I decided to play a game of BroodWar after god knows how long, and I realised something. Brood War music and sounds are so much better compared to Starcraft 2. Basically everything sound related is better. The background music for BroodWar actually sounds good (love the Terran soundtrack) and over the years, I've never gotten sick of it. Unit sounds are also in a different league.
Take the marine for example. When it shoots in BroodWar, it creates a satisfying sound, in conjunction to its yell when stim-pack is activated. In addition, when it dies, it also sounds like he dies in agony. What do we have in SC2? The shooting sound is more pew-pew and weaker, the stim sounds like a flick of a match, and when it dies the marine just lets out a weak yell. It is hard to describe the sounds, but I'm sure people who have played BroodWar before know what I'm feeling. Heck, even the supply depots in BroodWar have a sound, and who can forget the yell of the Terran Academy? Mutalisks also sound 300% more awesome. For a game so old, its sounds were amazing. Ten or so odd years down the track, you would except a successor to have better sounds and music.
So TL, what are your thoughts on this? Do you prefer BW sound and music or SC2?
The SC2 Terran music is imba as hell, some people might still like the BW one more, but I feel that comes down to personal preference. It's quite impossible to dislike the SC2 Terran music.
As for unit sounds, I always felt that the SC2 ones sound too crisp, which makes it harder to create a suspension of disbelief and get immersed in the Starcraft universe. In this aspect, I'll say I prefer the BW unit sounds.
To me it begs the question of the direction behind Blizzard's art philosohpy these days. Everything is so clean and tamed. The game engines don't present with anything really new and exciting, they just look polished and "safe". Everything has that distinct Blizzard feel, water-tight but with no soul. Plus, the sounds in SC2 seem to be derived from a vision of competitive culture. They are all unobtrusive and try not to detract from the effort of playing the game.
On May 21 2012 20:21 Woizit wrote: The SC2 Terran music is imba as hell, some people might still like the BW one more, but I feel that comes down to personal preference. It's quite impossible to dislike the SC2 Terran music.
As for unit sounds, I always felt that the SC2 ones sound too crisp, which makes it harder to create a suspension of disbelief and get immersed in the Starcraft universe. In this aspect, I'll say I prefer the BW unit sounds.
SC2 Terran music I think is pretty crappy compared to BW Terran, but all it is just personal reference.
OP if you want to find out, why don't you make it so we can vote?
BW sounds> starcraft 2 sounds. And I am a sc2 player (never played BW, just watched it recently). Wow blizz didn't do a good job with the unit sounds...which is hwy I play with korean unit sounds (that helps a bit).
I prefer SC2 to Broodwar - until it comes to the sound. I don't play with the music on, so I have no opinion of that, but BW sound effects (mostly unit voices) are roughly 1000x times better than SC2.
BW Marine death came from a sound library most probably, as it can also be heard in other games, while I'm pretty sure SC2 sounds are - mostly - genuine.
BW sounds had a lot more rawness in them. Take the Zealot for example; their shouts are more aggressive and "mean". SC2 sounds are like a watered down BW. The music I think is defendable in SC2 though, but I do prefer the BW music.
I cannot for my life understand those who prefer the SC2 music, especially the terran track. It's just so god damned bland...just some kind of watered down redneck country pop. Blech. Give me the stim-boosted phsycho-scifi-orchestra rock of BW all the way baby!!!
in one of the latest OGN sc2 games they had sc2 playing but dubbed over with BW music, and their style of observing the game really added excitement, plus an audience.
By far the worst thing about SC2 sounds is Protoss voices. They sound like bad, weak, human actors with some echo effect... Nothing to do with the decisive, strong, powerful BW Alien Advanced race Protoss. Poor job and bad taste IMO. Also lets not forget the zealot attack sounds: buzzing bees vs growls and psionic blades.
bw music and sounds are just epic. i even find myself talking like a hydralisk or zealot when I'm alone. I even learned terran music on the guitar because it's so sweet.
