SERIAL
Puzzle Soundtracks
41 episodes · updated 2026-07-11
Puzzle music is a peculiar genre: it must never become wallpaper. Doremi, who composes as well, listens through one soundtrack per episode and puts the design of thought-supporting sound into words.
Episodes
- Ep. 41Soundtrack: FRACT OSC — solve the puzzle and the music grows back2026-07-11
The music Alex Taam (Mogi Grumbles) wrote for FRACT OSC is not playing as a finished piece from the start. Each puzzle you solve in its ruined synthesizer world switches on one more layer - a bass, a pad, an arpeggio - until the player's own hands have assembled the score. Using the composer's own statement that he kept every piece in C pentatonic minor as a thread, black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take it apart through a lens you can bring back to your own composing.
- Ep. 40Soundtrack: Poly Bridge — music that never scolds you when the bridge falls2026-07-10
Collapsing bridges, retrying hands, and an acoustic score that blames none of it. A look at the 'road-trip music' Adrian Talens wrote on a single guitar — with takeaways for anyone who composes.
- Ep. 39Soundtrack: Maquette — the design of choosing songs instead of scoring them2026-07-08
Maquette has almost no score in the usual sense. What plays instead are real songs by San Francisco indie musicians — the kind a now-parted couple might actually have listened to. While you solve the recursive diorama, why is there lyric-heavy pop in your ears? Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart what it means to choose songs rather than write them, in a form you can carry back to your own composing.
- Ep. 38Soundtrack: Paradise Killer — I decide the running order2026-07-06
What Barry "Epoch" Topping wrote for Paradise Killer is 24 tracks where city pop melts into vaporwave. The developers call it not music pinned to specific scenes but a single album. An order-free investigation, paired with an order-free playlist. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why this music lands through 'happy coincidence,' in a form you can carry home to your own writing.
- Ep. 37Soundtrack: Q.U.B.E. 2 — Sound that is almost real, and not2026-07-05
The music David Housden wrote for Q.U.B.E. 2 is a calm, beautiful layer of piano, strings and synths. But the beauty has a trick in it. To match a premise in which an alien structure imitates Earth, he ran real sounds through synthesizers to make tones that are almost real, and not. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart the distance between first-person puzzle thinking and this sound, through a lens you can take home to your own composing.
- Ep. 36Soundtrack: The Gardens Between — Music that never plays backward, even when you rewind time2026-07-04
Even though The Gardens Between is a game about rewinding and advancing time, Tim Shiel's music itself is never played in reverse. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why 'sound that never turns back even when time does' works so well for a memory puzzle, through a lens you can carry into your own composing.
- Ep. 35Soundtrack: INSIDE — Telling a story about the inside of a head, through a head2026-07-03
The audio of Playdead's INSIDE was recorded through a real human skull. Martin Stig Andersen and SØS Gunver Ryberg pushed synth tones through bone to give them a brittle, hollow quality. Why does 'sound heard from inside a head' work so well for a puzzle about hijacking other bodies through mind control? Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take it apart.
- Ep. 34Soundtrack: IMMORTALITY — recording a theme together with its dark underside2026-07-02
You chase a vanished actor through her unreleased films by scrubbing footage — and for Sam Barlow / Half Mermaid's live-action mystery IMMORTALITY, Nainita Desai wrote three orchestral themes, one for each of the three films. What is really interesting is that each theme carries shadows: a 'subverted' version and a 'supernatural' version, and which one sounds is switched by the metadata of the footage you are on. I, Doremi, black coffee in hand, take apart this design of building a theme together with its twin underside, in a form you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 33Soundtrack: Viewfinder — music that breathes with the hand that places a photo2026-07-01
Take a photograph, paste it into the world, and the two-dimensional image becomes solid — the music Aether (Jason Taylor) wrote for Sad Owl Studios' Viewfinder is downtempo that keeps company with this strange act without ever rushing it. The track names split into Lounge and Domain, mapping the very skeleton of the game. Including the fact that the composer is legally blind and builds by ear, I, Doremi, take it apart, black coffee in hand, through a lens you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 32Soundtrack: Carto — Rearrange the map, and the music rearranges too2026-06-30
The 31 pieces Eddie Yu wrote for Carto are all short, round-cornered, and faintly acoustic. In this game the player rearranges map tiles to reassemble the world itself. What is lovely is that the music, too, is keyed to place and gets rearranged with it. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why this music can keep playing over long deliberation without ever tiring you out, through a lens you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 31Soundtrack: The Pedestrian — a jazzy gait walking a city of signs2026-06-29
The music Logan Hayes wrote for The Pedestrian is a single garment stitched from jazz, ambient and Eastern-European melody over a backbone of piano and orchestra. Behind the puzzle of rearranging signage panels to connect doorways, it keeps reshaping without ever cutting out, driven by FMOD. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart this music as a companion that never falls silent, through a lens you can carry back to your own writing.
