Hades 2 Composer Darren Korb Spills His Songwriting Process

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Darren Korb, audio director at Supergiant Games, details his journey composing music for 2020’s award-winning Hades OST, how he’s introducing new sounds in Hades II with modular synths like the Moog Matriarch, and looks back on his voice acting and sound design in past releases like Bastion and Pyre.

I originally filmed this interview in April 2024 as part of Game Informer Magazine’s cover story. Special thanks to my old boss, Matt Miller for permitting me to publish this video feature on Viewport. Thank you to Supergiant Games for welcoming me to the studio to chat with the team.

Viewport: Inside Looks at Game Development is a new video game documentary series from Game Informer’s former video lead, Alex Van Aken. Support Viewport on Patreon to unlock exclusive benefits like early video releases and Discord access.

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00:00 – Darren plays the Bağlama
01:40 – Why a sequel?
02:30 – Developing a sound
03:45 – What does witchcraft sound like?
05:35 – Double the music
06:19 – How game composing has changed since Bastion (2011)
07:18 – Confidence in songwriting
08:18 – Voice acting
08:53 – Becoming Zagreus’ voice actor
10:43 – Directing other actors
11:48 – Looking ahead

#Hades2

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44 thoughts on “Hades 2 Composer Darren Korb Spills His Songwriting Process”

  12. The light in the eyes of a creative talking about their craft is so powerful.

    Experiencing Hades for the first time, meeting Zagreus… He has something so special about him as a protagonist that we as an audience couldn’t help but fall in love with I think.
    The writing in these games blows me away every time too. Every character has so much depth to them that makes the adaptation of the mythology feel so alive and unique.
    And the soundtrack is out of this world, the way it communicates so much by its own but hearing the thought process behind it just makes it click even more.

    Needless to say, I’m so inspired and in love with the work of everyone at Supergiant Games.

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  18. I'm from turkey and I can't believe he used bağlama while making these amazing osts. How didn't I recognize it before. I thought it was a different instrument. I'm quite shocked and impressed now. He's really a great musician for being open to new ideas and combining different cultures

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  22. A musical genius actually. I love Darren Korb’s work so freaking much! Also I am so happy to finally put a name to what kind of music Hades and Hades II give us, Spooky Mediterranean Metal.
    The music in the game is so addictive and it’s so distinct from region to region! Also let’s not forget his singing as Orpheus!!!
    Multi-talented indeed! I have so much respect for this man! 🥺

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  24. I love love love the Hades 2 soundtrack. Each score is even more memorable because of how specific they all are to each moment in game. Chronos’s ludicrous time signature, Scylla’s surprise lyrics, and now Mount Olypmus’s music being a callback to classic Hollywood scores adds so much more intrigue to the soundtrack.

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  25. I fully understand the need for Patreon, but i think it's a bit excessive to lock 40 freaking minutes of this interview behind it. Doing it this way feels like this channel is a tool for people to get a small tease and then having to pay up to get to the real meat, rather than having a balance where the channel stands on it's own legs, with extras and other exclusive content on Patreon for people who love it.

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  37. The volume and quality of WORK that Supergiant is able to produce is just unreal. This guy is doing 2-3 totally separate jobs and crushing all of them with a smile on his face.

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