{"id":40050,"date":"2025-06-18T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/muse.international\/?p=40050"},"modified":"2025-06-19T04:51:07","modified_gmt":"2025-06-19T04:51:07","slug":"behind-the-music-of-aground-zero-original-soundtrack-with-chase-bethea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/muse.international\/index\/behind-the-music-of-aground-zero-original-soundtrack-with-chase-bethea\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Music of Aground Zero Original Soundtrack with Chase Bethea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chase Bethea is a multi-award-winning video game composer with 30+ games shipped. His Cubic Climber soundtrack earned a Noteworthy on Destructoid. He was nominated for Artist of the Year in 2016 for I Can\u2019t Escape: Darkness<\/em> and scored Aztec Ride<\/em>, a Mobile Game award nominee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q1. Congratulations on your proud achievements in the NYX Game Awards! Can you share more about your game, your studio, or yourself?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you, NYX Game Awards. I\u2019m honored to be recognized and receive this award!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My name is Chase Bethea, and I\u2019m a multi-award-winning video game composer and technical music designer\u2014known in the industry as the “Swiss Army knife of video game composition.” I\u2019ve worked in the industry for over a decade and have shipped more than 30 games to date. My music blends texture and complexity, creating immersive experiences for players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My soundtrack for Cubic Climber earned a Noteworthy on Destructoid. In 2016, I was nominated for Artist of the Year \u2013 Independent Composer for my score for I Can\u2019t Escape: Darkness. I also scored Aztec Ride, which was also nominated for a Mobile Game award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past two and a half years, I\u2019ve given more than 55 talks as a guest speaker at conferences including the 2022 Global Game Jam (Keynote Speaker), GDC (6x), PAX, Audiokinetic, MAGWest (4x), IGDA, GameSoundCon (2x), Berklee College of Music (2x), Game Devs of Color (4x), ADC, A2IM, Indie Game Business, and EPOS Gaming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was the first minority American video game composer to be featured in the Museum of Making Music\u2019s \u201cMIDI@40\u201d exhibit at the NAMM Museum in San Diego (2023\u20132024). In 2024, I made history again as the first video game composer to join the prestigious Mogami Cable roster. That same year, I became the first minority American video game composer to publish an article on adaptive music in games for Recording Magazine\u2014their first video game music feature in 20 years. I also served as Chair of the Interactive Audio Special Interest Group (IASIG) from 2022 to 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was born and raised in Chicago and began composing music in the 5th grade. I played in the advanced band and choir through 7th grade. I earned my AA in Audio Engineering from The Los Angeles Recording School, my AA in Music Theory and Composition from Moorpark College, and my BM in Media Composition from California State University, Northridge\u2014all with honors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q2. What was the moment you realized you wanted to create games, and how has that passion evolved over time?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Game music writing began for me when I unlocked a behind-the-scenes video in God of War III and watched an interview about how uniquely a game score can be written\u2014and the \u201ctremendous amount of freedom\u201d that comes with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I first entered the industry, my passion was overflowing. I believed that with hard work, I might be able to score a AAA game within five years. I was very wrong. Still, I stayed focused, poured my passion into the games I was fortunate to score, and kept going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, that passion has waned. I now struggle to keep the \u201cblue flame\u201d alive, largely due to repeated experiences with unprofessional mindsets that have worn me down. I no longer see the maturity and sustainable growth I once believed in when I started this career 14 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q3. Tell us about your studio-what’s the mission that drives your team’s creative process?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m a solo freelancer\u2014I design, compose, arrange, produce, mix, and master the music, and sometimes implement or consult on the score myself. My mission is to ensure it fits the art form so that players have a one-of-a-kind experience they\u2019ll remember for decades. Sonic branding is crucial, as it contributes over 50 percent to the art form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q4. What’s the story or concept behind your award-winning game, and what inspired its creation?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n


The programmer, David Maletz from Fancy Fish Games, came up with the idea while reminiscing about one of our first commercial projects, I Can\u2019t Escape: Darkness (ICED), a 3D game. He really liked many aspects of that project, especially the lighting system, and even had plans for a sequel. He thought\u2014why not make a 3D Aground spinoff? This idea came shortly before April 2021 and led to the April Fool\u2019s joke Aground: Minecraft Edition\u2014a farcical but partially true concept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, he repurposed a voxel engine he had created for fun and incorporated several ideas originally intended for a potential colony update for Aground. The resulting game leaned more toward colony management and base-building than the original, which suited him well, as he enjoyed trying something different. He saw it as a unique spinoff with gameplay that was similar, yet distinct, from Aground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The music score was designed entirely with the player in mind. The goal was to break the monotony often found in survival and crafting sims by composing seamless fusion transitions that create a harmonious gameplay experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q5. What do you think is the most innovative or unique feature of your game, and how does it enhance the player experience?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe it’s about brand definition and sonic identity. In a competitive field, dynamic music serves as a unique selling point for colony sims, management, and base-building games\u2014potentially the first of its kind in this era. By offering smooth and responsive audio experiences, players can clearly distinguish the game from others in the genre, attracting both audiences and critical acclaim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dynamic music also allows for varied themes and transitions, enhancing replayability. Players are more likely to return if each playthrough delivers a fresh, unique, and personalized musical experience based on their choices and outcomes. It builds memorable moments, exclusive stories to share, and deep nostalgia that lasts for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, dynamic music systems can benefit players with disabilities by providing extra sensory cues and feedback. For example, visually impaired players may rely on auditory signals to navigate the game world, making adaptive music an important accessibility feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aground Zero Original Soundtrack<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore the journey of INT Games Studio<\/a>, the Silver Winners of the 2025 NYX Game Awards. They blend narrative twists, brain-bending puzzles, striking art, and sharp code\u2014Qiuyan crafts the story and gameplay, Angela builds the world and brings it to life, together channeling years of industry experience into unforgettable indie games.<\/em> genres like shooting and horror to younger players, offering fun, unique, and inclusive experiences.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chase Bethea is a multi-award-winning video game composer with 30+ games shipped. His Cubic Climber soundtrack earned a Noteworthy on Destructoid. He was nominated for Artist [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":40051,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[372,553,397],"tags":[413,415,382],"yoast_head":"\nBehind the Music of Aground Zero Original Soundtrack with Chase Bethea<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Winner interview with Chase Bethea for Aground Zero Original Soundtrack, the Gold Winner of the 2025 NYX Game Awards.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/muse.international\/index\/behind-the-music-of-aground-zero-original-soundtrack-with-chase-bethea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Behind the Music of Aground Zero Original Soundtrack with Chase Bethea\" 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