Hiring a Composer for Your Game: Key Considerations for Success

Are you contemplating whether to hire a composer for your game? As a composer who’s had the privilege of working with many indie game developers and studios, I understand the challenges that come with finding the right person to join your creative team. Selecting the right composer can make or break your project, so here are a few tips to guide you in your search:

1. Clarify Your Needs

Before diving into your search, ask yourself: What role do you want a composer to play in your game’s development? Are you seeking someone to work with long-term, or would you prefer a composer who can step in on an ad-hoc basis? Are you looking for a one-time collaboration, or would you like to develop a lasting relationship with a composer who can contribute to multiple projects?

Understanding your own goals will help you narrow down the type of composer you need.

2. Know What Kind of Person You Want to Work With

This is a universal point, whether you’re hiring for a creative role or something else. It’s essential to identify the attributes and personality traits that will help ensure a successful collaboration. Think about the type of person you want to work with, both professionally and personally.

Look for a composer who:

• Delivers outstanding music that elevates your game

• Communicates easily and effectively

• Respects your team and vision

• Is open to discussing ideas and feedback

• Helps bring your creative vision to life

(Also check out 6 Ways to Spot a Bad Composer Before It’s Too Late!)

3. Define the Music Style You’re After

While many composers can adapt to different genres, most have a signature style that will shine through in all their work. Before you start reaching out to composers, determine the type of music you envision for your game. Listen to different tracks, identify the styles that resonate with you, and narrow down your preferences.

Once you have a clearer vision of what you want, review composers’ previous works to see if their style aligns with your needs. Pay attention to elements like audio quality, melody, and overall tone to see if it fits the vibe you're going for.

Feel free to browse through some of my game music soundtracks for inspiration, and get a sense of what kind of music might work well for your project.

4. Set a Realistic Budget

Every developer works with a budget, and it’s crucial to be upfront about what you can afford for the music. Consider how important the music is to your game and how it fits into your overall budget. High-quality music can significantly enhance the player experience, but it’s not always the focus in every game. Some projects require more investment in soundtracks than others, depending on how central the music is to the overall experience.

Ask yourself: Do you have the budget for a high-end composer who can produce fully orchestrated, cinematic scores? Or are you working with a more modest budget, where you’ll need to look for composers who offer a great balance of quality and affordability?

Balancing your budget while ensuring the music elevates your game is key. When you find the right composer, the collaboration will feel well worth the investment.

5. Consider Your Working Style

Think about how you’d like to collaborate with your composer. Are you comfortable working virtually, or would you prefer to meet in person? Do you prefer using email, video calls, or file-sharing platforms like Dropbox or Google Drive?

Establishing the logistics of how you’ll work together will help ensure smooth communication and a productive partnership. Find a composer who thrives under the same working conditions you prefer.

Finding the right composer for your game may take time and effort, but once you discover the perfect match, the results can be extraordinary. If you think I can help bring your game’s soundtrack to life, feel free to reach out and explore how we can collaborate!

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About the Author:

Ninichi is a game music and film music composer based in the UK, with clients all across the globe, from the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. She has created music for games, films, tv shows, commercials and more. Visit her homepage now and explore her music.

How to Write a Great Music Brief for a Composer

By Ninichi | Contact | Follow

Are you thinking of working with a composer for your game, film or commercial? If so, it will be really helpful for both you and them to create a clear brief to work together from. This will help to ensure that you are thinking along the same lines, are both working from the same set of information and it may also help to clarify your thoughts.

Here are a few things to make sure you include in your composer brief:

Information about your project

Include details and background about you and your project.

• What is it called?

• What is it about?

• Who is it for?

• What are you trying to do with it?

• What are your plans for it?

• What does it look like?

Make sure that you include everything that is important to you about the project, where it comes from, your vision for it and anything else that comes to mind.

Where you are at with your project

How far along are you in your project and what is left to do? It can be really helpful for a composer to have an idea of what sort of a timeline you are working with and where you are in your overall project.

