How Supergiant Games Create Music & Art - Developing Hell #03

We embed with the art and music teams at Supergiant Games to examine what it's like creating the visuals and soundtrack for Hades, while the game is still in early access.
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Location Produced & Filmed by Jeremy Jayne
Additional Studio Footage by John-Paul Gabler
Series Produced & Edited by Danny O'Dwyer
Music Used:
Bastion OST - In Case of Trouble
• Bastion Soundtrack - I...
Left Nutter
www.audionetwo...
Hades OST - Wretched Shades
• Hades - Wretched Shades
Hades OST - From Olympus
• Hades - From Olympus
Delicate Machine
www.audionetwo...
Hades OST - The King and the Bull
• Hades - The King and t...

[@NoclipDocs]

Hey, every person who becomes a Noclip member on Patreon gets a custom thank you message from Danny that very same day (usually within an hour) so if you want to support our work and get spammed by an Irish guy head over to www.patreon.com/noclip -In any case thanks for watching our latest episode!

[@20storiesunder]

I...I haven't gotten one. :O

[@blarg324]

I don’t really care if I get thanked or not. Just keep making these documentaries and I’m happy.

[@Feuryy]

I hope we can fund a Hades concept art or Art of SuperGiant book someday. The art and design teams hard work deserves to so much praise.

[@jlin592]

YES

[@saint_2068]

Fingers crossed dude that would be amazing

[@user-vg8ox3he1i]

Why do we "fund" artbooks when print on demand exists???

[@aquariussolaris2492]

WITH posters. I would like a poster.

[@nikkoa.3639]

The switch has a booklet but that's it's moreso to highlight the art and not the design prototypes and such

[@ryanpratama5635]

I can't believe that the VA for Zagreus is also the sound director himself. And not only he's voicing Zagreus, he also created all the music score in the game. Unbelievable. That just amazing! I like Zagreus' voice. It sound so calm and compose, but also had a little bit of sarcasm and playfulness. Not only Zagreus, every character in the game had amazing VA. It's fun to listen to their conversation in the game.

[@lp6243]

He also voices Skelly!

[@MugenHeadNinja]

And does the singing voice for Orpheus as well.

[@eyesontheinsides]

Hes also apparently the best hades player on the team too. Fucking Renaissance man

[@_coffeebean_]

@@MugenHeadNinja holy shit, that song he sings when you first get him to play again is so incredible beautiful. Literally stood in front of Orpheus for minutes in-game to listen to it again and again. How can one guy be so talented?

[@BackfallGenius]

Having worked in a couple of small game dev studios, I gotta say, it's so incredible how well this team understands the different disciplines of a creative visionary, the game designer, and the actual production artists so well. Often, many small studios lump all these roles into one tiny team (or worse, one person) that's expected to do everything, which always ends up with a mediocre end result. The pipeline they've got going here is extremely solid, with the overall creative vision dictating the initial art passes, which then gets refined and re-worked based on game design requirements. On the contrary, it looks like they've actually found someone who CAN do literally everything on the music side. Darren Korb does the composition, scoring, soundtrack, narration + dialogue, is also the recording artist, is also the sound editor, plays all the instruments himself, and even works on all the in-game SFX for gameplay/UI/combat. That is absolutely insane to me. What a guy!

[@Hemogoblin117]

I believe amir and Greg at least met working at ea on red alert games initially, so I'd imagine their experience at bigger studios aided them in having a more professional pipeline at indie scale. Plus they've made multiple fantastic games at supergiant, so they've no doubt learned some things along the way :)

[@jarkokoo]

@@Hemogoblin117 Yeah, to me it looks they've actually learned from mistakes and iterated the process to be better. I also have worked in studios where the mistakes were always done again and again, which created a very amateur feeling, even though the studios weren't in any way new companies, but actually very established studios.

[@speedfreakpsycho]

I feel like the only thing why is it like that, its their creative freedom. They don't have anyone pulling strings from the top. It makes a whole difference to work in an environment like that, you tend to experiment more you are not under so much pressure. I am a designer myself, and I realized I created my best projects were when I wasnt under pressure of any kind of restrictions.Let your mind flow and just have fun and be creative. People will recognize it. And yea, never go for the money.