- Ep. 30Soundtrack: Call of the Sea — Flip the love song over and you get a second theme2026-06-28
What Eduardo de la Iglesia wrote for Call of the Sea is neither minimal nor silent: it is a love story for string orchestra. Centered on the 'negative melody' trick of building the husband's theme by inverting the wife's note for note, I, Doremi, black coffee in hand, take apart how the tempo of an observe-and-combine exploration puzzle pairs with a melody that keeps pulling you forward.
- Ep. 29Soundtrack: The Case of the Golden Idol — grey music for frozen time2026-06-27
The OST Kyle Misko wrote in wartime Lviv for The Case of the Golden Idol: cold 18th-century England fused with new-age ambient, looping beside a frozen crime scene and never rushing your deduction. On the design of music that refuses to react — and what a composer can steal from it.
- Ep. 28Soundtrack: Superliminal — The most suspicious sound is the one that soothes you2026-06-26
You wake in the waiting room of a dream-therapy program. What Matt Christensen wrote for Superliminal is lounge jazz that could be playing in a hotel lobby, carried by pianist John Reeves' hands. The comfort is both the weapon and the biggest misdirection — just like the puzzles where perspective changes an object's size. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart how this no-fail first-person puzzle meshes with music that never rushes you, through a lens you can carry back to your own composing.
- Ep. 27Soundtrack: TUNIC — Music that turns like the pages of a manual2026-06-25
The 60 tracks Terence Lee (Lifeformed) and Janice Kwan wrote for TUNIC lean on the memory of retro game music without hiding inside the quotation. Built from samples of stray cats and summer wind recorded in the alleys of Taipei, it lives between the artificial and the organic. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart how this game of gathering fragments to read a world meshes with its music, through a lens you can carry back to your own composing.
- Ep. 26Soundtrack: Opus Magnum — A loop that never insists, beside an optimization that never ends2026-06-24
For Zachtronics' alchemy puzzle Opus Magnum, Matthew S Burns wrote both the story and the music. Seamlessly looping machines, and a lounge-style loop that hides its own seams. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart how this music turns an optimization that never ends into a place you want to stay — through a lens you can carry back to your own composing.
- Ep. 25Soundtrack: Obduction — Music that changes its timbre from world to world2026-06-23
Robyn Miller, who wrote the music for Myst and Riven, came back to Cyan's worlds after twenty years. The music of Obduction changes its very timbre each time a world changes. Including how he made it — looping footage of someone walking on his iPad and finding the themes on his piano — I, Doremi, take it apart with a black coffee in hand, through a lens you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 24Soundtrack: Void Stranger — a symphony built from poor sound sources, echoing in a monochrome labyrinth2026-06-22
The music of the monochrome Sokoban labyrinth Void Stranger conjures both grandeur and unease using nothing but stock MIDI sounds and chip waveforms. Composer Eero Lahtinen built it around one idea: that you shouldn't get sick of the same loop while stuck on a puzzle. Doremi reads its repeat-proof writing and its patient drones from a composer's chair.
- Ep. 23Soundtrack: The Swapper — a cosmos built from a freezer and an old tape2026-06-21
A derelict space station. In The Swapper you clone yourself and swap control to advance, and its sound was assembled single-handedly by Carlo Castellano — music and effects alike. The groan of the ship came from a microphone shoved inside his freezer; footsteps came from crumpling an old VHS tape. What does it mean to lay handmade sound over a clay-model world? Per-room ambience managed procedurally, and the improvised piece 'Recreation.' Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart sound that refuses to keep a beat.
- Ep. 22Soundtrack: Braid, Anniversary Edition — only the sounds that survive being reversed2026-06-20
The music of Braid was not composed. Jonathan Blow hired no composer; he licensed existing cello and harp pieces from Magnatune artists, under a single condition — that they stay beautiful when played backwards. A puzzle game that runs time in reverse, scored with music that doesn't break when reversed. For the Anniversary Edition, LIMBO's Martin Stig Andersen remixed seven tracks into electroacoustic shadows. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart 'reversible music'.
- Ep. 21Soundtrack: The Talos Principle 2 — answering scale with a choir2026-06-19
A first-person puzzle in which you leave New Jerusalem, the city the robots built, and walk toward the colossal Megastructure on the horizon. Damjan Mravunac's music is written for orchestra, electronics, and choir, sounding the small time of solving a puzzle and the time of marveling at the size of the world at two different tempos. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why the biggest sound is reserved for the walking.
