Ramin Djawadi and Brandon Campbell explain how scoring for Video Games is different from shows like Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones had some of the best musical scores in television history, thanks to the dedication and hard work of talented artists who made it so enjoyable. Ramin Djawadi and Brandon Campbell, who have composed tunes for shows like Game of Thrones in the past, have moved on to newer projects, and you can listen to their mind-soothing work in The New World video game.

In a recent interview with the Spin, the duo talked about the difference between scoring for a TV show and a video game.

Ramin Djawadi: “The big challenge was that in the very beginning, we had no visuals. We had some artwork and some stills, but we had to come up with the sound while the game was being developed. It wasn’t like a movie or television show where you actually have some visuals to write against, so it was definitely a challenge to just start completely from scratch. But talking to the great audio team really helped us immensely with inspiration — just by them describing to us what they needed emotionally from the different areas.”

Brandon Campbell: “I loved the concept art. I think it’s amazing just seeing some of the drawings and renderings the artists had done. But getting this thing off the ground without visuals was [the biggest challenge]. The biggest difference was also that there was just no point when we ended up with a complete video. We might have a developer doing a walkthrough of certain parts of the game or certain areas, but it’s more for inspiration than something to actually score. You’re like, “I’m going to write a three-minute lighthearted adventure piece that takes place in this zone!” or “I’m going to write a scary tension piece that takes place at night in the forest!” but you don’t have to worry about finding the cuts or sync points in the actual video.”

Have you played Amazon’s The New World yet? Tell us in the comments below!