[@dax421]

But Greg said the Camilo guy is the one animator that animates everything for everything before hades and a large amount of hades

[@FBracht]

I've definitely become a Darren Korb fan. Dude's just all around amazing. (Plus, at some point he's seen wearing a t-shirt featuring the logo for the band Ozma, which is just as amazing as it is obscure. I can't not be a fan of someone who uses an Ozma t-shirt.)

[@lukestitchco]

Zagreus saying "oh wait no" just before dying gets me every time. Its exactly what I feel like saying when you were so confident a while a go but then you screw up

[@googplusisawful1922]

exactly, plus i love all the little voice lines for when you take damage using the pierced butterfly, the reactions are so fitting. i love all the love and detail they put into this game

[@nathansquared2685]

Start of the run: this is gonna be the one. Later: oh wait, no-

[@somestrawman]

Oh, Darren himself voices Zag? Had no idea. That's pretty rad.

[@iamthemoneyj]

And he does a perfect English accent while doing it. Wtf how is this possible

[@iamthemoneyj]

Plus he voices skelly 🤠

[@MugenHeadNinja]

And he's the singing voice of Orpheus as well.

[@stinkskc]

pretty shitty should have gotten an actual actor

[@vicentedevidts7647]

@@stinkskc Voice acting in Hades sounds much better than a lot of professional voice acting to me. I think they did good using the voices of their employees

[@joelpatenaude8634]

Darren Korb is one of the most talented people in the music industry let alone the games industry! Loved this video! Thanks noclip!

[@Felsmukk]

Incredible that he doesn't have more under his belt. Why no one hires this guy more?!

[@joelpatenaude8634]

@@Felsmukk I think it's not a matter of him not getting job offers and more him choosing to work primarily just with supergiant. Not only that but I doubt he has the time considering he does the majority of the music and sound work himself and he's been VOing in every game they've worked on since they started and they haven't had any down time in between games. It's a blessing and a curse.

[@Felsmukk]

@@joelpatenaude8634 Probably, yeah.

[@GameScoreFanfare]

@@Felsmukk He is in-house at Supergiant.

[@ezquerro5879]

His soundtrack on Transistor is a mainstay on my playlist rotation

[@ryusm92]

If the standards of audio and visual artists in the video game industry are Darre and Jen, that is an insanely high bar to even glimpse at.

[@jameshelliwell3876]

They both exceed the industry standard, Supergiant is just an INSANELY talented group of individuals and I can't keep my eyes off their work.

[@kohalurker]

@@jameshelliwell3876 0

[@deburrito6882]

I could've sworn Zag sounds a little sniffly in some voice lines. Now I know why! It adds such charm to the game, cause it shows the creators insisted on developing the game despite life getting in the way ^^

[@ZeMovinPixxle]

"uugh.. I got the horns" is a perfect way to expressing your libido.

[@kenziebailey9142]

i'm just a corporate art director, but oh my god when Jen was talking about their schedule/pipeline and said "we do need real time to make good art" i wanted to cry. its not the perfect system, but knowing at least SOMEONE high enough up understands this is kinda huge. With so much discourse surrounding crunch, specifically directed towards developers (who also totally deserve the support and sympathy, too), the fact that the entire aesthetic of a game can hinge on how much time is left over for the art teams....it makes me sad, but also appreciate the hell out of them even more. I'm lucky that my job allows me to be at the beginning AND the end of projects, so it's not all left for the end, but game artists aren't really provided the same luxury. its obvious that the industry needs a change - i just hope these changes end up benefitting more than just devs. wah, ok, back to learning how one of my favorite games was made.

