Watch Sam Lake slow jam the history of music in Remedy videogames

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Some game companies put out press releases when they want to communicate with their fans, or hold a livestream to reveal exciting new info. That isn't cool enough for Quantum Break studio Remedy Entertainment. They slow jam.

The presentation in the video above, which was made by creative director Sam Lake and composer Petri Alanko, at Slush Music 2016, is an overview of the role that music has played in Remedy's games, going all the way back to Remedy's debut title, Death Rally.

Things really get going with its next game, Max Payne, thanks to that famous theme song riff, and of course The Late Goodbye, the great closing credits song from Max Payne 2, also gets a nod. Alan Wake and Quantum Break are given a more detailed treatment, appropriately in light of their relative newness.

"Music is emotion. Music tells a story. Music plays many different roles, all of them important to us in our games," Lake says. "We are always looking for new ways to use it. Maybe, one of these days, I'll get to fulfill my dream and create a game that's also a musical."

Lake's accent doesn't really lend itself to the smoothest slow jamming ever (although he may be a veritable Richard Burton in his native Finnish), but it's silly, it's fun, and also informative—and I love that after so many years, Remedy remains the kind of studio that will do this kind of thing.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.