Year: 2005
Type: Gamerip
Composer(s): Kevin Riepl
Number of tracks: 23

★★★★★

Technocalities

I want to be honest: I'm not a fan of trends. For example, when the fashion world determines that clothing styles become completely obsolete within a few months, only to rise again later as the new hot shit, I've become mentally disconnected. At the moment, it's apparently fashionable to wear oversize - something I paved the way for when I was at school, because as the youngest you're dependent on your older brother's growth spurts when it comes to clothing.

The same applies to the games market, where in one year every main hero suddenly has to shoot around with a bow and arrow or a Battleroyal game mode is planted on every game, no matter how inappropriate. And certain musical trends also seem to be recognizable. What was initially limited to dodgy chiptunes due to technical limitations opened up whole new worlds at the turn of the millennium thanks to new hardware. But for many shooters, apparently an order was issued from 2000-2005: Stick to techno-rock.

There's no other way to explain why the music for Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict by Kevin Riepl sounds exactly like Chaser, System Shock 2, Aquanox 2: Revelation, Red Faction II or Unreal Tournament. If you're looking for my take on this kind of music, you'll find it in my review of Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn, as well as the examples mentioned above. To break it down: If it's done well, this music can really get the adrenaline flowing and be a lot of fun. When it's not, the style tends to feel old-fashioned and like something we hear muffled through the back door of a commercially unsuccessful underground club.

With Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict the latter is largely the case. There is a lack of ideas to enhance the combination of fast beats and sci-fi synths. A little electric guitar action (Transistor) is not enough. And even if the tracks are fundamentally different - after all, they are supposed to suitably accompany the various maps and biomes - it's not enough in my opinion fo Abydos to have an Egyptian atmosphere and Nakhti Ruins to borrow from a B-grade-Uncharted-soundtrack.

The music is simply too interchangeable for that and could just as easily appear in the other scores - I would never notice it. Nevertheless, I don't want to be too harsh in my criticism. In the context of the time, Riepl probably did everything right and provided players with a driving backdrop for a fast-paced action shooter. Today, however, it probably only excites (genre) fans.

No.	Title	Artist(s)	Ratings
01	Unreal Tournament Theme [Redux]	Kevin Riepl	4
02	Deep Core	Kevin Riepl	4
03	Bakhu Ruins	Kevin Riepl	3
04	Acid Rain	Kevin Riepl	4
05	Nu Battle	Kevin Riepl	3
06	Descension	Kevin Riepl	3
07	Nakhti Temple	Kevin Riepl	3
08	Axon	Kevin Riepl	3
09	Cenotaph	Kevin Riepl	3
10	Temple Udjat	Kevin Riepl	3
11	Recoil	Kevin Riepl	2
12	Cold Fusion	Kevin Riepl	3
13	Khepri	Kevin Riepl	3
14	Abydos	Kevin Riepl	4
15	Gauntlet	Kevin Riepl	3
16	Transistor	Kevin Riepl	3
17	Arctic Decay	Kevin Riepl	2
18	Cancer	Kevin Riepl	2
19	Nakhti Ruins	Kevin Riepl	3
20	Columns	Kevin Riepl	3
21	Adoratrice	Kevin Riepl	3
22	Legacy	Kevin Riepl	3
23	Ascension Conclusion	Kevin Riepl	2