[@nnn-lz3sp]

jen zee seems like a really great art director fell in love with her art already and fell in love with her communicating ability watching this documentary

[@alimahou]

But WHAT IS Thanatos' favourite food? DOES Patroclus stay up late?? I'd love these answers haha

[@travellerinthedark]

I think it's up for us to speculate based on her art. I vote for a) blueberries and b) yes. XD

[@danculp3136]

@@travellerinthedark of course blueberries. And he stays up late thinking of what could have been

[@yourMoonstone]

I LOVE the attention to the tone. "It's rockin, but it's not METAL." So often does that tone lose its importance. I love seeing how carefully the team navigates these things to get exactly what they're looking for.

[@peculiarnewbie]

The two things that most likely got people's interests on their game. Their music and art are truly unique and sublime

[@ShellComics]

Love how the Music and Art department are getting some love :') Well deserved recognition! New found respect for everyone behind the scenes. Loved this one! Noclip, you absolutely nailed it! :D

[@rafalfaro]

7:01 It's very weird watching this video in 2020 during a Global Pandemic and hearing at least 3 employees working in the office while sick and coughing a lot.

[@erin2858]

Seeing Darren coughing in the sound booth made my skin crawl in a way I wasn't expecting.

[@domukaz]

lol I had this exact thought, as irrational as it is. Hoping I can watch something like that in a year or two, and not get the howling fantods.

[@WontonTV]

Right?? Being in an enclosed VO booth with someone who is coughing is utterly wild in 2020.

[@WizdogC]

I'm truly loving this series on Supergiant Games. I actually haven't played any of their titles but just the way this is filmed and edited I really get an understanding of what goes into making a game these days. Very insightful. Thanks for all the hard work Danny, Jeremy, John-Paul Gabler, and of course the incredible team at Supergiant!

[@peculiarnewbie]

You're missing out big-time my dude

[@vitsavicky]

You should really do yourself a favor and play at the very least Bastion. It's quite short, but it is well worth every second and every penny. It's gorgeous, the narration is excelent and the music is just mind-blowing.

[@ForeverMasterless]

Some of the best games in the industry. You should get on that asap.

[@andrewbeauman]

This series makes me want to work at a studio SO BAD

[@googplusisawful1922]

same, plus this studio in particular looks so cozy and nice 🥺

[@klarnorbert]

@@googplusisawful1922 Plus, you get third of the amount of money you would get if not working on game. Yey!

[@vitsavicky]

To this day every time I hear Bastion music shivers go down my spine. Everything Supergiant Games produce is a master piece, be it music, art or gameplay. Also, dear god, so many people are coughing in the video. Get some rest, people. It's not healthy to work through illness, you know?

[@LHT-Casual]

It's so funny seeing this comment, before Covid. Working through sickness was absolutely the norm, and only now are people realizing how bad of an idea that was!

[@uniworkhorse]

@@LHT-Casual yooo facts

[@superscott597]

Man, Jen and Darren are two of the most talented people I’ve ever seen. Absolutely brilliant. The rest of the team is amazing as well, I just love seeing their process, because I’ve been following these two for a long time.

[@Zagreus.]

~Hades Credits~ Sound: Darren Korb

[@humblefudge6218]

roflmao its funny cause its true 😂🤣

[@nefelibatacomingthrough2707]

That's the most epic credit I have ever seen! Nice flex for Darren, and not for nothing. Not many can say they have done "all" audio for a game this size. I haven't played the game but what these documents have shown he does know how to put notes in order.

[@ChaossX77]

That Darren guy deserves a raise, regardless of what he's currently making. Damn.

[@kjetilsenNOWAY]

Bastion made sutch an impression. Lasted like 5 hours and I still think about it regularly.

[@ArkAynJoel]

You can tell this just from playing any of their games, but this documentary series really drives home how truly talented the folks at Supergiant really are. Amazing work guys!

[@spittinglizards]

i’m so happy The King and The Bull was used as an example, it’s my favorite song on the OST 😭 i frequently see people compare it to the doom theme but a friend of mine pointed out how much it sounds like jambi by tool as well 👀👀

[@yasarkemall]

5:05 second; The name of the instrument is "baglama" this is a Turkish instrument. When I saw what they were using, I was very surprised and happy :)

[@antiundead]

It actually a Greek Bouzouki (which can have many different sizes and string numbers). It is a lute from the Mediterranean and many cultures have their own version.

