Hey, yeah the title says it all in the short version. I don't like it. BG1 and BG2 hat some epic music, other modern RPGs like Pathfinder Kingmaker or Tyranny as well. Other modern RPGs like Witcher 3 hat legendary Musik. But this BG3 does not feel appropriate. I'm sorry for not being able to pinpoint my problem. It is more of a strong feeling. It started with the first time I saw the title screen, the music started playing and I went "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWW this sucks.".

Maybe someone feels the same as me and is more capable to articulate the problem.

I think the variety should be increased, but to be honest, it took a long time for me to get annoyed by the same melodies and turn off the music myself (probably about 100hrs in).
I find the main OST a bit loud with the deep vocals in the beginning, but it did gave me chills and I felt like I am about to go on epic adventure.

I like the main song, but wish the combat/action theme was more exhilarating.

I feel like although the music is good, there isn't enough of it right now, and aside from the main theme, the rest of it is quite forgettable (except the quire shouting in tough fights, which is awesome, but comes up way too often)

Well, you just can turn it off and play the BG 1 & 2 music instead, if you prefer. Or whatever else you like.

I do not agree with you, the music in BG3 is at a very high level and is an example for all other games.

It's Borislav Slavov who's making the music again right? I absolutely loved his work on DOS2 (it's one of the few game soundtracks I got saved on spotify in fact) so I've been really liking the music we've heard so far. Especially the bard and harpies songs. I really can't wait to hear the full soundtrack eventually.
So a hard disagree on that OP, lol. But music taste is one of those highly subjective things anyway.

I completely disagree. Witcher 3 is one of very view games, that (from my point of view) can be called an example.

Sorry but it's not because you don't like it that it qualifies as bad music.

What do we have?
Pros:
- Written by a real music composer who already made some scores in well received video games.
- Recorded live with a philharmonic orchestra.
- The harmonies and melodies are good on the ear when you listen to them.
- Synched well with the different parts and actions in the game.

Cons:
- Zersus doesn't like it.

Should the outcome be "This piece of music is bad because mr Zersus doesn't like it"? I don't think so. Unless of course you tell me you are a great composer yourself and Hans Zimmer himself asks you for some advice when he produces a new score for some movies.

I'm happy they toned down the flute. That drove me nuts in the 'other' game.

I said I don't like it, I didn't say, you don't have to like it. Grow up.
About being synched well with the different parts and actions in the game, I felt that it was not. Sometimes yes, but most of the time, the music was not appropriate to the situation.

Please don't use "money" as an argument for something artistically. Artists that worked on Kingmaker don't earn in a year as mutch as you have to pay for a philharmonic orchestra, but they created something with heart and soul.

one thing is certain. It is quite hard to argue about "feeling" and taste. This is all a subjective matter, and everyone will have different opinion on it.

My Ideal Game Soundtrack: Down by the River

How some other people see the perfect soundtrack for a game:

It is funny how people complain about every single aspect of the game.

The soundtrack in BG3 is simply phenomenal. Complex, multilayered, dynamic.

Far, far superior than originals BGs which had very simplistic scores.

It is one of the best soundtracks in recent game history.

The great thing about music in games is that there is usually a way to turn it off if you don't like it. You can play something else even. It is impossible to please everyone.

I feel I am alone in saying constant music is repetitive and immersion breaking, doesn't anyone listen to the environmental sounds ever? I like pretty much any music that does not play on the radio, but rarely when playing a game.

Personally, I don't even really remember any of the BG1 music. I adore most of the BG2 music though, but I also love most of the BG3 music. Many of the battle songs, like the one in the swamp, gives me chills, just like how the main theme and "Battle Score 4" in BG2 does. The soundtracks of the games have differences, but I appreciate them for what they are.

I mean, I like it well enough I guess. But no matter how many pieces of music there are in this soundtrack, there will (apparently) always be...

One Leitmotif to rule them all,
One Leitmotif to find them,
One Leitmotif to bring them all,
and in the darkness bind them.

Speaking of Leitmotif, there was a rendition someone did to the new main theme of bg3 with the initial drums of og BG and it is glorious. This is what Inon Tzur did with Throne of Bhaal and I still think tob theme is the best in the series for it.
Edit: the post with the edited bg3 theme: https://forums.larian.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=689517#Post689517
And for comparison, here are the original Baldur's Gate theme and throne of Bhaal main theme

I don't know.

As a composer myself, I feel that BG 3's music is actually pretty good in terms of variations you can create on a theme. We have the nice slow version with "Down by the River". Then we have the Epic version. Don't get me started on how the music cues a triumphant version when you kill an enemy.

Although I do hope we have MORE tracks for fights.


BG soundtrack felt more on the nose and that can REALLY work. I love opening up that title screen and thinking I'm gonna go on an adventure. BG 3 is more subtle. It's telling me "You don't know what's coming."

One says "Let's go!" While the other says "Follow me...see the world that awaits"

Can't say I will even remember this soundtrack after a few years let alone praise it as one of the best ever, but it is good enough and it gets the job done. My only major issue is with the Harpy song. My understanding is that it should be magical and alluring, however it sounds pretty generic to me. I simply can't imagine someone being tempted to follow it to his doom.

I quite enjoyed it. It sounds like the intro to something more anthemic, though I have no idea whether or not that might be a thing.

