Indie Studio Spent 1,500 Hours on Bandcamp to Escape Algorithms

Key Takeaways

• Metanet spent 1,500 hours over two years manually curating the soundtrack on Bandcamp
• The sequel shifts from Berlin techno to UK Garage and its bass-heavy subgenres
• 60 independent artists from the 2020s will feature across half a dozen electronic styles

Most game studios point an algorithm at a playlist and call it a day. Metanet Software, the Toronto-based team behind the precision platformer N++, decided that approach was no longer acceptable.

For their upcoming sequel, N Plus Infinity Times Two, the developers spent 1,500 hours manually listening to music on Bandcamp. That breaks down to roughly two hours every evening for two full years. They sampled a few seconds of nearly half a million different songs to find 60 tracks that fit their vision.

Why They Ditched the Algorithm

N++ earned a dedicated following partly because of its soundtrack. The original leaned into Berlin techno, the kind of austere, claustrophobic 4/4 beats you'd find on labels like Hardwax or Boomkat. It stood out in a medium dominated by chiptune and generic orchestral scores.

For the sequel, Metanet wanted something different. More importantly, they wanted to find it without help from recommendation systems.

“After 10 years of living in an increasingly algorithmically driven society, we can't stand it anymore. So for this game we kind of went full organic, free range, and just kind of brute forced it by hand.”

— Raigan Burns, Co-founder of Metanet Software

Burns explained the shift during a presentation last week. With N++, the team had used recommendation algorithms on SoundCloud and YouTube to connect stylistic dots. This time, they explored "every back alley and sub-genre" they could find on Bandcamp instead.

From Berlin Techno to UK Garage

The sonic direction has shifted considerably. Where N++ drew from the tension-laden minimalism of Berlin techno, the sequel pulls from UK Garage and its offspring.

“Instead of Berlin techno, this time our main reference was UK Garage, and all the sub genres that it birthed, which [are] generally melodic, colorful, and mostly broken beat, rather than the claustrophobic, tension-laden 4/4 techno of N++.”

— Raigan Burns, Co-founder of Metanet Software

UK Garage sits at the root of several major genres in British electronic music. It's an antecedent to the original dubstep sound associated with artists like Burial and Kode9, not the later American variant popularized by Skrillex. Grime, bassline house, and future garage all trace back to UK Garage as well.

Burns promises the final tracklist will span "flowy dreamscapes" to "intense bangers." One confirmed artist is Zorza, a producer from Metanet's hometown of Toronto.

The Numbers Behind the Curation

The scale of the effort is unusual for an indie studio. Metanet listened to portions of almost 500,000 songs to select around 60 tracks. Every song on the soundtrack comes from the 2020s and represents independent artists across half a dozen different styles of modern electronic music.

• 1,500 hours of listening time over two years
• Nearly 500,000 songs sampled
• 60 tracks selected from half a dozen electronic subgenres
• All music sourced from independent artists on Bandcamp
• Every track released in the 2020s

The approach has resonated with gaming communities. On Reddit, users in r/pcgaming and r/indiegames praised the "anti-algorithm" stance, contrasting it with the growing use of AI-generated assets in game development. Hacker News discussions focused on the technical dedication required for manual discovery and the specific music scene shifts.

Release and What to Expect

N Plus Infinity Times Two is scheduled for release in 2027. The original N++ is still available for players who want a preview of Metanet's approach to pairing minimalist gameplay with carefully curated electronic music.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is N Plus Infinity Times Two?

It's the sequel to N++, a cult-favorite precision platformer from Metanet Software. The game is scheduled for release in 2027.

Why did Metanet avoid using algorithms for the soundtrack?

Co-founder Raigan Burns said the team grew tired of living in an "algorithmically driven society" and wanted a "full organic, free range" approach to music discovery.

How many songs are on the N Plus Infinity Times Two soundtrack?

The soundtrack features about 60 songs from independent artists, all released in the 2020s and sourced exclusively from Bandcamp.

What genre is the N Plus Infinity Times Two soundtrack?

The soundtrack draws from UK Garage and its subgenres, including styles that are more melodic and broken-beat compared to the Berlin techno of N++.

When does N Plus Infinity Times Two release?

The game is scheduled for 2027.

Source: PCGamer latest