[@yasarkemall]

@@antiundead This has always happened throughout history. Vehicles have changed in countries. I said that the instrument used in this video is "bağlama". I asked one of the producers and they confirmed it was bağlama.

[@Raging]

That slack notification sound at 6:44 sent shivers down my spine lol

[@Ashtarte3D]

I fucking adore Darren Korb's music but I had no real idea how fucking talented he was. Goddam man.

[@Aubrey-h8l]

This series is great and informative. Loved seeing Jen Zee and Darren talk about the art and music- the two aspects that make Supergiant Games unique and beautiful!

[@Niriixa]

That "sometime later" screen through the drumming made me laugh! LOVE getting insight into the art and soundtrack of this gorgeous game- two aspects that truly define its style. I'm always amazed at how tightly packed this studio is with amazing talent!

[@JulesA5266]

I absolutely love the voice acting in this game. It really makes the game immersive.

[@grahamwalker2168]

The musician Darren has the best office speedrun. i remember recently hearing that Dark Souls is a rhythm game to an extent as enemy patterns fall in with the timing of the music. I think this might be true for Hades as well and might go some way to explain why Darren is great at the game; he has great rhythm, and coordination to enable him to get into the zone for the game.

[@PixPunxel]

Jen Zee is so amazingly talented. I am super big fan !

[@anasshahid224]

Amazing documentary series No Clip! Supergiant did a phenomenal job with Hades soundtrack and art design, absolutely stunning.

[@BarKeegan]

Maps hand-placed by the artist! Gotta love the attention to detail, and not giving into shortcuts

[@gabsauvage]

This kind of insight on the run of an indie game's dev is so fucking interesting. It highlights all the steps and challenges that a team and it's members must go through in order to survive (while keeping all the passion). Thank you Noclip, as always!

[@malibar1]

@Noclip you have no idea how helpful all this concept art and pipeline stuff this is to a 3d artist or concept artist, youve knocked it out of the park with these

[@jessicahiga9870]

Multi-talented musician and composer is an understatement for Darren! Dear god he is a fucking genious.

[@NickMaovich]

Damn, the art in this game. I wish supergiantgames release an artbook, I would definitely buy it!

[@Qrofol]

Finally found time to watch these first 3 episodes - they were great! I loved it when Supergiant did development diaries with Giantbomb during Bastion development and I also really enjoyed the Double Fine documentaries - getting an in-depth look at game development is always interesting. Also, I now have a huge crush on Jen Zee.

[@Hyper_Vyle]

24:00 I actually started headbanging to this

[@The_OEK]

Same. Damn i would like to know the OST name.

[@nutmeg3647]

Володимир Поліщук The Exalted :)

[@The_OEK]

@@nutmeg3647 Thank you :)

[@soirema]

I just wanted to say the the crisp in the voices, is something I have never ever heard in any game before This is outstanding

[@johnvermintide]

i did not expect darren korb to be zagreus

[@RenZeffie]

I got to hear Darren talk at Momocon last month and it added a new layer of enjoyment to this documentary. Thanks for all your hard work, Noclip Team!

[@rocketscientist14]

You guys deserve so much goddamn praise. Hats off to you, Supergiant. You are one of my all time favorite development teams. Every game you make is a BANGER! I cannot put Hades down. This game is astonishing & I can feel just how much heart and soul you have put into this title. Keep making great games and just being yourselves. Cannot wait to see the next IP!

[@aurallyaddison]

i have literally always wondered why zagreus sounded sick sometimes- i thought it was adorable, but didn't know what it was from. guess now i know why!

[@ForeverMasterless]

Yessss. Was waiting for this. Supergiant has both the best art and the best music in the entire goddamn industry as far as I'm concerned. Darren Korb is a legend.

[@KOKOStern]

I'm very much wondering if and how you'll have an episode about the engineers and coders. As a coder I'd love to hear about it, but non technical people will probably have a tough time. Can Noclip can do magic and make tech talk palatable?

