Olivier Deriviere Has Scored Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag – Freedom Cry

Pretty exciting news for Video Game Music lovers as Olivier Deriviere has written the score to the Assassin’s Creed 4’s DLC, Freedom Cry. Now if you don’t know who he is but love western game music anyways, be sure to brush up on your knowledge as Olivier is an award winning composer responsible for amazing scores for games such as, Of Orcs and Men, Remember Me and my personal favorite, Alone in the Dark. I personally call Olivier the “vocal master”, as he puts so much efforts into arranging special and authentic vocals for his games.

Fortunately, same is the case with his latest project, where he had the help of La Troupe Makandal, the internationally acclaimed ensemble dedicated to traditional Haitian music and dance. So you can definitely said he has researched his product and locale well. He is one of the few that takes that extra step with his projects to make them sound as authentic as possible. However, since we are talking about music, why not let it do the talking? Here are some samples from his Soundcloud page and some of my favorite tracks from his previous games!

Just after listening to the opening, I am pretty sure you understand why I call him the “vocal master”. He makes sure that all of his themes are authentic to the setting or story as much as possible, and thus doesn’t hold back from employing a wide range of unique instruments and vocal performances.

Another track from Freedom Cry, that further emphasizes on the Haitian instruments used, and how they translate into a powerful performance. Again, you can hear the how good the vocals are in this track too!

This might be just my most favorite videogame music track of ALL TIME! This was from the game, Alone in the Dark, where Irina Zhekova wrote powerfully emotional lyrics to the game. The soundtrack to this game is, still in my opinion, one of the most enjoyable package!

This is from his previous major project, Remember Me, where he totally changed his composing style to fit the games Neo-Paris setting. He used unique electronic glitching and reversing effects to create a truly immersive and memorable soundtrack. Chances are, if you have played the game, you should have definitely noticed the beautiful music!

Lastly, be sure to check out the DLC if you are interested! In it, Born a slave, Adéwalé found freedom as a pirate aboard the Jackdaw where he became Edward Kenway’s second-in-command. Now, 15 years later,Adéwalé has become a trained Assassin who finds himself shipwrecked in Saint-Domingue without weapons or crew. He starts to meet locals in an effort to assemble a crew and steal a ship. The more he helps, however, the more he is drawn into the Maroon slave community. Forced to face his past,Adéwalé sets out to free the slaves and bring death to their captors.

NOTE: NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE MAIN SOUNDTRACK FOR THE BASE GAME, AS THAT HAS BEEN WRITTEN BY BRIAN TYLER. OLIVIER HAS SCORED ONLY THIS DLC.