Short version: Gordon several times missed the deadline and practically did not help the studio in the release of the album. Since the soundtrack is part of the collector’s edition, it had to be released as early as possible, otherwise in many countries problems could arise due to product mismatch.
Moreover, because of this conflict, id Software does not intend to work with Gordon yet: the creation of the first plot addition for the game goes without a musician.
Now a much more detailed version:
According to Stratton, in January id Software agreed with the composer to prepare an album by early March, at least reducing 12 tracks with extra bonuses. A similar contract was concluded four years ago last Doom.
By the end of February, Gordon contacted the studio, saying that he and the team did not have enough time to complete the project. The musician apologized and asked for an additional four weeks, promising to provide 30 tracks total duration of more than 120 minutes.
The companies agreed, giving Gordon even more time — another six weeks. The new deadline was mid-April. Stratton emphasizes that the soundtrack was promised as part of the collection, and according to the law of many countries, people could start asking for a refund due to a mismatch of the goods.
By the beginning of April, the studio began to worry that the composer would again miss the deadlines, and Stratton personally asked id Software’s leading audio designer Chad Mosholder own version of the album.
Comparison of versions of BFG 2016 and 2023
When Gordon sent 9 completed tracks to Stratton, he was dissatisfied with them: only one (!) of which was performed in the heavy metal genre, while the rest were ambient. This is clearly not what they expected from the game’s music album.
After some discussion, Stratton decided to give an order to Mosholder to create a chronological soundtrack. Part of Gordon’s work was about to be included in it.
The final version of the soundtrack of the game eventually included only two tracks of Mick, while Moskholder was responsible for the rest – he did all the work in a few weeks. On April 19, the soundtrack was released for owners of the collector’s edition.
And here Mick Gordon, in response to criticism of the soundtrack, told readers that he would not have done so, although he, according to Stratton, personally advised Moskholder to work in this format.
It is much more interesting that Gordon was supposedly surprised by the composition of the album in 59 tracks, although, according to Stratton, he was sent the final version a week before the release, so that it would be possible to combine versions of the tracks of Moskholder and Gordon.
In addition, Gordon was allegedly concerned that Moskholder was “credited” with the co-authorship of the soundtrack, but the studio did nothing of the kind. Gordon is listed as the sole composer and author of the album. However, in the tracks mixed by Mosholder, he is indicated as an auxiliary musician.
So id Software manages to clearly note which tracks Gordon mixed and which ones Moskholder. It would be deceptive to attribute the authorship of the tracks only to Gordon, while they were brought together by someone else.
Collector’s Soundtrack
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