[@moristar]

I pretty much had Darren's Bastion album on repeat for half of a year in my car and my GF got addicted to it as well. And I like how Darren can actually rock! :D

[@pookage]

Oh god, the stress of watching this in 2021 and seeing him say "I've been sick for 2 weeks" whilst being in the studio **panic**

[@alunlloyd9812]

I love watching this after having finished the final game. Appreciation went up over 9000

[@the_crius]

I was on the verge of buying this game (was tempted but I've an already big enough backlog) but these series of video convinced me, if nothing else to support these guys work. Amazing team. Keep going :)

[@uniworkhorse]

Are we not gonna talk about how the art lead's name is literally Jen Zee? Zoomer moment

[@alixnight5318]

She’s too old to be a Zoomer though

[@29992mike]

17:57 The power of the T-pose compels you!

[@mifinlow]

I honestly love the energy this team has, i always loved their games since bastion and every time seems they improve and never fail to impress me, the music is genius and gorgeous and the art so fresh and original, am i the only one who feels we need an Hades Artbook ?

[@ChristopherAOBoyle]

I think this is my 7th time watching this this week. So much love for the effort put into these!

[@typingnoises]

i want to give this entire team a hug and a letter about how much i appreciate their hearts that they have put into this game.

[@RAIZ0R1211]

gettign these interviews with darren and Jen is such a treat, thanks noclip!

[@alexdihl3629]

I am absolutely amazed seeing Darren working and playing. I didn't know he does the drums. Yes it is very fun to play

[@mathieumorse5917]

as an gamedev artist and musician myself i just want to say they made an amazing work on that in the game! GG to the whole team! Wonderful game!

[@MrBodies07]

Awesome watching this after playing the game. Glad I waited until the PS5 release dropped. When Darren's describing how he wants the more metal soundtrack to feel awesome in the boss fight I can so distinctly remember how badass it was in the moment. Cool bit of callback, seeing the inception of a really cool gameplay experience

[@infinitemess]

11:53 Tachikoma figurine spotted on Jenn's desk!

[@fragr33f74]

Holy smokes these people are so talented and hard working!

[@yadday5153]

Concepted...? I like that on you Jen Zee. Let's go with that!

[@ShredST]

>someone plays metal gamers: wow that's the doom soundtrack

[@benmitchinson9831]

somewhat, but imo that rhythm and descending pattern was reallyyyy similar to the doom theme

[@charlesajones77]

@@benmitchinson9831 By pure coincidence, I read this just as he was playing at 5:25. For a second I thought he was intentionally playing the DOOM progression.

[@tremorchrist84]

@Rana LOL. Right.

[@IronFairy]

to be honest, they're both hell music

[@lumzy8421]

The dev team using a 360 controller to test the game makes me wistful for the old glory days of xbox

[@reprisler]

this series and this game bring me so much joy. these people are just delightful. thank you so much for your hard work.

[@kyrylostanchyk6306]

Noticed minotaurs hair on the first detailed concept she showed in this video (haven't played the game yet). So damn cool 🤘

[@imperialistelitist5145]

Glad to say I picked up the game because of this series and I certainly don't regret it

[@MrSanchito]

Doesn't the game rock??

[@BinaryLynx]

The main menu music is so badass, it alone makes me want to enter the game

[@TheSteamyPickle]

The game looks great. I'll be waiting on the switch version.

[@oliverparker425]

it came out in case you wanted a reminder

[@Meta5917]

Really loved the clip on recording the music, i've never seen that whole process before

[@joeng7424]

Supergiant Games is one of the very few studios that I have much respect with. Every game made by them is a masterpiece in an art form. They really revolutionize gaming experience in every game they made.