Music: BW Terran = SC 2 Terran (love the old tracks, but the new one is okay too) BW Zerg >>>>>> SC 2 Zerg (What happened to you man, you used to be cool. With brvtal distorted guitars and stuff) BW Toss < SC 2 Toss (except for the glorious mission briefing track)
Unit-Sounds: BW-Terran < SC 2 Terran BW Zerg > SC 2 Zerg (hydras, ultras, lings and mutas used to sound so different, aggressive and characteristic. Now it's boring) BW Toss = SC 2 Toss
I just wish they'd make everything a bit more characteristic and..less well blended? Other than that, it's solid work. They just need to spice it up a little for HotS.
BW over SC2 in every category. Lacks oomph, bw was gritty, now everything is sparkly and nerf. When you do a firebat impression you feel badass, when you do a hellion impression you go up an octave or so- not so badass. "NEED A LIGHT" vs. "looking for hawt action" ez choice. (yup going to compare diff units)
i dont know what the heck happened, but sound and story wise SC2 is a step backwards in comparison to BW
this is especially true with protoss units, in BW they were vile and threathening, in SC2 they sound plain retarded.
from scary and unscrupulous race the protoss was degraded into blizzard's idea of noble and pure aliens just look at the archon, the difference is INSANE
Overall BW sounds much, much better, especially Zerg and Protoss. SC2 Terran units are alright soundwise, I love the background Terran music much more in SC2 than BW though.
It's just something witht he sound department in blizzard right now, bw sounds are amazing, down the the mining sounds of workers.
But even look at D2 and D3, the music is almost non existent in d3 (the login music is okay but thats it), and d2 had some really cool effects like the gem drop ping sound, which I really miss
The music is a little arguable. I enjoy the SC2 terran music, but it's also in a very different style compared to BW, so it's a matter of taste really. Protoss and Zerg music are definitely better in BW though. Blizzard music ever since WC3 has always fallen into the trap of being well made, but also bland and unmemorable. SC2 terran music is really the only music that stands out.
Sound/unit voices on the other hand are pretty much a no contest: BW sounds and unit voices are absolutely better than SC2. This isn't a case of me just hating new stuff since I enjoyed the soundwork in Diablo 3, yet I simply can't enjoy the ones with SC2. One major problem is that the sounds and voices lack any sort of power or distinctness. The zerg sounds are especially bad because they don't sound menancing at all. When zerglings attack, it sounds like they're slapping their enemies to death rather than ripping them apart. Hydralisk spines sound like tiny blow darts (this is especially noticeable after you play a D3 witch doctor). Zealot swipes are hard to describe, but I definitely don't feel any sense of power from hearing them. The siege tank explosion simply doesn't compare to the SC1 siege tank. The examples go on and on.
The zerg voices are nothing to write home about either since most of them sound incredibly similar. You could switch the corruptor and brood lord voices and nobody would notice. And just because the infester is gross doesn't mean that they can't sound cool either. I don't know why Blizzard opted to have them talk through farting noises. The protoss voices have also lost of lot of power and mysteriousness. You can definitely see this by comparing the carrier voice or the high templar voice. The protoss may be noble, but they're also damn scary too, and only SC1 conveyed this.
SC2 sound design overall is pretty below par. Not just compared to SC1, but to pretty much any modern game out there. The worst part is that Blizzard will probably never change this despite their feedback. This definitely seems to be one of the things that Blizzard will simply refuse to change, although it would be nice if they did.
As a protoss player, I'm constantly annoyed with my units. For me, in addition to the sound, it's also the writing.
Compare BW Zealots: "My life for Aiur!"
To SC2 oh no there's a single zergling "We cannot hold!"
Man the fuck up, you are a Zealot. You're an 8 foot tall psionic killing machine, with views on war and death similar to those of a Klingon. Just go kill the single zergling and stop bitching at me.
On May 22 2012 00:56 ChowChillaCharlie wrote: SC2's Terran theme >>> BW's, Brood Wars Zerg and Protoss themes stomp the ones in SC2 though, and they do it pretty hard.
