home / skills / pluginagentmarketplace / custom-plugin-game-developer / daw-music
This skill helps you compose game-ready music and implement interactive audio systems for immersive soundscapes.
npx playbooks add skill pluginagentmarketplace/custom-plugin-game-developer --skill daw-musicReview the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.
---
name: daw-music
version: "2.0.0"
description: |
Digital Audio Workstation usage, music composition, interactive music systems,
and game audio implementation for immersive soundscapes.
sasmp_version: "1.3.0"
bonded_agent: 04-audio-sound-design
bond_type: PRIMARY_BOND
parameters:
- name: daw
type: string
required: false
validation:
enum: [reaper, ableton, fl_studio, logic_pro, pro_tools]
- name: music_type
type: string
required: false
validation:
enum: [interactive, linear, ambient, dynamic, procedural]
retry_policy:
enabled: true
max_attempts: 3
backoff: exponential
observability:
log_events: [start, complete, error]
metrics: [track_count, cpu_usage, export_time]
---
# DAW & Music Composition
## DAW Selection
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ DAW COMPARISON │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ REAPER: │
│ Price: $60 │ Best for: Game audio, flexibility │
│ Pros: Lightweight, customizable, great for stems │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ABLETON LIVE: │
│ Price: $99-749 │ Best for: Electronic, live performance │
│ Pros: Session view, great for layered music │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ FL STUDIO: │
│ Price: $99-499 │ Best for: Electronic, hip-hop │
│ Pros: Pattern-based, lifetime updates │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ LOGIC PRO: │
│ Price: $199 │ Best for: Film, orchestral (Mac only) │
│ Pros: Great instruments, Apple ecosystem │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Game Music Structure
```
INTERACTIVE MUSIC LAYERS:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Layer 1 (Base): Percussion/rhythm - always playing │
│ Layer 2 (Harmony): Pads/strings - calm moments │
│ Layer 3 (Melody): Main theme - exploration │
│ Layer 4 (Tension): Dissonance - approaching danger │
│ Layer 5 (Combat): Intense - full orchestra/drums │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
MUSIC STATE TRANSITIONS:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ [EXPLORATION] → detect enemy → [TENSION] │
│ ↑ ↓ │
│ └── no enemy ←───────── [COMBAT] ←── engage │
│ ↓ │
│ enemy defeated │
│ ↓ │
│ [VICTORY] │
│ ↓ │
│ → [EXPLORATION] │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Composition Workflow
```
GAME MUSIC PRODUCTION PIPELINE:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. CONCEPT: │
│ • Reference tracks │
│ • Mood boards │
│ • Discuss with team │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 2. SKETCH: │
│ • Quick mockup (piano/synth) │
│ • Establish tempo, key, theme │
│ • 30-second demo for approval │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 3. PRODUCTION: │
│ • Full instrumentation │
│ • Create stems for interactivity │
│ • Multiple intensity versions │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 4. MIXING: │
│ • Balance levels │
│ • EQ and compression │
│ • Leave headroom for SFX │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 5. EXPORT: │
│ • Loop points (seamless) │
│ • Stems for middleware │
│ • Multiple quality versions │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Seamless Loop Creation
```
LOOP TECHNIQUES:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. MEASURE-ALIGNED: │
│ • Start/end on exact bar boundaries │
│ • Ensure reverb tails don't extend past end │
│ • Crossfade at loop point if needed │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 2. INTRO + LOOP: │
│ • Separate intro section │
│ • Main loop starts after intro │
│ • Mark loop start/end points in metadata │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 3. STINGER TRANSITIONS: │
│ • Short musical phrases for state changes │
│ • Victory fanfares │
│ • Death/failure sounds │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Export Settings
| Format | Use Case | Settings |
|--------|----------|----------|
| WAV | Master/Stems | 48kHz, 24-bit |
| OGG | Game runtime | 128-192 kbps |
| MP3 | Backup/Preview | 320 kbps |
| MIDI | Interactive | Standard MIDI |
## 🔧 Troubleshooting
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PROBLEM: Loop has audible click/pop │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ SOLUTIONS: │
│ → Ensure loop points are at zero-crossing │
│ → Add small crossfade (5-10ms) │
│ → Check reverb/delay tails │
│ → Verify exact sample alignment │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PROBLEM: Music doesn't fit game mood │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ SOLUTIONS: │
│ → Create reference playlist with team │
│ → Start with temp music to establish mood │
│ → Get feedback on sketches before full production │
│ → Consider genre conventions │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PROBLEM: Transitions between music states jarring │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ SOLUTIONS: │
│ → Use same key/tempo across states │
│ → Add transition stingers │
│ → Crossfade on musical boundaries (bars) │
│ → Use stems to gradually add/remove layers │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## Integration Workflow
```
MIDDLEWARE INTEGRATION:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ DAW → Export Stems → Wwise/FMOD → Game Engine │
│ │
│ Stems typically: │
│ • Percussion │
│ • Bass │
│ • Harmony │
│ • Melody │
│ • FX/Stingers │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
---
**Use this skill**: When composing game music, implementing audio systems, or creating interactive soundtracks.
This skill covers Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) workflows, music composition for games, and practical approaches to interactive music systems and game audio implementation. It focuses on selecting the right DAW, building layered interactive tracks, producing seamless loops, and exporting stems ready for middleware and engines. The guidance is pragmatic and oriented to shipable game audio artifacts.
It inspects and advises on the full game-music pipeline: DAW choice, composition structure, production, mixing, loop creation, export settings, and middleware integration. It recommends layer-based interactive music patterns, state-transition ideas (exploration → tension → combat → victory), and concrete troubleshooting steps for common issues like clicks, jarring transitions, and mood mismatch. It also prescribes export formats and stem organization for Wwise/FMOD and game engines.
What export settings should I use for game runtime?
Use WAV masters at 48kHz/24-bit for stems; encode runtime files to OGG at 128–192 kbps and keep MP3 for previews or backups.
How do I prevent jarring transitions between music states?
Keep key and tempo consistent across states, use stingers or short crossfades on bar boundaries, and add/remove layers via stems to smooth changes.