[@SATOhara3173]

I use the same drum set for the same basic idea, woah. This episode is my favourite lmao

[@lucielcampbell2737]

Watched this at work, heard the slack sound at 6:44 and instantly looked at my Slack... damn you! :P

[@WontonTV]

22:10 are those D&D 3.5 books I spy on the shelf next to Darren Korb? This man couldn't be any cooler. 👀

[@SlayerSeraph]

I KNOW! I literally jumped of my bed to get closer to the TV screen as soon as I spotted it - to double check. Looks like we rolled Critical Nat 20 on Spot Check 😉 👁️ Finally someone who noticed it and mentioned it in a Comment. D&D 3.5 is THE BEST version and had THE BEST Art and Character customization and spells imo. I grew up with DND 3-3.5 (and some ADND in BG1-2) so seeing those books at the corner of my eye/the camera brought a huge smile on my face and wave of nostalgia! He also has a The Lord of the Rings copy(ies?) there!

[@Roooobb]

He did all of Transistor and Pyre, Camilo did? That's wild. I love the way those games move, so that's especially impressive to know.

[@priestf1964]

The Electric Guitar riffs used in this game and especially in "Through Asphodel" are as good as any legendary hard rock or metal band. What a talented guy Darren is.

[@lemogradient7526]

Dang...I want to be part of a team like this in the future, it's just so inspiring to see the creative process and how the pipeline works.

[@zidini]

Holy shit. Just that last scene of everything coming together was absolutely amazing. As soon as the music track kicked in, I got chills. This made me wanna do redownload Hades.

[@WorkingTavo]

Camilo, gracias por llevar a lo alto el talento latinoamericano. Usted es una inspiración para todos.

[@hamedmanoochehri5136]

4:07 -->wow did he laugh after a bad cough? olden times were weird.

[@olekaarvaag9405]

21:06 Omfg that colour is just too good. It has the most perfect shade as well.

[@gpcheng87]

I am NOT a gamer; played Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat at the arcade and Starfox, Mario, and Sonic at friend's houses as a kid. Just bought a Nintendo Switch a few weeks ago to help me decompress from the many hours I work from home; I bought Hades alongside checkers, chess, and solitaire solely from the music and visuals I saw in reviews/marketing. Excellent work and glad to see this side getting credit! 👏

[@henrickalmeida793]

I'm in love with Darren Korb

[@whsprmusic]

Would love to see more videos on the process behind the audio and music from games in the future!

[@MostBronzeChunner]

Amazing art design, while the game isn’t something I’d play, the art is absolutely amazing. Especially the part near the end where we see a few of concepts of the Greek Gods. If you’re well versed with Greek mythology then you know, right off the bat, who those gods are.

[@TykoBrian7]

You sure you won't play it?

[@glass12]

I just salivate when thinking about a fighting game by this team using Jen's and Joanne's art and Darren's music. It would be epic.

[@AnthanKrufix]

Quote my sister when she heard me blasting the Extreme Measures Hades theme... "Jesus Fucking Christ it's like if Mick Gordon made the music for Dynasty Warriors! .... *_I love it!"_*

[@afroking42]

I love supergiant, and theses doc's make me love them even more. Thanks noclip

[@spizarelli]

Seeing Darren wear an Ozma shirt made my day.

[@theperson101ful]

Transistor is still one THE best games I've ever played, always recommend it to people when ever I can

[@Vigeroy]

BreakLegosaurus Same but not one of my friend have played it.

[@WarHero373]

Such a fun, passion filled, polished game! I'm having a blast with it.

[@digitaldevil7522]

Battling the minotaur to that music is gonna be sweeeeeeet!!!

[@Macho_Fantastico]

Supergiant Games are a talented studio, but I have to say I love the art and sound design especially. It gives them such a unique identity.

[@Colaris99]

Its a beautiful looking thing and a game I have really enjoyed playing. It is is interesting seeing how it went from base ideas to finished product. Hope to see more excellent stuff from you guys in the future.

[@OmniVenom]

I really love the Metal guitar music, he killed it. The art fits the game style. going to buy this :)

[@senith382]

I never expected to see bağlama in a video game soundtrack lol i love it

[@pascallaquerre2926]

Orthogonals are an endangered craft, you have all my respect Jen Zee! :)