. It has been around since the 1980s and the advent and growth of technology, specifically the Internet, has seen many more people able to produce and reproduce its sound.

EDM has become popular in gaming because it can be coordinated to perfectly match the action in the game while setting the scene, creating atmosphere, and generally improving the enjoyment of the game.

Music in Gaming

Game developers use every tool and trick possible to improve the gaming experience, and this includes the audio we hear in games. From the metallic click of a gun reloading in a first-person shooter to the mechanic whirr of reels spinning in instantcasino games, gaming platforms use audio and visual technology to make the experience feel as life-like as possible while offering a wide range of games and beneficial features.

Immersion

Game developers put a lot of time and effort into creative immersive experiences. This makes players feel like they are part of the environment and directly involved in the action taking place in the game. In first-person shooters, it builds anticipation and even a little fear. In casino games, it creates excitement and the buzz that players typically get when visiting the retail casinos in Las Vegas.

Setting The Mood

Music can be daunting and enhance anticipation. Or, it can be uplifting and encourage positive energy. It can be contemplative and facilitate clear thinking. Music can change moods and actively trigger the release of dopamine or cortisol. Dopamine makes us happy while cortisol triggers a stress response, so developers can set any mood.

Enhance Storytelling

When we’re watching horror movies, we can reasonably predict when something scary is about to happen, according to the score of the film. The use of music not only builds anticipation but also helps set the scene and can be used to drive the story and improve narration.

This can be used in all types of games. In exploratory adventure games, EDM and other types of music can be used to build tension as the player enters new areas. It can be used to discourage aggression in areas filled with NPCs. It is also widely used in celebratory montages when players finish boss battles or complete stages and areas.

In-Game Musical Events

We’ve seen, in games like Fortnite, in-game concerts and live performances from some of the world’s biggest musicians including Deadmau5, and this is another area where we could see further progress in EDM and gaming. The metaverse is a digital world that connects players and users, and it not only incorporates games but other elements like socialization and even live entertainment.

Why Use EDM In Gaming?

Specifically, EDM tends to be uplifting, thanks to its rhythmic and prominent beat. This lends itself well to energetic and lively games, as well as action-packed scenes in those games. EDM comes with audio files that are easily mapped so the rhythm and other elements of the track can accurately match the action in the game.

Using licensed EDM music can be less expensive than other types of music and certainly less expensive than commissioning a band or composer to create a full music score for a video game.

EDM is a large genre of music and there are many subgenres within EDM. This means different forms and styles of music can be used in gaming, depending on whether the maker is looking for moody and atmospheric, deep and contemplative, or energetic and lively.

The Future Of EDM In Gaming

The EDM and gaming industries are advancing quickly. We have already seen greater integration of music into gaming, as well as its introduction to VR and metaverse environments, but we have seen the introduction of reactive audio tracks: music that responds to the gamer. Up until now, this has been relatively static.

If the player enters a specific area of a game, audio is triggered. Or, if they enter combat or another type of game sequence, the music changes. With the improvement and widespread use of AI, in the gaming and music industries, audio tracks and music could become a lot more responsive, able to track how the player is playing and even how they are performing.

AI could pick up on the natural rhythm of a player’s movements, as well as their progression, and customize the audio output and timing accordingly.

Licensing is a major part of EDM, in general, and in its use in gaming. As AI becomes increasingly prominent, we are likely to see more EDM tracks created by AI. This brings up questions of intellectual property rights: a debate that has already plagued generative AI in other areas.

Machine learning models must use existing music to help them learn how to develop tracks. Licensing will become increasingly important and we are likely to see court cases, debates, and regulatory changes to bring licensing in line with modern technologies.