Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
Year: 1992
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST)
Composer(s): Clint Bajakian, Michael Land, Peter McConnell
Number of tracks: 42
Industy Jones
It is therefore not surprising that the game was so good that to this day Fate of Atlantis is mentioned in the same breath as other greats such as Day of the Tentacle or the aforementioned story about Guybrush Threepwood. What is surprising, however, is the fact that this concept was not continued. Stories with the world's most famous archaeologist that don't just tell the stories of the silver screen, but chapters that are detached from them - that sounds like a perfect match, doesn't it?
This can probably be attributed to the spirit of the times. Point-and-clicks, which harmonized perfectly with the rudimentary input methods and the still very limited computing power of the time, were replaced by action adventures. 3D instead of sidescrolling, reaction instead of puzzles. At the same time, four years later, Lara Croft emerged as a female counterpart whose adventures required less brainpower and more dexterity. It's a shame that the renaissance of old game concepts has not yet been accompanied by the launch of a new Indie-game. But managers and the rights owners must have had something in mind here.
Who cares, after all, I've never played Indies video game spin-offs and would probably have been too thick to do so. After all, I have an unhealthy mix of impatience, ego and low frustration tolerance. Puzzles in games? Yes, but only if they're not too challenging. So let me instead encourage you, the reader, keep on reading. Because I will now - hopefully - surface some musical highlights. Will I strike gold in the OST to Fate of Atlantis ? Let's find out.
With the Opening Titles we are immediately greeted by John Williams' fantastic theme in the quality of the Yamaha YM3218 sound chip. Fortunately - or due to the lack of a movie template - composers Clint Bajakian, Michael Land and Peter McConnell got creative themselves and added video game/LucasArts-like comedy to the familiar theme without getting too goofy. The whole thing dangles like a forlorn archaeologist over a snake pit and oscillates between serious adventure story and point-and-click humor. The well-known 'Da Dada Daaa' can also be found later as a quote in tracks such as Map, The Azores / Mr Costa and Farewell Dr. Jones but is never overwrought. That's a good thing.
Meanwhile, the style of the score, with its clattering fanfares, shows parallels to later LucasArts titles such as Star Wars: Dark Forces or TIE Fighter which is probably due to the fact that Williams was back at work on the film and part of the composing team on the games. Unlike with the war of stars, the OST of Fate of Atlantis remains much more down-to-earth most of the time without being boring. Ironically, tracks such as Tikal / Meeting Sternhart or Crete seem to have been borrowed from the main menu of Tomb Raider , while Monte Carlo / Monsieur Trottier and Arnold the Singing Nazi drift into the realm of humor.
The obligatory completion of musical tropes is also covered with Crossing the Desert (oriental) or Darkness at the Entrance of Atlantis (creepy). And with Room of the God Machine there's even a bit of Dies Irae sneaking in - me gusta! Overall, I find little to criticize in the OST, the bit music is solid by the standards of the time (and to some extent still today) without setting any noteworthy accents. Like a nice story that you forget shortly after hearing it ... or reading this article.
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Ratings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Opening Titles | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell |  |
| 02 | Kerner Steals the Statue | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 03 | Map | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 04 | New York / Biff the Doorman | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell |  |
| 05 | Sophia's Atlantis Presentation | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 06 | Sophia's Office Is Ransacked / The Appearance of Nur-Ab-Sal | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 07 | Iceland | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 08 | Tikal / Meeting Sternhart | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell |  |
| 09 | Tikal Temple | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 10 | Sternhart Steals the Worldstone | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 11 | The Azores / Mr Costa | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 12 | A Research Lab Somewhere in Germany | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 13 | Caswell Hall | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 14 | The Lost Dialogue of Plato | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 15 | Monte Carlo / Monsieur Trottier | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 16 | Monte Carlo Hotel Room | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 17 | The Seance | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 18 | Monte Carlo Car Chase | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 19 | Crossing the Desert | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 20 | Outside the Dig | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 21 | Crete | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 22 | The Ruins of Knossos | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 23 | The Ancient Elevator | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 24 | Knossos Labyrinth | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 25 | Arnold the Singing Nazi | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 26 | Fighting Theme | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 27 | Farewell Dr. Jones | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 28 | Map Room | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 29 | The Transit | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 30 | The Nazi Submarine | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 31 | Diving for Atlantis | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 32 | Darkness at the Entrance of Atlantis | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 33 | Outer Ring of Atlantis 1 | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 34 | Outer Ring of Atlantis 2 | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 35 | Outer Ring of Atlantis 3 | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 36 | Atlantean Robot Stampede | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 37 | Indy and Sophia's Kiss | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 38 | Crab Central | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 39 | The Crab-like Raft | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 40 | The Lavamaze | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
| 41 | Room of the God Machine | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell |  |
| 42 | The God Machine / Finale | Clint Bajakian; Michael Land; Peter McConnell | |
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