Vagrant Bard

World of Goo is no news for those who know what “indie games” are. In case you don’t, think of it as a nifty-wacky-weird-puzzle-physics game or, as one of its creators (Kyle Gabler) put it, “a physics-based puzzle game about building things with eager little talking globs of goo.”

What matters to this post isn’t the game so, though, but rather its soundtrack. Recently released, it was something I eagerly awaited for when I first had my chance with those slimy goo balls. Approximately 49 minutes of surreal immersion that make you remember many stages and relive awkward moments of tower building and goo killing.

Kyle cites many “big movie guys” like Danny Elfman, Vangelis, Bernard Herrmann, Hans Zimmer, and Ennio Morricone as his sources of inspirati. Though I agree, I can’t shake that taste of Team17’s Worms away. The tunes and the goo globs themselves, it just sounds so seriously-wacky with a bit of high pitched “weeeee” on top.

On the other hand, the composition made up clearly reveals how different songs made for different purposes can fit in with game themes. There’s no way people can criticize games for having a specific-tuney-like soundtrack. By putting together a clever compilation, games like Jonathan Blow’s Braid and World of Goo defy that notion. You’ve got original compostions that never thought of accompanying gameplay, even if they might have been made for films.

Enough of my babbling, you just want the soundtrack. What? Pay? No no no! The current trend is “free“! So click here and start by listening to “Regurtitation Pumping Station”. At least, that’s what I’ve done for the past hours or so.

May the game development culture evolve on this path with a strong community relationship. Seriously, we’ve got free goodies. How could this go wrong?