Year: 2006
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST)
Composer(s): Jason Graves
Number of tracks: 10

★★★★★

A case for specialists

I was not familiar with Rise & Fall: Civilizations at War. As it turns out, it didn't need to be. With an average rating in the upper midfield, it was no genre revolutionary despite its innovative concept of real-time strategy meets third-person shooter. Where SpellForce worked with its role-playing foundation, Rise & Fall was probably neither fish nor fowl enough. A pity really ... maybe they'd like to try again 17 years later?

Meanwhile, composer Jason Graves, who was virtually predestined for this project, was hired for the soundtrack. While we would later place him in the context of various action games - including Third Person - the ten tracks of this OST sound like entertaining strategy fare.

It can be placed somewhere in the vicinity of Company of Heroes, God of War and Age of Wonders , which already gives us an insight into the thematic background. The score is militaristic through and through; we hear the drummers marching in almost every piece. Paired with the dominant winds and high strings, the result is an exciting mixture of war cult and fantasy feeling.

In contrast, the breaks, which also appear in almost every track and give them unexpected twists, are untypical of the genre. For example, the sweet Cleopatra Is Summoned is suddenly transformed into a completely different piece by the sudden use of percussion; elegant restraint becomes a dramatic heroic orgy in the style of The Chronicles of Narnia. Shortly before the end, however, oriental drums suddenly end the onslaught. It almost seems as if different pieces have been mixed together here, but the transition feels too deliberate. Presumably the transition from strategy to shooter.

To be honest, I would have liked to have seen a segmentation into individual tracks, which would have been a very modest wish given the limited number of tracks. As it is, the tracks are a little too fickle for me, or I lack the mental links to what I've heard. The ride of the Rohirrim is even more impressive when you have the images of Howard Shore's fantastic piece in your head, as the Rohans riders gallop through the siege force of Mordor and you know which note accompanies which moment.

As a result, Rise & Fall unfortunately doesn't reach the top class for me in terms of technical notation, but instead comes with a clear recommendation. You can listen to it with a clear conscience, precisely because it's not the classic strategy ensemble.

No.	Title	Artist(s)	Ratings
01	Civilizations at War	Jason Graves	4
02	Cleopatra Is Summoned	Jason Graves	4
03	Charge of the Babylonians	Jason Graves	4
04	Alexander the Great Attacks	Jason Graves	4
05	The Roman Empire	Jason Graves	4
06	Achilles Rides Into Battle	Jason Graves	4
07	A Hero Will Fall	Jason Graves	4
08	Lay Waste to the Land	Jason Graves	4
09	The Approaching Fleet	Jason Graves	4
10	Preparing for Battle	Jason Graves	4