Music requirements

Give an indication of what you're hoping for musically.

• How many tracks?

• How long should they be?

• What music style do you have in mind?

• Include examples and reference tracks

• Where does the music fit into the project exactly?

• How you plan to use it?

Deadlines and budget

It is often helpful to give an indication on what your budget is or any budgeting constraints you have to work with, and also what sort of timeframes and deadlines might be coming up for you or that you have to work within.

This will help the composer to manage their time, their work and to establish upfront whether or not they can work with you and within these constraints or not.

About the author

Ninichi is a game music and film music composer. She works with talented indie game developers and film makers to create unique soundtracks for their games and films.

Explore this website to learn more about Ninichi & how she can help you with the music for your project.

Follow her @ninichimusic

Introducing Ninichi's Town music (Royalty free casual Game music)

By Ninichi | Contact | Follow

Do you need some cheerful casual music for your video game? Are you looking for music that is easy to listen to, relaxing and that sits perfectly in the background? If so, the Town Music Pack, might be just what you need!

I’m Ninichi, and I’m a game music composer! I’ve have been incredibly lucky to have worked with many talented indie game developers on the music for their games (check out my game music). It’s an honour and a joy to be involved in so many wonderful projects. At the same time, I’m also a great supporter of indie projects in general and know that not all games can afford custom music.

So, to try and help with this I decided to create a variety of video game music, royalty free music packs for indie game developers on a super tight budget but who still want some decent, high quality music in their games.

Each of my royalty free game music packs can be purchased, licensed and easily downloaded directly from my website. Once you complete the checkout process, you’ll get the files to download and away you go! You will have the music you need for your game! Yay!

The Town Music Pack is a set of 5 relaxing and uplifting tracks, great for casual games. Perfect for background music and setting a calm and laid back, positive atmosphere whilst also keeping listeners engaged and happy all at the same time!

This royalty free casual games music pack is designed to support casual gameplay and fun simulation games. The tracks are all cheerful, light-hearted, fun and are quite hummable! The tracks are also all loopable and come in both easy-to-use mp3 and WAV formats.

Have a listen now and watch this short preview of the Town Music, game music pack:

So, if you’re currently in need of some music that’s royalty free, easy to listen to and is ready as a set to be used now, check out the Town Music Royalty Free Music Pack e-music-packnow!

If however, you don’t feel this game music pack is right for you, check out these instead:

About Ninichi

Ninichi is a game music and film music composer. She works with talented indie game developers and film makers to create unique soundtracks for their games and films.

She offers a wide range of ready-made, royalty-free game music packs along with other production music available to license. Explore these on her website now.

Follow her @ninichimusic

How to differentiate your indie game with music

By Ninichi | Contact | Follow

Are you working on an indie game and are wondering how to differentiate it from the others that are currently out there in the market or that are about to be released into the market? You may have a new and unique concept and you may be offering a completely different experience to what is already available but taking the time to get the music right in your game can really help to differentiate it further and to make it stand out above the rest.

Here are 5 ways that music can help you to differentiate yourself:

1.Choose music that really moves people

Music is a powerful tool in helping to convey emotions in a game. Music can change how people feel about the experience and by focusing on music that really captures the mood in each part of your game, you will help to make sure that the experience in your game is the very best that it can be.

Read: How to Choose the Right Music for Your Game

2. Create music for different parts of your game

Whether your game is split into levels, sections, scenes, characters etc. make sure that the music supports this and also helps guide people through your game. The more you can use music to help people understand what's going on in your game and to transition through it smoothly, the better the overall experience and immersion into your game.

See: 6 Different Ways to Harness Music in Games

3.Have a custom soundtrack

If you can afford it, opt for a custom soundtrack to make sure that the music you have is unique, distinct and that it fits your game perfectly. Work with a composer to find the right music style for your game and to create a consistent, high quality soundtrack.

