Firefly composer talks about his Uncharted experience

by Andrew Yoon { Nov 26th 2007 at 1:45PM }

Greg Edmonson, composer of the best TV show ever, Firefly, also worked on the music to Sony's Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. His first foray into games soundtracks certainly was ambitious, and a lot of tricks were used to get exactly the sound he wanted for the game. Adventurers may want to take notice of the subtle changes in the game's auditory landscape. "There were small differences depending on where you were in the game," he says. "For instance, in the monastery we used weird metal things and Tibetan bowls, and stuff like that. And when we were out in the jungle, we used all kinds of ethnic flutes. But even those things kind of crossed over, so it was fun."

Interestingly, a lot of "different" instruments were used to craft the sound of Uncharted, such as "the saz (a Turkish stringed instrument), didgeridoo, conch shell, harmonic flutes, shofar, frame drum, and a bunch of invented instruments that don't even have names."

Listen to samples from the score at 1UP. The complete album is available on iTunes.

[Via Digg]

Tags: greg-edmonson, music, soundtrack, uncharted

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Ben @ Nov 26th 2007 1:54PM

Firefly was a great show and was cut tragically short in much the same way as Angel.

It's funny because Nathan Drake reminds me of Malcolm Reynolds in a lot of ways.

I really enjoyed the music in Uncharted along with just about everything else that game had to offer. Can't wait for the next installment.

Nate @ Nov 26th 2007 2:14PM

Ug. I enjoyed Angel, but Firefly was 10 times the show Angel was. Far better characters, plot, and writing.

I've only played the demo so far, but I actually had to turn the music way WAY down because it was so annoying and repetitive. It was neat at first, but it needed to switch up... it was like on a 10 second loop or something crazy.

Nate @ Nov 26th 2007 2:52PM

I liked the demo, but wasn't blown away by the gameplay. Wish there'd been a little more exploration and less waves and waves of bad guys. The story looks really good, and the graphics were definitely top notch, so I'll definitely get it sometime soon, but I'm effectively broke right now.... Rock Band, GH3, and Eye of Judgement really trashed my wallet.

Byron517 @ Nov 26th 2007 2:40PM

@Nate

The game is by far one of the best if not the best for the PS3 out right now! It's amazing the game goes far and beyond what the demo shows you and the music really ties the aura of the game very well! Go pick it up if you get a chance and who ever else hasn't gotten it GO GET IT!

Livi70590 @ Nov 26th 2007 3:04PM

i like this new comment system.

Beseiged @ Nov 26th 2007 3:17PM

This is an awesome game, but i suggest renting it. The total gameplay time is 8 hours at max to get through the plot. There are things you can unlock like costumes and such, but they aren't really worth ,imo, to keep playing through the game to earn them.

Ranus Studios @ Nov 26th 2007 3:18PM

"Greg Edmonson, composer of the best TV show ever, Firefly..."

Quoted for truth. I'm working on a fanepisode, for Chrissakes.

Oh yeah, and Uncharted is good too. 'Least the demo was. A few of my lady friends watched me play it and we had a blast.

kentuckyfried @ Nov 26th 2007 3:18PM

Malcolm Reynolds was more of a badass than Nathan.

I wish they'd bring Firefly back!

hiiro @ Nov 26th 2007 3:19PM

I think if they ever make an Uncharted movie, Nathan Fillion is the obvious choice for Nathan Drake. Nate constantly reminded me of Mal.

Simstim @ Nov 26th 2007 3:23PM

I like the new comments program.

Guys can you do post on PS3 Themes? Here goes a website you can view with the PC or the PS3 web browser:

http://ps3files.net/

Over a hundred themes already uploaded.

Farmz @ Nov 26th 2007 3:34PM

I thought they were gonna bring Firefly back? Too bad they killed off two of the best characters in 'Serenity'. Uncharted is my new obsession. Crushing difficulty mode is insane. They don't let up. The A.I. goes from tough and intuitive to downright mean and tactical. And I think they add in new enemies to shake you up if you're use to sneaking up on the prepositioned enemies you're so familiar with.

amish.gramish @ Nov 26th 2007 5:51PM

Now I have to buy Uncharted just because Greg Edmonson composed the music!!!!

Firefly is the greatest show ever made!!! (Invader Zim is the best cartoon ever made, but Firefly is just a little better)

kigamoosh @ Nov 26th 2007 8:05PM

Oh, I've been in that room! That's the recording studio at Skywalker Ranch, and it's about the best you can get. Not only was Drake's music done by a great composer, but the quality will be the best a video game has ever seen. I want my toslink cable put to use!