The Elder Scrolls® IV: Oblivion™ to Feature Original Soundtrack by Award-Winning Composer Jeremy Soule

“Gaming’s Greatest Musician” to Create Music for Epic RPG

October 21, 2005 (Rockville, MD) -- Bethesda Game Studios announced today that Jeremy Soule, the award-winning composer who has been called “gaming’s greatest musician,” will create the soundtrack for the highly anticipated role-playing game (RPG), The Elder Scrolls® IV: Oblivion™. The score for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind® (2002 Game of the Year, 2002 RPG of the Year), also created by Soule, received numerous accolades from industry professionals including “Game Soundtrack of the Year,” “Best Music and Sound Effects,” and “Outstanding Achievement in Original Composition.” A sample piece of music from Oblivion is available for download here.

"I’ve been working with Jeremy for a long time," said Todd Howard, executive producer for Oblivion, “and this is by far his best work. The game is an epic-fantasy-drama, and the score adds greatly to its dramatic appeal. What he has brought to Oblivion is extraordinary. I can’t wait for everyone to hear it.”

Oblivion is an epic, open-ended single-player RPG for the next generation. Providing gamers with the most life-like gaming experience to date, Oblivion promises to be an immersive experience unlike any other. The powerful combination of unprecedented graphics and freeform gameplay allows gamers to unravel the main quest or explore the vast world at their own pace. Oblivion is the fourth chapter in the award-winning Elder Scrolls series that includes Morrowind, Daggerfall™ (1996 RPG of the year), and Arena (1994 RPG of the year).

"It has been a thrill to score the music for the next installment in The Elder Scrolls series,” said Soule. “The stunning, epic quality of The Elder Scrolls series is particularly compatible with the grand, orchestral style of music I enjoy composing the most. It has been a pleasure to be involved with such a revolutionary series that is poised to redefine the RPG genre once again."

Jeremy Soule has been the recipient of numerous industry awards and professional accolades. Among his credits include Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which earned Soule the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award (BAFTA) for Best Score, Game Music Category. Soule has also been twice nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences for his work with The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and also received a BAFTA nomination for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Soule is also involved with Direct Song, a game music expansion service allowing gamers to add more official music to their games.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion will be published by Bethesda Softworks and 2K Games for the PC and the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft.