Muzax 11, part 2 - Shadow of the Beast, by Reflections Software

In the 2nd part of this Muzax episode dedicated to the games developed or released by Psygnosis, you will hear music from the games Ballistix, Blood money, Shadow of the Beast and Shadow of the beast 2 on the Amiga and Chrono quest II on the Atari ST.

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Content of broadcast:
Welcome to Muzax, the video games music broadcast.

Let’s continue our exploration of the music world from the games of the company “Psygnosis”.

The first 16-bit game developed by « Reflections Software » is « Ballistix » released in 1989.
Despite its meticulous production, this futuristic ball-game doesn’t manage to dethrone « Speedball » the famous game developed by « The Bitmap Brothers ».

« Dave Jones », founder of « DMA Design », developed « Blood Money » from his bedroom.
Being passionate about arcade games, this young Scottish man wanted to afford players the same thrills as in shoot’em up games available in amusement arcades.
The Amiga version of the game has two floppy disks. The first one is entirely devoted to its spectacularly high-resolution introduction.
The second floppy disk has the four levels of the game on it. Every level is a huge planet that the player has to explore in order to rid it of hordes of enemies.
The game is carefully produced; it stands out from the crowd due to its introduction and also its theme music written by « Ray Norrish ».

After Ballistix, Reflections Software produces one of its most beautiful games on the Amiga 500, « Shadow of the Beast ».
The reputation of every Psygnosis game is preceded by the company’s logo: the famous purple owl.
When he sees this, the player expects a high quality game.

« Shadow of the Beast » is no exception to the rule.
With 128 colours displayed simultaneously, 13 levels of parallax scrolling backdrops, 50 images per second and numerous sprites - some of them enormous, the Amiga version is a real technical achievement.
The game was a great success and was adapted to go on around ten platforms.
Once again, the music is written by « David Whittaker ». It is one of his biggest hits.
He is called upon to write exceptional music. He has achieved this by using high quality instrumental samples.
Despite being fairly ordinary in terms of manageability and in interest-value, the Amiga version of this legendary game has received several awards.

« Chrono quest II », also called « Explora II » in France, was released in 1990 on the Amiga, DOS and the Atari ST.
This second episode is full of even more meticulous graphics and digitalized voices.

Just one year after the release of the first episode, « Shadow of the beast 2 » was released on the Amiga.
This second game has taken on board the criticisms of the first. This follow-up version turns out to be more thought-provoking and challenging.

The drawback, however, is that on a technical level the game is less impressive.

The second part of this broadcast dedicated to Psygnosis is now over. Tune in soon for the next episode of Muzax!

Muzax 11, part 1 - Music from Psygnosis games

The eleventh episode of Muzax is part of the mini-series “Famous music by video games companies”. The music you will hear is from games developed or produced by the company “Psygnosis”.

In the 1st part of this Muzax episode, you will hear music from the games Brataccas, Captain Fizz Meets the Blaster-Trons, Chrono Quest, Menace, Obliterator and Baal on the Atari ST, the Commodore 64 and the Amiga.

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Content of broadcast:
Welcome to Muzax, the video games music broadcast.

Today, let’s discover the range of music found in games by the company “Psygnosis”.

Psygnosis was founded in 1984 by former managers of the company “Imagine Software”: Ian Hetherington and Jonathan Ellis. Psygnosis developed « Brataccas » in 1985.
This game is one of the first games released on the Amiga and the Atari ST.
As a matter of fact, you can easily recognise the very basic original sounds of the Atari.
They use high resolution graphics.
This technique is rarely used. It has a 640x200-pixel display which uses only 4 colours.

« Captain Fizz Meets the Blaster-Trons » was released in 1988. We are listening to the intro music on the Amiga.
The music incorporates several digitalized voices.
This technique was very fashionable at the time and was highly impressive. It established Psygnosis’ reputation for releasing state-of-the-art games.
The first games by this British company located in Liverpool are developed in-house, like Arena, Deep space, Terrorpods, and their first real success, Barbarian.
On the other hand, Captain Fizz is developed by an external studio: Papyrus Design Group.

« Chrono Quest » is produced by Psygnosis.
This game is well-known in France as « Explora: Time Run ». Actually, it is developed by “Infomedia”, another famous video game company from the 80’s and 90’s.
The Music is written by the famous musician, David Whittaker, whose style is recognisable in the different pieces of music in the Atari version.

The game « Menace » is developed by the studio « DMA Design » but produced by Psygnosis
This shoot’em up was released on the « Psyclapse » label on the Amiga, the Atari ST, DOS and the Commodore 64.
The game has 6 levels all featuring the same music.
Menace has a very basic scenario like most shoot’em up games.
Its strengths are in its graphics, its scrolling and its animations.

Still in 1988, « Obliterator » uses the same concept as the game Barbarian. But, this time, in a futuristic world.We have just listened to the title screen music from the Atari version. Now, here is the ingame music on the Amiga.
The player controls the hero using the buttons on the mouse.
The size of the sprites is pretty impressive for that era.
Actually, a sprite is an animated element such as enemies, projectiles or the hero himself.