Read: How to Work Well with a Game Music Composer

4. Create a custom theme tune

Theme tunes offer the opportunity for people to associate a mood, a tune and a positive feeling with your game. They can make your game really memorable especially if the theme tune is catchy, easy to hum and fun to listen to. Theme tunes can also help capture the essence of your game in a short timeframe, which offers people a quick glimpse into the great experience that your game can offer them.

5. Develop a trailer

Make a trailer to help showcase your game and entice people into playing it. Include your theme tune as part of it and make sure that the trailer helps capture the mood and wonderful experiences your game offers. Treat it like a sneak peek into the world of your game and also your soundtrack.

See: How to Create An Awesome Indie Game Trailer

So there you have my 5 ways to differentiate your game through music. It's definitely worth spending the time and investment in getting your music right. Without great music, your game could really be missing an opportunity to reach players at that deeper level.

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About the author

Ninichi is a game music and film music composer. She works with talented indie game developers and film makers to create unique soundtracks for their games and films.

Explore this website to learn more about Ninichi & how she can help you with the music for your project.

Follow her @ninichimusic

6 Marketing Articles to Help Your Indie Game Succeed

By Ninichi | Contact | Follow

Hello lovely indie game developers and other peeps! Welcome, welcome to my humble blog! If you’re here for the first time, I’m Ninichi - a freelance game music composer and the creator of this game development blog. Here I offer my music talents and services to you i.e. you can commission me to create music for your game (see my game music page) or explore my royalty free music library and game music packs. AND - you can explore my blogs which include a wide range of articles to support you through your game development journey, highlight interesting indie games I’ve found and been involved in, offer tips and tricks when it comes to game music and more!

One of the key areas in the game development cycle that I’ve seen many game developers struggle with is marketing! It’s often something that isn’t considered very fun to do but at the same time I think we all know that doing something in this arena is absolutely necessary if we want our wonderful games to sell! Without any marketing, how will you reach your audience? It’s something that must be thought about and that you will need to take some action around but it can be tricky to know where to start and what to do.

On my blog I’ve written a couple of articles that look into the ‘marketing space’ and so I thought that it would be useful to pull these articles together here so that you can explore them easily and as and when you feel the need…

1. 6 Must Do Marketing Tips for Indie Game Developers

This is the first article that I wrote that offers some ideas to help game developers market their games. It’s a good place to start and offers some ideas that you can hopefully action or at least start exploring. It’s just an overview and introductory article to give you some idea of the areas to be thinking about, but hopefully is a good initial article to help you with your next steps.

2. How to Create an Awesome Indie Game Trailer

Creating a trailer to help give people a glimpse of what your game looks like and to introduce it to them, is a powerful way to market your game to your audience. However, it’s not always obvious how to go about creating an effective game trailer. Check out my tips and ideas to help you create an awesome trailer for your indie game.

3. How to Promote Your Game on Twitter

Twitter has a big game development and gaming community. I’ve discovered this, being on Twitter myself (@ninichimusic), and have found both of these communities to be incredibly supportive and encouraging. I would recommend that you tap into these communities and that you build your Twitter and other social media profiles so that you can reach a wider audience.

4. 4 Ways to Make Marketing Your Indie Game Less Painful

I’ve discovered that many indie game developers really really don’t like thinking about marketing their games in any shape or form! It’s not something that comes naturally to everyone and you are not alone if you feel that it’s something you’d rather avoid, runaway from and/or skip completely. However, I would encourage you to think again and to try and approach it in a way that hopefully you can become slowly more comfortable with. In this article I try to offer you some suggestions and ways that you can do this.

5. 6 Indie Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

There are many mistakes that I’ve seen people do and that are common but that can definitely be avoided! That’s the reason I put this article. It aims to highlight some very common errors that people do and that can waste you a lot of time or mean that you miss the boat completely - and so get reading and make sure that you don’t fall into any of these marketing traps!

