Συνέντευξη [En]: Jonas Shiervani

Συνέντευξη με τον Jonas Shiervani, sound designer, του Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, αποκλειστικά για το Nintendo Switch GR.

Nintendo Switch GR: Hello Mr. Jonas Shiervani my name is Tseniklis John and I own a Hellenic group of Nintendo Switch fans and we would like to ask you some questions about your fantastic work to Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night.

Jonas Shiervani: Nice to meet you Tseniklis! I’ll try to answer as many of the questions as I can. I’m not sure how much I can say about the project but I’ll try to answer as good as I can!

Nintendo Switch GR: As my first question to start that interview i would like to ask how you found yourself composing for video games? It was a childish dream that came true or the situations brought you to the games industry? Talk to us about yourself.

Jonas Shiervani: I’ve always played games since I was a little boy so I think the music there influenced me into that path I guess. I always had an interest in certain small parts in songs that I liked and repeated them over and over etc. So I guess there was some kind of curiosity there in terms of understanding why certain songs sound so good etc. After a while, I just started to write my own “video game” songs on an old program called Guitar Pro. That’s how I got started. I also played in bands in my teenage years as a guitarist.

Nintendo Switch GR: How long was the sound design process for bloodstained?

Jonas Shiervani: I joined the Bloodstained project quite late into the development but I would say the process for me was around 3-4 months.

Nintendo Switch GR: What kind of engine did you use for audio?

Jonas Shiervani: Right now I use Logic Pro X to write and produce music.

Nintendo Switch GR: Did you do any location recordings for the game?

Jonas Shiervani: I have a collected library of sounds and recordings i’ve made in the past that I always use in some way or the other when working on a project. That was true for Bloodstained too.

Nintendo Switch GR: What’s your favorite audio part of the game?

Jonas Shiervani: My favorite audio part.. hmm. In terms of the soundtrack, I think Michiru Yamane and the group over at Noisycroak did a fantastic job. They’re great people. Lost Garden would probably be my favorite track in the game!

Nintendo Switch GR: Do you play video games? What type of games do you like?

Jonas Shiervani: I’ve played video games all my life, although recently when growing older and having to do other stuff, it changes. I try to play something now and then to relax. But not as much as I should maybe, haha. I played so much when I was younger so I think it’s time for me to work hard so I can repay that favor to the next generation of kids playing games today.

Nintendo Switch GR: Is there any music you made for the game that you really liked, but ultimately decided didn’t work for the title? And the inverse of that — was there anything you weren’t completely sold on until you heard or saw it in context?

Jonas Shiervani: On Bloodstained I did not do a lot of music. When I joined the project it was for audio design mostly. Yamane-san and the others already finished most of the songs by then. I did write the little jingle song “quest complete” for when you hand in a quest in the game though! In terms of what I did on sound effects, I was really happy with the different weapon sounds for instance.

Nintendo Switch GR: How does the creative process work between the visuals of the game and the audio you guys are making?

Jonas Shiervani: The creative process between visuals and audio… Well for me it depends on project to project. But usually, I work with visuals/the game in front of me. If that’s not available then you have to get real creative I guess, haha.

Nintendo Switch GR: As my final question for interviews I always like to ask the same question. What’re your future plans? are you currently working on a new project?

Jonas Shiervani: Future plans! Well, I always look around for new interesting projects to join! But I’m also working on a bunch of new projects with people here in Tokyo. I can’t say much more than that, unfortunately! Please look forward to them!

Nintendo Switch GR: Thanks Jonas for your time.

Jonas Shiervani: Thanks again for showing interest in what I do and asking me these questions. It’s been fun! Good luck with your Nintendo Switch group and stay in touch!