The space comboy feel is great for the campaign, but it honestly sucks for competitive matches where there's a lull in the commentary/action and you hear it.
I really like Sad_ominous_full of the terrans and I somewhat like the protoss soundtracks in SC2. Other than that, BW had much better music and sound effects. ...Especially the sound effects. I miss the zealot lion growl when they hit plasma shields and the powerful bashing sound that zerglings created when they attacked. Zerglings now sound like a credit card stuck between the wheels of a bike :/ Marine guns aren't much better, though they suffered the least. shootin with 5-6 marines somehow still feels relatively rewarding.
It feels like Blizzard basically reversed the way they make sounds. They added echo to speech and took it away from gunfire and other special effects. It took the epicness out of action and made the voices sound spiritual for no reason at all :[
- Terrans have high-quality voices over apparently low-quality walkie-talkies with some epic bass. It makes no sense. - Protoss... Well, technically the echo suits them, but they just lost their spunk through the voice acting. The old protoss sounded really aggressive whereas now they sound enlightened or something. - Zergs... I just really pity the Zergs with their farts and lack of hydralisk-rawrs.
I feel for every player out there that could speak fluent hydralisk Q_Q
on final slightly more positive note: Ravens sound awesome, possibly the only well done unit sounds and quotes.
The music in BW was so good for the longest time I thought it changed with what was happening in the game. It always seemed to line up so well. In SC2 I just mute the music because it's really nothing exciting.
What I miss the most is the amazingly smooth and cuteish navigation voice for Terran. It's just wonderful. And the "scary" sounds for Zerg. The overall design and sound of BW zerg made the race so badass while in SC2 they removed the scary badass zerg look and made it more like some kind of cute clay race with the most tame unit sounds ever.
Oh and when I'm at it I don't like how they changed the theme on Terran either like they did with Zerg. In BW Terran had this like junkyard feeling you know? Like if they took what ever piece of metal they could find and made it into their buildings. It had a nice feel with all the metal on their buildings. In SC2 most Terran buildings are just covered in your player colour and the race is more some kind of Transformers race than Humans-fighting-for-freedom-in-space.
Even though i never played BW, and was only brough to this forum with the SC2 beta bandawagon, i have to admit BW's sounds feel better. I feel exactly what you described about the marines. I would also add other sounds, like seleting probes, tank sieging / unsieging.
Actually having someone play BW in the background is kind of soothing, because the sounds feel good and relaxing. For instance compare de sounds of making pylon in BW with SC2. The SC2 one makes my ears hurt compared to the BW one because of that early bang when you place the pylon.
I'm not sure if they hired crappy sound artists, to save a few bucks in development, but that seems to be the case, because the soundtrack of SC2 also sucks. Why hire a good music composer right? music is secondary they say... Everything counts Blizzard
I'm not really sure, but i think that if it wasn't for its brand name and quality games that blizzard made up until some years, these last games that they're putting out (SC2, D3, etc) wouldn't be so successful and popular.
BW music makes me so nostalgic, though it's weird listening to the beginning of the music without the sound of drone/scv/probe mining and confirmation sounds in front if it.
and bw can't beat warcraft2 sounds. I like some things from sc2, and i hate some things from bw. But overall bw sounds are better. Guess one of the reasons is that they have to deal with so many age stuff in different countries, thats one of the top reasons games lose alot of atmosphere. In starcraft 3 the marines will say when they stim, don't do drugs kids.... Personally i have no idea why they went away from the heavy sounds to soft tunes especially in a war game.
BW sounds are just on another level, even if IIRC the sound guys were the same (except for the toss music, but I could be wrong). For example, Zerg music is creepy in some points, and the sound is more "ferocious": the muta sound is pretty much the best exemple imho: in BW their screech was more "powerful", now the pitch is too high and the sound seems to me too weak compared to BW. The races themes were much better in BW. In WoL the only decent tracks are the terran ones, and while the most iconic theme in BW is the terran's too, still the Zerg one and the toss are amazing.