-1

Throne of Bhaaal theme is where its at.

Ta da da daaaa - da da dam!

The quintisential epic fantasy - here we go - theme. I always had the expansion installed so practically never heard the main campaign theme, although its ok too. But just ok. Although the bg3 main theme leans onto previous games feel its not very engaging or inspirational at all. Doesnt feel like some other world, or anything specific. The voices come in wrong and sound even silly. And the "down by the river" in character creation doesnt fit at all, being basically a modern pop song.

I quite like it, I even let it roll as background music for my RL dnd campaign when playing over roll20

The Weeping Dawn stands out especially.

Also considering the amount of memes i have seen, I think a lot of people rate the music pretty good.

I very rarely have the game music playing, no matter which game it is I am playing. Switching off the background music is one of the first things I generally do.

This. Boris's music just proves he's way more into foreplay than any other man He's way more delicate at first. BG longer songs are the exact opposite. They calm down over time( The main theme being the best example).

Now I don't think in case of BG2 (for instance) it was a choice. They had like 5 cd's already and they had to fit in. Most of their songs are super short and they had to make it count. Maybe that's why BG2's music starts with a nuclear explosion and escalates from there? If you compare what Boris did to later creations of the original BG composer ( skyrim I believe? Might be mistaken ) the difference isn't that drastic. Compared to BG2 though yeah, it really strikes me as " Wait honey, I need time" ^^.

I love the end result though, in the end it doesn't go all in on simpler fights and only highlights the longer ones. So gameplay-wise I absolutely love his job ^^
I would love to see more of him, especially his more aggressive side. I hope he's keeping it for the dragons. He has shown in some of his songs he perfectly knows how to go in and stay in when he has to.



For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about check the below. In the description you have ' battle scores' so all original bg2 OST for fights. I don't necessarily like all of them but they are way more aggressive for the most part.
[video:youtube]https://youtu.be/W80tmfVcQCo?t=3812[/video]

And here you have one of my favorite songs in bg3 that can also appear as a generic fight song. At 1m30 Boris stops fucking around :p


I'm waiting for boss themes so much!

I think it's good, but the combat song becomes a little repetitive.

I enjoy the music in BG3 so far. I also enjoyed the music in BG2.

Yes I agree. They should add more combat music. Maybe it will be the case in act 2 and 3.

no you are not the only one

music is so subjective it really is what it is you either like it or you do not

I just hope, at minimum, they do something like The Queen's High Seas from DoS2 in a bar or something because for me, at least from Larian, DoS2 blows BG3 music out of the water

I can't stand the cliché choir all over the place in BG3. Hopefully the full game with add more themes. I don't mind the theme itself, but the choir is just annoying to my ears at this point.

It's funny cause I would totally love if the music became even more cliche. I'm serious :p Over dramatic for every single thing that's happening on the screen. That would be pyfekt :p

I came to love a lot of the songs in BG3 but I understand the comments on diversity of the songs. My main feedback in terms of music is to have more song option/or at least more ambient songs for the majority of character creation because if you're in it for a long time you will not enjoy hearing "down to the river" for the 10000th time. I actually enjoy that song, but I enjoyed it the first time. I think it'd be better if it played maybe the first time when you enter character creation and then it changed to more ambient music as some people might be in character creation for some time. Just my opinion though!

I give it another try on youtube, and .. well. I still don't like it. BUT(!) it is just me, right? So, it is not really important.
Now that I'm writing this I think I found a good example to show my mindset a little.

As it stands now. I would never put any BG3 Music in my playlist for hosting DnD sessions. As a DM, I have my playlists, and I try to play songs that are fitting to the occasion. I have a lot of wither 3 for the environment, I have some recordings from BG2 e.g. for caves. I even have (and that pisses me something off) some Assasins Creed stuff. But as it stands now, I wouldn't use anything I have heard from BG3 in my sessions. And I can not imagine another DM from my other sessions (where I'm a player) to use it. I think the music is trying to put itself to much in the foreground without being "situationally appropriate" too much "canto", too little environmental. Obtrusive, not accompanying or subsidiary/supportive.

I hope that this helps a little to understand where I'm coming from. I'm still looking for the right words.

For 4 decades now I have been saying: "What music? I don't hear no music." It's the 1st thing I do too.

Personally, I never look for good music in video games. If it's good and fits well, it's a bonus, if not then I don't care and turn it off if it becomes annoying. The music in BG3 is nothing special and forgettable but I don't mind it being like that.

The games, which I remember for exceptionally good music score: The Witcher and The Witcher 3, Stellaris, Mongolian theme from Crusader Kings 2, Star Control 2, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines club music. That's it.

It isn't bad in and of itself, I also quite like the main theme.

But overall I have to say I miss the sound of the OSTs from the first two games and would've liked at least some tracks as homage to them. I have a preference for the drums and brass in them and dislike the use of one of the string instruments and the flute that features very prominently in Boris' stuff.

The Druid Grove theme pretty much sounds like it's straight out of DOS2, and I do not mean that as a compliment.

PS: That remix on the main theme is fire!

Just give me combat tracks from DoS2. I never got tired of them.

The opening theme in the menu is one big whine of some men trying to pronounce vowels in the longest way possible. Then once they got the hang of it they sounded out some words together.

I mean if you’re going to do a choir, give me an epic one; like a Russian epic red army variant.