Mick Gordon should be familiar to those who have played the recent DOOM games, seeing as he made the soundtracks for DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal. However recent events have made him decide to not work with id Software in the future. And once we look at what’s happened, it becomes clear why.
The DOOM Eternal soundtrack is something special. It features a broad dynamic range, from crunchy industrial metal to serene choirs and ambience. So in Bethesda’s infinite wisdom, when putting together the official OST release, they decided to compress the heck out of it.
Here's a comparison between the original BFG Division from Doom 2016's official soundtrack (left) vs. the BFG 2020 remix on Eternal's soundtrack from today (right).
Notice how the wavelengths in BFG 2020 form a nearly perfectly straight bar vs. the original with more definition pic.twitter.com/TCJRdOe1Yf
— Doominal Crossing: Eternal Horizons ???? (@thatACDCguy) April 19, 2020
Not only that but it was apparently put together entirely without any input from Gordon. According to a tweet, he only mixed a handful of tracks on the official release. The rest were mixed by someone else entirely and have been pretty much compressed to the point any dynamic range is gone entirely.
Understandably, this has really pissed off Gordon who, in response to a question whether he would be working with Id Software in the future, said it was unlikely after this incident. The composer is known for putting a lot of effort into his soundtracks. So a move like this would undoubtedly come off as really disrespectful towards his work.
The Bethesda Curse
Bethesda is no stranger to showing laziness and lack of effort. Not only did their game Fallout 76 receive almost universal hate, but the merchandise as well. The company has been involved in a lot of false advertising over the years. So it may come as no surprise that their release of the DOOM Eternal OST was handled the same.
While it is no new thing that OST composers have little control over their soundtrack in the game industry, this is still a sign that publishers need to take things more seriously. It might be easy to blame it on time constraints, but the utter lack of care put into the soundtrack release still comes off as disrespectful towards the artist.
Luckily this does not seem to have been reflected in the game. As you may recall from our review, DOOM Eternal plays wonderfully and sounds amazing. So you should still buy the game if you haven’t. And remember to check out Mick Gordon’s own mixes.
Source: PC Gamer