« Baal » was released on the Amiga in 1989. This time, the game has multi-directional scrolling.
This technique allows the player to move his character in every direction.
Because of this the game becomes more wide-reaching, is richer and more complex than before, in turn, making the game last longer.

The first part of this broadcast dedicated to Psygnosis is now over. Tune in soon for the next episode of Muzax!

Muzax 10 – Music from the Solstice game

The tenth episode of Muzax is part of the mini-series “Famous Videogame Music”. The music you will hear is from the Solstice game on the NES.

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Content of broadcast:
Welcome to Muzax, the video games music broadcast.

Today, let’s discover the world of the “Solstice” video game. This game was released by “Software Creations” in 1989 on the NES. We are listening to the music of the title screen, that is to say, the music you hear just before the game begins.

The NES was an 8-bit console and it wasn’t powerful enough to run games in 3D. The isometric 3D, also named isometric projection or pseudo 3D, simulates a 3D environment with only 2D graphics. Little by little, this technique disappeared. Real 3D arrived with the new generation of 16-bit devices such as the Super Nintendo and the Sega Megadrive consoles or as the Atari ST and the Commodore Amiga microcomputers.

The number of bits is correlated with the device architecture type and more precisely with the width of the bus and the size of the processor register. Actually, the bus is an internal connection that carries data from one computer component to another. The register is an internal memory of the processor which allows data to be stored and which speeds up data processing.

We are now listening to the music played when presenting the synopsis. We are now at the heart of the game. Solstice contains several video game genres. Indeed, this game is based not only on exploring rooms but also on solving enigmas. It is both an adventure and a puzzle game.

The scenario is very simple. The frightening Morbius has just kidnapped the Princess Eleanor and intends to sacrifice her on solstice day. So he would become all-powerful and it would provoke the return of darkness. Only the Demnos sceptre can stop him. The player controls Shadax the magician and has to find out the six pieces of the sceptre spread in Morbius’ castle. After that, the player will be able to kill this evil character to set the princess free and then to save the world from darkness.

Unlike most games of that era, in Solstice, there is no boss to beat and only one level to finish: the castle. The player has no weapons and can only use a few magic potions. Neither can he backup his games so he will need patience and hard-thinking. The game is difficult and before completing his quest, the player will probably hear the game-over music several times. After spending long hours exploring the castle which is made up of more than 200 rooms, the player will finally be able to set the beautiful princess free and crush Morbius the evil.

The music and graphics of Solstice are highly successful. Solstice is very difficult and can be frustrating for some people but deeply captivating for others. The six pieces of music from this game were written by Timothy Follin. They reflect the middle-age ambiance and the glum and wicked atmosphere of Morbius’ castle perfectly .

This broadcast dedicated to Solstice is now over. Thanks for listening and tune in soon for a new episode of Muzax!

Muzax 9, 3rd and final part - Mario, the Nintendo’s mascot

In the 3rd part of this Muzax episode, dedicated to the Mario saga, you will hear music from the games Super Mario Bros 2, Super Mario Collection, Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels, Super Mario World and Super Mario 64 on NES, Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64.

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Content of broadcast:
Let’s continue the exploration of Mario’s world.

“Super Mario Bros 2” was released on NES in 1988 in Europe and in the USA.
With the help of a selection screen, the player selects one character from four to travel through the different levels of the game.
Of course, the first character is Mario, then his brother Luigi, thirdly Toad, who lives in the Mushroom Kingdom and finally Princess Peach also named Princess Toadstool depending on the version. Each character has his or her own abilities.
We are now at the heart of the game.
The production of this episode of Mario has a complex story. Indeed several versions exist with the same name.
In fact, a first version was released in 1986 exclusively in Japan on “Famicom Disk System”. This episode had not been sold abroad because it was too similar to the first episode of the series.
Then, in 1988, the “Nintendo of America” branch created its own version by making over a game released one year earlier and called “Doki Doki Panic”.
For the greatest pleasure of its fans, in 1993, on “Super Nintendo”, a collection of games from the “Super Mario Bros” series was released. It is called “Super Mario Collection” in Japan and “Super Mario All-Stars” in the rest of the world.
Four games are included in this collection: “Super Mario Bros 1”, “Super Mario Bros 3” and the 2 versions of “Super Mario Bros 2”.
We are now listening to the intro of “Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels” corresponding to the Japanese version of “Super Mario Bros 2”.
The collection released in Japan includes the US version of Super Mario Bros 2 renamed “Super Mario USA”.

“Super Mario World” was released in Japan in 1990 on the new Nintendo console: “Super Famicom”.
This game was released in 1991 on the American continent then in 1992 in Europe.
This episode presents the character Yoshi for the first time.
This lovely little dinosaur accompanies Mario and his brother Luigi through the 74 levels of the game.
We are listening to the music from the first level when Mario is alone.
Let’s see how the music changes when Mario is with Yoshi.
You have probably heard an additional sound which reminds us of the little dinosaur’s rapid footsteps.
The aim of the game is to set Princess Peach free from “Bowser”, the “King of Koopas” but also to save Yoshi's friends.

