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ABOUT JAKE BUTINEAU

Hi there! I'm Jake Butineau (He/Him), a game music composer based in Toronto, ON. For the past 5 years, I've been working with indie developers to create immersive and character-rich experiences such as Super Animal Royale, Destiny's Sword and Dune Sea. While game music and sound design is my focus, I also have experience scoring for film, animation, internet media and theatre.

I love to get invested in my projects; conceptualizing and implementing elements like environmental storytelling, subversive design/narrative and dynamic music systems gets me all worked up! I also understand more concrete ideas such as importance of workflow, source control and the player experience (or, providing the key information through audio). I usually work with my clients under a monthly retainer contract; this gives us freedom to explore our creative collaboration without the worry of when or how the budget is being spent.

I've given game audio talks at institutions and events such as: Centennial College, University of Information Technology, Screen Composers Guild of Canada and the Audio Engineering Society. I co-host the Breakfast Game Audio Club and the Game Audio Campfire. In my spare time, I stream on Twitch and create game audio discussion content! My Game Music Discussion Videos and The Game Music Podcast gathered a lovely audience of game-music enthusiastists who are as passionate about this as I am.

Check out my portfolio to learn more about my games, or take a listen to my albums! If you'd like to talk about your project or just chat, you can contact me here or connect with me on social media:

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A Little History

I grew up surrounded by music - my mom Cindy Thompson got me involved in music lessons at a young age, and by high school I was performing on-stage with her. On the other hand, my dad was an electronics expert and introduced me to pc games like Doom and Warcraft 2.

As I explored both music and games, I had a lot of formative experiences; at age 12 I composed my first piece on piano; at 15 I started a progressive-metal band with friends; at 18 I wrote, performed and produced my first album; at 22 I arranged a medley of Pokemon battle themes for a student orchestra at York University. I was also dabbling in game design throughout my early years; designing board and tabletop games using my Warhammer miniatures; creating choose-your-own-adventure games in PowerPoint; playing with creative tools like RPG Maker 2, or Starcraft / Warcraft 3's map editors.

Games are incredibly close to my heart and have provided some of the most profound media experiences I've had; some of my favourites include The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Shadow of the Colossus, Dark Souls, Undertale, Stellaris and The Witness.

If you fancy a primer of my musical influences, these are some of my favourite albums: Sigur Ros' ( ), Between the Buried and Me's Colours, Carpenter Brut's Trilogy and disasterpeace's FEZ OST.

Affiliations

Pixile Inc.

Based in Vancouver, Pixile creates multiplayer games that expand the boundaries of their genres in fun and unique ways. I'm currently working with them, creating music and sound for Super Animal Royale!

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2Dogs Games

A Canadian studio led by industry veterans, 2Dogs is developing Destiny's Sword - a combat/strategy mmorpg that focuses on community and the mental health of your soldiers. I am currently working with them as a composer, sound designer and music system designer!

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Sudo Games

Based in British Colombia, Sudo Games is currently developing Darkest Valley. I've had the privilege of composing the score for this character-driven action RPG and I'm so excited to share more about it when it's released.

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Frolic Labs

Frolic Labs is an independent game studio based in Toronto, founded in 2013 by Amos Laber. I composed the music and sound for their 2019 game Dune Sea!

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