- Ep. 20Soundtrack: Manifold Garden — Music that returns even when you fall2026-06-18
Choose your gravity, fall to the bottom, and you return from the ceiling: an endless architecture. The music Laryssa Okada wrote for it is built from strings and pads that never resolve, shaped much like the looping space itself. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why this music loops yet never sounds like mere repetition, through a lens you can carry back to your own composing.
- Ep. 19Soundtrack: FEZ — the music that carried 8-bit into the present2026-06-17
The music Rich Vreeland (Disasterpeace) wrote for FEZ keeps the vocabulary of chiptune, yet sands its corners down with reverb and bitcrushing and carries it into the spaciousness of New Age. Dynamic scoring that shifts with altitude and time of day, plus a trick where images are hidden in the spectrogram so that the sound itself becomes a puzzle. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take it apart through a lens you can bring back to your own composing.
- Ep. 18Soundtrack: Chants of Sennaar — Learning a people's sound before learning their words2026-06-16
The music Thomas Brunet wrote for Chants of Sennaar is a small chamber ensemble woven from live instruments. The peoples living on each floor of the tower cannot understand one another's words. But the sound gets through. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why the score of a language-deciphering game tells you 'who these people are' before you can decode a single word.
- Ep. 17Soundtrack: Antichamber — Music that grows a layer the deeper you go2026-06-15
The music Siddhartha Barnhoorn wrote for Antichamber is neither a loop nor silence. Thin layers crossfade and stack, never repeating the same combination twice, thickening as you push further in: a living ambient bed. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, take apart why this sound follows you through impossible spaces without ever coming undone, through a lens you can take home to your own composing.
- Ep. 16Soundtrack: Papers, Please — It plays at the top of the day, then the stamp takes over2026-06-13
You sit in an inspection booth hunting for discrepancies in documents. The music Lucas Pope wrote himself is barely a thirty-second anthem. It blares at the top of each day, then withdraws once inspection begins. What carries on is the sound of the stamp, the shuffle of paper — a beat tapped out by the player. Black coffee in hand, I take apart this 'play it at the top, then go quiet' design in a form you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 15Soundtrack: A Monster's Expedition — The rhythm isn't in the music, it's in your fingertips2026-06-12
For an open-world Sokoban about toppling trees and rolling logs between islands, Eli Rainsberry wrote music with the rhythm removed from its spine. So where did the beat go? It moved into the UI — into the sounds your own actions make. Fifteen guitar-and-piano tracks drift like the sea of your thinking, while the rhythm is tapped out by your hands. Black coffee in hand, I take this division of labor apart in a form you can carry home to your own composing.
- Ep. 14Soundtrack: Blue Prince — A manor where even the music gets drafted2026-06-11
The music of Blue Prince is dark jazz by Dutch duo Trigg & Gusset. Almost no percussion, mostly silent exploration, music that rises only in particular rooms. The composer wrote sketches; the developer drafted them into the manor. Black coffee in hand, I, Doremi, dig out what a composer can steal from this design that refuses to ring.
- Ep. 13Trilha sonora: World of Goo — Uma valsa antes da tempestade, debruçada sobre a mão que constrói2026-06-10
A música que Kyle Gabler escreveu para World of Goo mantém um carnaval gótico ao estilo Tim Burton e um faroeste de Ennio Morricone na mesma sala. Por que esta valsa se debruça tão gentilmente sobre a mão trêmula que empilha as bolas de goo? Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, a desmonto por uma lente que você pode levar para casa, para a sua própria composição.
- Ep. 12Trilha sonora: Unpacking — Como dispor um som sem exagerar nele2026-06-09
A música que Jeff van Dyck escreveu para Unpacking sobrepõe violão e piano a um chiptune com os cantos lixados, e, de algum modo, ela nunca exagera. Num quebra-cabeça sem fracasso e sem cronômetro, o que a música faz, e o que ela se recusa a fazer? Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, a desmonto por uma lente que você pode levar de volta para a sua própria composição.
- Ep. 11Trilha sonora: Gorogoa — Toda vez que as peças se sobrepõem, a música também se sobrepõe2026-06-08
A música que Joel Corelitz escreveu para Gorogoa mal levanta uma melodia ou um acorde; ela deposita 'o sentimento de um lugar' apenas com textura. E as pequenas peças atadas a cada ladrilho se combinam segundo regras de sobreposição — o próprio quebra-cabeça de reorganizar imagens também acontece no som. Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto seu design numa forma que você pode levar para casa, para a sua própria composição.
- Ep. 10Trilha sonora: The Talos Principle — Um paraíso construído sobre um longo tom sustentado2026-06-07
Depois de dezesseis anos compondo música em parede-de-som para Serious Sam, Damjan Mravunac, da Croteam, musicou um puzzle filosófico abrindo mão deliberadamente de ritmo e melodia, assentando em seu lugar uma longa faixa sustentada. Por que essa música sobrevive a catorze horas de escuta num paraíso falsificado de coros sacros? Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, leio a planta de seu design de duas camadas.