In “Super Mario 64”, we discover Mario's voice played by Charles Martinet for the first time.
Mario became Nintendo’s mascot. He was originally created by Shigeru Miyamoto, art director and a genius in the area of game design. He has innovated and completely revolutionised the world of video games. As for the music, the main themes were composed by Koji Kondo.
This broadcast dedicated to Mario is now over. Thanks for listening and tune in soon for a new episode of Muzax!

Muzax 9, part 2 - Super Mario Land and Mario’s underground worlds

In the 2nd part of this Muzax episode, dedicated to the "Mario" saga, you will hear music from Mario games on Game Boy, NES, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64, GameCube, Wii but also remixes and covers by rap and funk groups.

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Content of broadcast:
Let’s continue to discover music from Mario’s world.

"Super Mario Land" was released in 1989 on the famous Game Boy, the best-selling hand-held console in the world with more than 118 million devices.
Listen to the cover of this piece of music by the group "Ambassadors of Funk".
Let’s move on to a version of "Deep Black Skys".

Music from the first "Super Mario Bros" is generally reused in the latest versions of the game. However every new game has its own new tunes.
Let’s see how one of these themes has evolved.

The music we are now listening to is a piece of music from the very first Super Mario Bros released in 1985 on NES.
Used in the majority of Mario’s games, this music can be heard in underground worlds.
This music theme, very short at the beginning, has been enriched from version to version, mainly in tones but also sometimes in melody.
We are still on NES in "Super Mario Bros 3".
A three-year period of time has gone by between the first episode of the saga and the third one. However we can hear a big difference in terms of sound quality.
In 1996, Mario appears in a role-playing game in "Super Mario RPG" on Super Nintendo.
In a completely different style, let’s listen to the"Super Mario 64" version.
This new episode on Nintendo 64 is the first to be released in 3D. Once more, Nintendo overturns the world of video games by leading the evolution of games of this genre.
We also note a slight evolution at music level.
In 2002, the Game Cube has its own version in "Super Mario Sunshine".
Even the Wii enjoys this music in "Super Paper Mario" released in 2007.
The same year, the Wii is equipped with one of the best Mario games, "Super Mario Galaxy".

Like the main theme, this music is remixed many times. Here is a version by "DJ Clue".
Accompanying the music, we can hear additional sound effects from the game.
Let’s discover another remixed version.

Muzax 9, part 1 – Music from the Mario's saga games

The ninth broadcast of Muzax is part of the mini-series “Presentation of famous video games music”. The music you will hear is from the “Mario” saga as played through the ages on different consoles.

In the 1st part of this Muzax episode, you will hear music from Mario games on NES, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64, GameCube and also covers by different orchestras and a rap group.

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Content of broadcast:
Today, let’s discover the world of the most famous video game character: “Mario”.

Mario was first seen in 1981 in the arcade game called “Donkey Kong”. At that time, Mario’s name was “Jumpman” and he had to save Princess “Pauline” who was prisoner of a frightening gorilla called “Donkey Kong”.

In 1983, the first game dedicated to Mario was released on an arcade game, likewise on the first liquid crystal devices called “Game & Watch” - ancestors of our handheld games consoles - and also on the first Nintendo television console sold in Japan, called “Famicom” which stands for “Family Computer”.

Famicom was finally renamed “Nintendo Entertainment System”, also known as NES, when it was released in the USA in 1985 and in Europe in 1986.

The music we are listening to now is written by Koji Kondo and is part of “Super Mario Bros” released in 1985.

This music is used in many other games where the little plumber with a moustache is present. Here is the same music found in the third part of the series “Super Mario Bros 3”.

In 1993, a compilation called “Super Mario All-Stars” was released on Super Nintendo with a collection of games from the “Super Mario Bros” series on NES.

Every new Nintendo console must have one or more Mario games. Here is the same music theme in “Super Mario 64”.

In 1999, still on Super Nintendo 64, we can see Mario in “Super Smash Bros” with a more contemporary style of music.

It's a scat version that the player will discover in "Super Mario Sunshine" on "Gamecube".

Mario became a best-seller through his sheer popularity and he wasn’t afraid of turning his hand to being a dancer in 2005 in “Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix”.


Mario’s music is known by a whole generation and has been performed in a number of completely different styles.

Here is a version played by “The Big Band of Rogues” opening the 2003 “Mario and Zelda Big Band Live” concert dedicated to the music of these two sagas.

The Internet is overflowing with music and videos about the most famous plumber of all time.

You can even find a rap version recorded by “Benefit” whose lyrics describe a less soft vision of Mario world.

Let’s listen to an orchestra version of the main theme of Super Mario Bros.