6. 10 Crowdfunding Platforms to Consider for indie Projects

As you develop your game you may wish to explore raising some funds for it. Crowdfunding is a great way to do this and can also help create a buzz around your game. It can form part of your marketing activities and help to build your fan base which is why I’ve included this resource list here for you to explore further.

So, I really hope that you’ve found these 6 articles useful. I hope to create more in time but hopefully these offer some insights and ideas to help you hone in your marketing strategy for your game. Best of luck with it and do keep in touch with me via my Twitter and Instagram accounts! I’d love to hear all about your game and how you’re getting on with it!

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About the author: Ninichi is a freelance UK-based indie game music composer. She works with indie game developers and indie filmmakers to create soundtracks for video games, film & media. She can compose in a wide range of styles & loves getting involved in new projects. Find out more about her game music or royalty free music and contact her to discuss your project and music needs.

Follow her @ninichimusic

Game funding Tips: How to Impress a Game Investor

If you are a game developer or part of an indie game studio and are looking for investment in your video game, it can often be tricky to know where to start. Knowing how to impress a game investor and therefore how to gain crucial funding and support for your game can be a challenge which is why, in this article we explore what it takes to get this right.  Here are some tips from Bertrand Vernizeau, CEO of Game Seer at game-seer.com

1. Target the right partner

First of all, you must ensure you know who you will pitch your company or game to. Be it a publisher or a traditional equity investor, ensure you check which projects they have backed already and/or which companies they have invested in so far. Your pitch will get instantly rejected by investors who solely do equity funding if you come seeking project financing and vice versa. 

2. Inform yourself about us

Browse carefully our websites, read our opinions in the press, at conferences, as some investors shun certain domains: for instance, we only invest in PC and console games with productions up to 5 million EUR. Some investors like our friends over at level-up.com only invest in mobile. Some only invest in tech, in AR, in VR etc. If you know what an investor seeks beforehand and it is aligned with what you propose, you are much more likely to be a match.

3. Choose the right timing

Now that you are sure that the investor you want to pitch to is actually looking for what you have to offer, you must still verify that the timing is right. At what point should you pitch your project? Again, targeting the right entity matters all while making sure your company is ripe for investment. Some incubators like Y combinator will invest at paper pitch level, this is also mostly true for traditional equity venture capitalists whose upside is based on securing the highest amount of shares at the very early stages of a game’s development, with the lowest investment possible. 

4. Make an impression, at first glance

Game seer as well as publishers on their end will most of the time require a playable demo, a vertical slice or a prototype. Visual materials help a lot as they help showcase your skills and most importantly allow the investor to picture in their mind what you have in yours. If you come and pitch us compelling visuals and a playable demo, you ensure that we will thoroughly review what you have provided. If you ask us for money and have already made something decent enough to trigger our preliminary interest, then you most certainly will get all our attention at this stage to make sure we understand entirely what you are trying to achieve.  That’s a great place to start.

5. Maximizing your chances 

While great games are made by exceptional people, they do not always have the ability to properly showcase what they are capable of. Some people are simply better at making than showing. Investors are aware of this and have adapted their business acumen over time to see through this. While you may not be a great presenter, marketer nor an excel spreadsheet champion, this pretty simple set of documents will drastically increase your chances of getting an investment:

-        Detailed production pipeline

-        Budget breakdown with everyone in your team who is Employed Full Time (external and internal)

-        Standard product information: Recommended Sale Price, Platforms, expected rating etc.

-        Elevator pitch with as many visuals and as little text as possible, team experience, general vision and unique selling proposition of the title.

-        Decisive bonus: prototype, demo or vertical slice

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About this blog

This blog is brought to you by Ninichi, a video game music composer who works with indie game developers and indie filmmakers to bring their soundtracks to life. This article, like many others on my blog, offers tips and advice from the games industry to support the development of new games.

For more information on Ninichi explore her game music, royalty free music and/or contact her to discuss your project and music needs.

Follow her @ninichimusic