- Ep. 9Trilha sonora: Portal 2 — Música que uma máquina compôs, montando a si mesma enquanto você resolve2026-06-06
A música que Mike Morasky compôs para Portal 2 não é algo que você põe para tocar e escuta; ela se monta sozinha enquanto você está no meio de um puzzle. Pise numa Aerial Faith Plate, viaje por um Excursion Funnel, e a música acrescenta mais uma camada. Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto por que essa trilha soa como se um computador a tivesse composto, e o que você pode roubar para o seu próprio trabalho.
- Ep. 8Trilha sonora: LIMBO — Restam apenas os sons despidos de sua identidade2026-06-05
Martin Stig Andersen, que cuidou sozinho do áudio de LIMBO, vem da música acusmática. Distorcendo a “identidade” dos sons e recusando uma música que manipula emoções, ele assentou sombras sonoras sobre um mundo de silhuetas. Como é a “música à prova de retry” para um jogo de puzzle de morre-e-aprende? Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto tudo.
- Ep. 7Trilha sonora: Machinarium — A aritmética dos loops que nunca envelhecem num mundo enferrujado2026-06-04
A música que Tomáš Dvořák (Floex) compôs para Machinarium, a aventura desenhada à mão e sem diálogos da Amanita Design, é uma liga estranha: o calor corporal do piano e do clarinete fundido a um synth analógico sujo e ao matraquear de sucata metálica. Num jogo em que você fica encarando a mesma tela por minutos a fio, por que esses loops continuam vivos no seu ouvido? Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto tudo pela lente da “proporção de mistura entre abstração e melodia”.
- Ep. 6Trilha sonora: Patrick's Parabox — o som se desenrolando enquanto as caixas se multiplicam2026-06-03
A música que Priscilla Snow escreveu para o sokoban recursivo Patrick's Parabox fica exatamente entre o eletrônico e o ambient: um acompanhamento calmo e curioso. O timbre se atualiza cada vez que surge uma nova mecânica, e os títulos das faixas são literalmente os nomes dessas mecânicas. Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto por que esse som nunca atrapalha o pensamento prolongado, por uma lente que você pode levar para casa, para sua própria composição.
- Ep. 5Trilha sonora: Lorelei and the Laser Eyes — piano cortando a escuridão do hotel2026-06-02
Em Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, o denso quebra-cabeça de observação da Simogo, a música de Daniel Olsén e colaboradores coloca no centro um piano enraizado em Debussy e Satie, enquanto derrete o digital no acústico. Doremi lê, sob o ângulo de um compositor, como o som sustenta o pensamento prolongado e concorda em silêncio com os visuais.
- Ep. 4Trilha sonora: Baba Is You — Um pequeno loop que nunca te repreende por errar2026-06-01
A música de Baba Is You é chiptune escrito num tracker (OpenMPT) por Arvi 'Hempuli' Teikari, que fez o jogo inteiro sozinho. É um jogo que você tenta de novo centenas de vezes, mas a música não anuncia nem vitória nem derrota — ela apenas segue girando um pequeno loop alegre. Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto por que essa "música que nunca repreende" mantém a tentativa e erro com uma sensação leve, por uma lente que você pode levar para casa, para a sua própria escrita.
- Ep. 3Trilha sonora: Return of the Obra Dinn — música que soa e depois recua2026-05-31
Erga o relógio de bolso e, depois de alguns segundos de escuro, você é lançado num quadro congelado de uma morte. A pseudo-orquestra do século XIX que Lucas Pope escreveu sozinho se ergue nesse instante, e então se retira em silêncio. Entre o soar e o silêncio é onde mora a dedução.
- Ep. 2Trilha sonora: Outer Wilds — Quando a música se torna uma ferramenta de resolução2026-05-30
A trilha de Andrew Prahlow para Outer Wilds não é música de fundo para deixar tocando. Na maior parte do tempo ela permanece em silêncio; quando soa, é o sinal de uma descoberta; e, às vezes, os próprios instrumentos se tornam ferramentas de exploração. Café preto na mão, eu — Doremi — desmonto como essa música funciona, por uma lente que você pode levar para casa, para a sua própria composição e o seu design.
- Ep. 1Trilha sonora: COCOON — Música que segue tocando sem virar papel de parede2026-05-30
A música que Jakob Schmid escreveu para COCOON é quase inteiramente sintetizada, e a maior parte dela é gerada em tempo real. Não é nem uma cama em loop nem um voto de silêncio, mas um terceiro caminho. Café preto na mão, eu, Doremi, desmonto por que essa música consegue tocar continuamente sem nunca virar "papel de parede", por uma lente que você pode levar para casa, para a sua própria composição.