Composing for Video Games with Rising Star: Daniel James

Ever wondered who makes the epic sounds and compositions of modern video games? Those triumphant orchestral swells, grim synthesized soundscapes, heart pumping tension builders and melancholy end credits.. Sounds like a dream gig right? Our friends at Native Instruments recently spoke to composer and sound designer Daniel James – composer for Metal Gear Solid V amongst others – about how he got into the industry, how he composes and what he uses.

“My most important tool is NI’s Kontakt. When I started out I had no access to sample libraries and did my own sound design. I would record random sounds, load them into Kontakt and process them until they would fit to whatever I was composing for. Others really liked this, because people started to ask me to make sounds for their projects.”

Check out the full interview here.

Daniel also runs a sample library company called HybridTwo alongside long-time friend and collaborator Aaron Frensley. Designed entirely within Kontakt Script, their soundsets are designed specifically for film, TV, video game and media composers. The sounds are unique and feature completely custom made effects and sequencers. It’s a testament to the power of Kontakt and their commitment to high quality sounds.