I write music for games that want to feel like something — not just sound like something.
My background is in cinematic and hybrid orchestral composition, blending live-style orchestration with electronic textures and sound design. I’ve scored incidental music and narrative cues for episodic series, composed in techno and hardtechno styles for touring DJs, and produced hip-hop and electronic tracks across multiple independent projects. That range is exactly what game soundtracks need: a composer who can move between an intimate piano theme, a tension-building hybrid combat loop, and a pulsing electronic menu screen — all serving the same world.
What I bring to a game project:
Original scores built around your game’s identity. I start from your art direction, narrative tone, and references — not a template. Whether your game leans toward dark sci-fi, melancholic exploration, or high-energy combat, the music is built to match that specific world.
Adaptive-music thinking. I compose with implementation in mind from the first sketch: seamless loops, layered stems for intensity transitions, and stingers that respond to gameplay state changes — not just linear tracks dropped into a build.
Hybrid orchestral-electronic range. Strings, brass, and orchestral texture combined with synthesis, sound design, and rhythmic electronic elements — a sound increasingly common in modern indie titles that want to avoid generic “epic trailer” stock music.
Full original sound design alongside composition when needed: ambiences, UI sounds, and transition stingers that tie the sonic world together.
Professional, portable studio setup: Ableton Live 12, Arturia MiniLab 3, Audio-Technica ATH-M50x monitoring, Focusrite interface, condenser mic for live elements. I deliver broadcast-ready stems and mixes, organized and labeled for clean handoff to your implementation pipeline.
FMOD & Wwise familiarity. I trained in both middleware tools and am currently refreshing hands-on practice with current versions — I think in terms of how music needs to be structured for interactive implementation, not just how it sounds in isolation.
Influences & sound references: My musical world draws from composers like Hans Zimmer, Thomas Bergersen, and Jon Hopkins — composers who treat orchestra, electronics, and rhythm as one instrument rather than separate layers. If your reference points include scores like Returnal, Dead Space, or Hollow Knight — atmospheric, emotionally specific, never generic — we’ll speak the same language.
How I work: Clear communication, realistic timelines, and revisions based on your actual feedback rather than guesswork. I send work-in-progress checkpoints so you’re never surprised by a final delivery, and I’m comfortable iterating until the music genuinely fits the moment it’s scoring.
Listen to my work:
Cinematic/film/trailer:
Electronic:
Full portfolio hub: nikloumusic.carrd.co