I remember then when i was playing the Protoss campaing as a kid I would actually wait the end of this track to start attacking, because it feels so fucking epic. You could actually feel the ardor of the protoss trying to defend their homeland in a desperate battle. And the same is for terran and zerg: the themes really gave you the idea of the race, the style also. In WoL the only songs that give me the same feelings are the terran ones (even if maybe those were too country). The zerg's and the toss's didn't give me the same feeling. Maybe its also an effect of nostalgia-goggles, but I feel BW did a better job than SC2. I really hope Blizz will implement new themes (as they did in BW) in HotS and LotV
SC2 has some decent music and a couple decent sounds, but many of the sounds from BW are so much better its stunning and saddening. I dont think this is a matter of opinion here. The biggest example i can think of is the siege tank. In BW when 20 siege tanks all siege at once you shit your pants. Not only does it have that "holy shit" sound effect as it transforms into siege mode, but the sound stacks so that if 1 tank sieges up it sounds alot less intimidating than if 15 do all at once. Its really heartbreaking how bad of a job they did. If i was the supervisor for the sound effects in SC2, i would have fired the guy working on them same day he presented what hed been working on to me. No warning, nothing. Get yer shit and go heres your pink slip and good luck finding another job because you obviously dont understand sound and you dont understand what made BW great.
I honestly dont get the gaming industry anymore. It seems like they hire friends and degrees and disregard artistic ability alot of the time. I dont see how in the hell anyone with any remote talent for audio could create the sounds of SC2 when they had a template like BW to go off of. They didnt need to copy the sound exactly but for christs sake 20 sieging tanks SHOULD sound ominous. They made it little more than the sound of breeze blowing through a toy windmill. Sickening.
I cross my fingers that the video game industry starts to crash due to inflating budgets and dwindling creative reserves until someone realizes that artistic talent is worth more than a degree and they start hiring some people who know what they are doing. Sorry if this sounds harsh but this is a sore point for me because i loved the sounds in BW and they royally effed it up in SC2 and they dont even realize it and keep hiding behind the whole "nostalgia goggles" argument.
I guess with nostalgia goggles off a 50 ton futuristic tank transforming into siege mode sounds like a baseball card flapping in a kids bicycle spokes to blizzards sound guy.
I came to sc in starcraft 2 but I ♥♥♥ BW music so much more.... Terrans music is good in both and and i like 2's better but the zerg and toss music is AWFULcompared to BW
i loved it when lings attack they sound liek tehre kung fu fighting! and we all know "everybody likes kung fu fighting,Those lings were fast as lighting!, infact it was a little bit frightening!,6pool with expert timing!!!"
Gosh, you have me sitting here listening to live performances of SC/SC2 music.. and hoping to find a good remastered version of BW music so I can somehow sneak it into my mpq or whatever. I actually edited in a couple songs in already a while back, but I would love for remastered versions.
zerglings in sc2 sound like flies trying to gnaw on something, whereas in bw they sound like freakin monsters ripping you to shreds. this can be said for every unit of the zerg. I like a lot of the terran music in sc2 though as people have said; but practically everything in bw sounds amazing. I'm scared when I play zerg in bw, I feel sad when I hear my infestors fart and puke all over the place. Infestor's got a cool front model, but god damn it does it look fucking hideous from the back. They could have made it so much cooler. How about going back to the scary zerg instead of disgusting jabba the hut zerg? thx blizz!ç
BW sounds for me are top notch, absolutely the best sounds ever. i have in fact MPQedited them, cuz i can't stand the shitty(aside from the mothership quote, this one was good, also karass, has the best quote of sc2) sounds they put on starcraft 2...
Although I have to say, some of the music and sounds in the old Command and Conquer games are quite good, rivaling and sometimes exceeding that found in SC2 and BW, IMO. Frank Klepacki is an amazing composer.
Come at me, Starcraft fans. I flaunt my latent, inner C&C fanboyism with no regret.
EPT
