In 2023, Digital Eclipse released a 3D remake of Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, the Apple II role-playing game that was first published in 1981. After the remake left Steam’s Early Access and had its official release in 2024, it graced the cover of the June 2024 issue of Juiced.GS, where reviewer (and ardent Wizardry fan) Eric Labelle concluded: “Without a doubt, Digital Eclipse’s Wizardry remake respects the original game’s nature and feel but with modern graphics and sounds, and is full of quality-of-life improvements.”
While the new game reportedly uses the Apple II source code at its core, the remake layers many new features not present in the original — including a 16-track soundtrack that’s available as a free download from Bandcamp.
This month, that score won a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media, as presented to composer Winifred Phillips.
Interactive media presents a unique challenge for composers, since, unlike a fixed medium such as cinema, video and computer games need to change dynamically in response to player decisions and input. It is perhaps for this reason that this year, the 68th year of the Grammys, was only the third year that awards have been granted to gaming media. Phillips, an accomplished video game composer, spoke briefly to that challenge after the show.
For more discussion about the intersection of gaming, narrative, and music, listen to the Polygamer podcast’s interview with ludomusicologist Dr. Dana Plank.
(Hat tips to Eric Watson at Pixelkin and Ian Walker at Polygon)