EPIC LEAGUE Interview: Keeproots
Sound Director
Keeproots is a South Korean songwriter, album producer, and singer. He debuted in 2004 with his first album, Keepin’ The Roots. He was a member of a label called Karasadae, which was dominated by Da Crew. In 2012, he joined as a founding member of the gang, a crew formed by the first generation of Korean hip-hop, and in 2015 called Fascinating (MC Seongcheon), DJ Skip and LK2Muzic. He established a label and is currently working with MELODESIGN (Kim Doo-hyun & Seo Jeong-jin) and Fascinating as a producing team called NEWold. In addition, he was also a lecturer in the music production department of Hoseo Arts and Practical College, Seoul. (source: Wikipedia)
Q. What is your role in the EPIC LEAGUE team?
From the beginning of the project, I have been responsible for the music and sound of all EPIC LEAGUE games under development or in preparation. I composed songs for the Space Monsters and DARK THRONE teaser trailers and have since been working on DARK THRONE. Currently, I am adding the final touches on the official Launch version of DARK THRONE. From the sounds of countless monsters to the battle music for the ultimate boss, the queen, which is expected to take a very very long time for players to reach, as well as other music, ambient sound, and effect sounds, the team and I are continuously adding, revising, and polishing many things for the grand launch.
Q. As a composer and producer, what was the most interesting thing about participating in this project? Why did you want to take on a challenge?
It’s like filling an entire world with sound when you’re in charge of the game’s music and sound. Let me elaborate a little more. I believe the difference between the game project and the film project is the range of space and the difference in detail. Simply put, it appears that making a movie focuses on a specific story within a world, whereas making a game involves creating a world from scratch and applying necessary elements or natural laws to that world. When I generate the sound of simple footsteps, it is integrated into the game and automatically adjust as the space changes. It’s similar to “Let there be light,” and the light operates on its own. Communication with other departments is therefore critical. Character and background artists’ work is my most original source of inspiration. Scenarios and game design are both essential to my work. In the applying stage, the program team uses programming to apply the laws of physics to my sounds, which is the final step in the world creation process. When stated in this manner, this job is both exciting and challenging in a way.
Q. Please tell us what you thought was important when you tried to get the feel of DARK THRONE for the sake of sound and music.
The mood is dark and unsettling when imagining it with a title, DARK THRONE, but it is not enough to spark creativity. You must also analyze how your game differentiates from others as a sound director. So I begin with searching for basic sound sources, pondering what sound would be required to convey the acoustic texture of the realm of DARK THRONE. Since the underground dungeon was the starting point of the game, I began by searching for and recording the cave’s ambient sounds, such as the sound of water drops. Importantly, I must envision myself in the game. You must picture not only the sound of what you currently see, but also the sound emanating from the invisible. When playing DARK THRONE, you have little visibility and can often only guess which monsters will appear based on their sounds. You may experience anxiety if you play the game to a certain degree owing to your limited visibility and the distant sounds of monsters coming. To increase the suspense, I paid close attention to the ambient sounds and background music.
Q. Can you tell us about this song?
This song’s title is Dawn of Battle. It is the first music and sound you hear in the game. As the name suggests, it is a song that announces the beginning of the battle. To simply explain the arrangement, when I first encountered this project, I vaguely imagined Petra in Jordan and worked on the instrumentation and mood that would be fitting for such a location. The team agreed to keep DARK THRONE’s tone & mood modest rather than bombastic. If you play every day, you listen to it at least once per day, thus I thought it should fit the game’s mood best.
Q. Can you tell us about this battle music?
The title is Khaldera, which is the queen’s birth name. The quietness ends as the final gate opens and the sound of a gloomy flute signals the queen’s presence. Throughout the song, voices from two separate worlds intertwine, and percussion for urgency and bass brass for grandeur will bring forth the greatest sense of urgency. During the battle, the sound of the queen’s laughter prompts the player to prepare for an attack. I have a modest desire that many players meet the queen because it will be a very long journey.
Q. The sound effect is also very intense. What do you want to say about the sound effects while the music is spooky and tense?
Our team’s pride and the part we care about the most in game making is making a good sense of hitting in the game. To be precise, it is the sound of being hit rather than hitting. In other words, each object and monster has a unique impact sound, such as the sound of an oak barrel cracking, a bone fracturing, or a squishy monster being hit. These impact sounds that follows the weapon-wielding sound are diverse. You might call it a horrible expression but it will make you feel satisfied, at least until your character is hit.
Q. Do you have any tips on game play related to sound?
As a soundman, the tip I can give you is, as I mentioned earlier, it would be helpful to listen to the sounds of monsters outside your field of vision. Otherwise, we never know what’s going to pop out. I am quite sure that there will be times when you appreciate even a little hint. Good luck, everyone.
About DARK THRONE
DARK THRONE is an action role-playing game inspired by the “hack and slash” genre where you can enjoy exciting hitting and fast-paced action gameplay in which various heroes, such as Paladin, Assassin, and Demon Hunter, face numerous monsters using their own equipment and skills in randomly generated dungeons with various themes. Jeehyung Lee (ArtStation), who is currently working as a cover artist for Marvel and DC Comics, participated as an art director and gave life to the game with excellent graphics, and the high impact feeling, various skill abilities, and sound that adds tension further enhanced the immersion of play.
About EPIC LEAGUE
EPIC LEAGUE refers to a blockchain-based ecosystem connecting games with NFT marketplace, communities, guilds, players, DeFi, etc. The EPIC LEAGUE team is a group of avid online-game enthusiasts who have been in the global gaming industry for over 20 years. The team consists of top-tier game developers who created global top games such as Lineage 2M, MARVEL Future Revolution, MARVEL Future Fight, and BTS Universe Story, as well as blockchain experts. Jeehyung Lee, a cover artist for Marvel and DC Comics, participated as Art Director. Also, Younghoon Paek, a former Netmarble COO, and Thomas Vu, a former Head of Creative and current advisor to Sandbox, participated as advisors.
