When all is said and done, you might consider the music of Farcry 5 to be a character in itself. Or, at the very least, a plot device. While music plays an integral part in many games, Farcry 5 takes it a step further with its own musical composition crafted by Dan Romer and with various music artists singing covers of the song, an analysis of the game’s music is a must.
Just like any other game, Farcry 5 has musical compositions that trigger during fight scenes and boss battles. While those themes are certainly invigorating and work well to make the action just that much more dire, the real powerhouse of the music comes from the lyrical work in the songs that the Project at Eden’s Gate ‘produced.’ The game never tells you who, exactly, is responsible for the composition of the songs, each one does more than just offer itself as a soundtrack. They tell a story.
From the song Now He’s Our Father to Oh John, the music of Farcry 5 offers up a chance to get to know the characters just a bit deeper. Especially in the case of Now He’s Our Father, the song paints a broad view about the Father’s life before he started preaching about the Collapse. This is backstory that you don’t really get anywhere else outside of The Book of Joseph.
Through the different regions, there are different covers of the song. Farcry 5 made an amazing decision on this part. By having different versions of the same song throughout the game, it keeps the soundtrack fresh. Yet it is the same song and thus still getting stuck in your head. Since cults are notorious for subverting your mind, having one of the cult songs ringing in your head long after you’ve stopped playing the game just adds to the overall experience.
Then there are songs like We Will Rise Again that offers up foreshadowing not only for the game’s ending, but also it’s sequel, Farcry: New Dawn. Although I cannot speak for all gamers, We Will Rise Again is the first song that played for me after killing John Seed. I was immediately struck with the lyrics and almost how chilling they were. It was as if John Seed had become permanently part of my psyche, and perhaps he had. After all, for myself, John was the first Seed sibling that I killed. In many ways, he is the first person that you deliberately murder. While the other cult members are killed in the heat of battle, John is a deliberate battle. You are there to murder him. That first real kill sticks with you. So, as We Will Rise Again started playing in the car that I took to drive from John’s dead body to his bunker, I couldn’t help but think that the song was correct. John Seed, perhaps, had rose again. Except this time he was in me.
What do you think about Farcry 5’s music? Which is your favorite and why? Let us know in the comments!
I was the audio director and the architect of the cult music. I thank you for this article and your insight into the music. To answer your question Dan Romer wrote all the songs.