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Just a little scare

This is the music review. Here you can find the game review.
Here you can find the music review for
Raising Hell (2008).

About eight years ago, when I was just starting to articulate my opinion without being asked, one of my first game reviews was of Overlord. How proud I was of this text, this expressive opinion, this manifesto! U20-Mattis' review has probably matured about as well as the density of hair on my head. If you want to get an idea of it, you can read the game review . But that's not the point here, just this much: I really enjoyed playing the game back then and my rating was colored accordingly. And even today I would still like to play a remake or even a sequel, but the chances of that happening look as good as the likelihood of Donald Trump going to jail.

Aber nun auf zum Soundtrack des dänischen Komponisten Michiel van den Bos, der 2021 noch genauso gut funktioniert wie 2007: durchwachsen. Was wir hören, passt gut zum eigentlichen Game und ließe sich wohl am ehesten als Fantasy-Allerlei beschreiben. Streicher, die gerne mal gezupft werden, Bläser, die fanfarenartig erklingen und Klaviergeklimper, das atmosphärisch Grusel heraufbeschwören will und die düsteren Ambitionen des Protagonisten unterstreichen. Das funktioniert Gamerip-typisch am ehesten noch bei den Kampftracks, bei den Ambienttracks ohne optische Begleitung dagegen wenig bis gar nicht und sollte höchstens für Leute interessant sein, die noch Hintergrundrauschen für die nächste Dungeons & Dragons-Kampagne suchen.

Compared to its successor, Overlord actually only has three songs worth mentioning in my opinion: the "Overlord" theme, which is also frequently varied in other tracks and can also be found in the second track "Final Battle", and the "Minion Theme". The latter in particular emphasizes the humorous basic idea of the game, in which it stretches a kind of polka march with a recurring motif over 2 ½ minutes without really getting boring. If you now have the henchmen from the game in your head, who vie for the favor of their dark overlord with their mischievous and stupid manner, the result is a coherent picture that always brings a smile to my face. I can't say whether the track works without the accompanying head cinema.

Conversely, for me, the main theme, which is also found in the sequel, is emblematic of the dualism of the game, of childish fantasy pranks and action brawls. The theme, which is constantly repeated by the wind instruments, is accompanied by percussion, extended by strings and heralds power, heroism and also a little menace. This comparatively sedate version is trumped by the aforementioned "Final Battle", which plays during the final boss fight in keeping with the title and sounds even louder, more powerful and more dramatic. However, when I listened to it again for this review, I had to realize that with dwindling enthusiasm for the game, probably only the nostalgia glasses can still hold up the late-pubescent joy of the music. That's not to say that I don't find the tracks recommendable, but I can understand anyone who finds them lacking that certain something.

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Nostalgia warning

The rating of the individual tracks is purely subjective and clearly colored by my own experience with the game. You can find out more in the article About Nostalgia.

Nr.	Title	Interpret(en)	Ratings
01	Overlord	Michiel van den Bos	5
02	Tower PQ	Michiel van den Bos	3
03	Minion Theme	Michiel van den Bos	5
04	Short Highlands	Michiel van den Bos	2
05	Domain Halflings	Michiel van den Bos	3
06	Halfling Tunnel (Groove)	Michiel van den Bos	2
07	Combat (Main Theme)	Michiel van den Bos	3
08	Wither	Michiel van den Bos	3
09	Tower Start	Michiel van den Bos	3
10	Halfling Tunnel (Dimly Lit)	Michiel van den Bos	2
11	Tower Entry	Michiel van den Bos	2
12	Mellow Village	Michiel van den Bos	3
13	Demosong	Michiel van den Bos	3
14	Combat (Fast)	Michiel van den Bos	4
15	Combat (Bombastic)	Michiel van den Bos	4
16	Halfling Tunnel (The Creeps)	Michiel van den Bos	2
17	Danger Terror	Michiel van den Bos	2
18	Explore Night	Michiel van den Bos	3
19	Short Fire	Michiel van den Bos	2
20	Elf Forest (Urgency)	Michiel van den Bos	2
21	Elf Forest (Spooky)	Michiel van den Bos	2
22	Elf Swamp	Michiel van den Bos	3
23	Short Plague	Michiel van den Bos	2
24	Short Death Desolation	Michiel van den Bos	2
25	Paladin Succubus	Michiel van den Bos	3
26	Short Light Rain	Michiel van den Bos	2
27	Exploration Mellow	Michiel van den Bos	3
28	Explore Woods	Michiel van den Bos	3
29	Peril Melancholy	Michiel van den Bos	3
30	Paladin Catacomb	Michiel van den Bos	2
31	Paladin Threat	Michiel van den Bos	2
32	Greensleeves	Michiel van den Bos	4
33	Dwarf Dark	Michiel van den Bos	1
34	Dwarf Village	Michiel van den Bos	3
35	Dwarf Mine	Michiel van den Bos	2
36	Warrior Wastelands	Michiel van den Bos	2
37	Warrior Combat	Michiel van den Bos	3
38	Final Battle	Michiel van den Bos	5
39	Credits	Michiel van den Bos	2

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Raising Hell

Raising Hell is the kind of add-on where you can't really find out exactly what it is, even with internet research. Is it an addon? Is it a DLC? Is it the original game that's been polished up for another platform? I have no idea! I'm guessing it's a minimal Fable: The Lost Chapters-like expansion, but don't pin me down on that or ask me if it's any good.

When it comes to the soundtrack, on the other hand, I'm more confident in giving it a rating, because it's rather mediocre. Five tracks that add nothing but an electric guitar and underline my suspicion that only one map was added by Raising Hell. Not particularly noteworthy, but for the sake of completeness I wanted to give it a quick mention. If you're looking for good fantasy music with a bit more rock, then Bastion or Prince of Persia: Warrior Within will be more to your liking.

Nr.	Title	Interpret(en)	Ratings
1	Abyss Ambient	Michiel van den Bos	2
2	Abyss Explore	Michiel van den Bos	3
3	Abyss Combat	Michiel van den Bos	3
4	Abyss Combat Heavy	Michiel van den Bos	3
5	Abyss End Scene	Michiel van den Bos	3