A Global Collaboration
The team behind Blades of Mirage bridges local talent with global expertise. By blending authentic Indonesian perspectives with international creative insights, we’ve been able to craft a truly complete and multifaceted experience.
To shape the game’s audio identity, we partnered with renowned composers Kristofer Eng and Martin Barreby, the co-founders of House of Elias. They are the masterminds behind Elias, a powerful and adaptive video game music engine. Furthermore, Kristofer’s impressive portfolio includes composing for the critically acclaimed Game of the Year winner, It Takes Two.
How the Partnership Began
Our journey together started at the Nordic Game Conference. What began as casual conversations about potential collaboration opportunities quickly evolved into a shared vision for Blades of Mirage.
For Kristofer and Martin, it wasn’t just that the project itself was interesting, they were drawn to the studio's infectious optimism, and the distinct creative direction Agate was pursuing. It was a vision they knew they wanted to be a part of.
A Deep Dive with Kristofer & Martin
“Warm, adventurous, curious” and “Colorful, inviting, adaptive.”
Those are the three words chosen by our brilliant composers to describe the world of Blades of Mirage.
Q: How do you define what kind of music is suitable for Blades of Mirage?
Kristofer: It’s a delicate balance between authentic traditional music, a “larger-than-life” blockbuster orchestra, and even some of our own Scandinavian influences. When you start the game, you will instantly feel like you are somewhere in Southeast Asia. As the gameplay progresses, the music evolves to allow new takes on that sound, leaving room for everything from sweeping orchestral movements to raw, heavy metal guitars.
Martin: The glorious anime-inspired art style gave me a wonderful opportunity to draw inspiration from many of my favorite games, movies, and series. The colorful world that Mira explores blends beautifully with a classical orchestra layered with local regional instruments, such as angklungs, flutes, and various traditional percussion instruments.
Q: Are there any unusual instruments you used to create the unique sound for the game?
Kristofer: We used real, physical instruments as much as possible. We recorded all the bowls, cymbals, and pots we could find! At the end of the day, real instruments recorded with top-tier gear always triumph over stock digital instruments. We also brought in a Rhodes electric piano to provide those "bell-ish " tones, adding an extra layer of life and texture to the gamelan arrangements.
Q: Mira will face many dangerous mythical creatures as bosses in the game. How do you make the boss theme feel like an 'Ultimate Challenge' for the player?
Kristofer: I always try to push the urgency, the arrangement, and the overall style to the absolute limit of what we've established the soundtrack can be. For Blades of Mirage, we used the Kecak as our "maximum" rhythm. In Indonesian traditional music, there aren't many elements as raw and powerful as the Kecak. We fused that energy with a western orchestra, drums, bass, distorted guitars, and even a Hammond B3 organ cranked to the max.
Martin: Most often, a boss appears at the end of a level where a specific vibe and mood have already been established by the stage's score. Using those same musical elements but adding something unexpected helps build the encounter into a true climax. This usually means shifting the tempo, sometimes raising it, sometimes lowering it, and injecting new textures like distorted guitars, synths, or vocals.
I also followed a specific rule for myself: I kept more space between the notes and hits during regular exploration music, and then made the arrangement incredibly dense during boss encounters to turn up the tension.
The Making of “Manta”
As one of the powerful mythical guardians Mira must face in her journey, the theme for required a colossal and unique audio presence.
Kristofer: When creating the track for Manta (one of the boss themes), I wanted to capture a distinct swimming and flying energy while making this boss feel majestic and massive.
The Foundation: I started with a "bed" of soft gamelan, pots, and the Rhodes piano. This acted as the literal "water" the rest of the composition would swim in.
The Melody: On top of that, I added a full brass section with horns playing a heavy, grand theme in unison, based on a traditional Indonesian scale.
The Atmosphere: To support this slow, heavy approach, a massive classical choir was brought in to create a serious, almost royal atmosphere.
The Tension: Finally, to keep the player on edge without breaking the rhythmic flow, I introduced highly mechanical, erratic rhythmic elements alongside unexpected metal hits to emphasize Manta's sheer scale.
The result is a boss theme that feels slow, heavy, and majestic, but deeply intense for the player.
The track "Manta" is showcased in our latest trailer:
The full game will feature many unique scores, but you don't have to wait until launch to experience the soundscapes of Blades of Mirage. Join our public playtest in July for a first taste of the incredible themes our composers have crafted for you. Put on your best headphones and let the music fuel your drive as you battle the corrupted guardians.
Join the Blades of Mirage community:
Website: bladesofmirage.agate.id/
Also, you can meet Kris & Martin Here:
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