Ian Taylor - RuneScape (2007)

Composer: Ian Taylor

Console: MMORPG

Game Release Date: 2007-08-xx

Soundtrack Release Date: 2018-09-14

Runtime: 2:26:57, 43 Tracks

What can I even write about RuneScape that hasn’t been written already? The game hardly needs an introduction and is still heavily played. It only makes things more awkward when I write that barely played this game and it mostly passed me by. I also didn't play it as I was supposed to either. 

Okay, before I get into the stories of my adventures in RuneScape I will write a little bit about it. RuneScape is a 20-year old MMO that is developed by Jagex. For some reason or another it exploded in popularity in the late 2000s and became one of the most played MMOs. I remember even hearing about it when I was much younger. I played much more Adventure Quest though. Jagex released a sequel that is referred to as RuneScape 3 but the 2007 version, or Old School RuneScape still reigns supreme in popularity. In 2021 the 2007scape subreddit boasts 500k members.

I got into RuneScape somewhere around 2008 I think. I don't remember how I found it but it's likely I saw it on an ad and clicked from there. The first thing I remember was being fascinated that it was a full 3D game being rendered into a browser. At the time I had only seen 2D games like Adventure Quest and stuff made in flash. The music also blew me away. The high level things, stuff like silk trees, level 99 stuff and all these different things I could level up. It was on a completely different level from what I saw in Adventure Quest. My brother and sister even played a bit of it and we did stuff together. 

However, like most MMOs there is a lot of grinding that needs to be done. For one reason or another I got bored of the grinding and just wasn't interested in spending all this time building campfires. I much more liked the games look and decided hereafter I would just walk around, explore and enjoy the music. I would occasionally do some quests though. I had no money at the time to spend on anything. 

And, while I didn't get very far I still had a great time. I took teleporters to dungeons in the ice, got one-shot by a dragon, visited the wilderness then took a 180 as soon as I figured out what it is (no way I am doing that), camped the wilderness for gold and equipment (didn't really work) and visited deserts. 

I randomly found 9k gold just on the ground which helped 'fund' my adventures, I solved a few quests relating to the haunted house, pirate treasure (this was my favourite) and cake baking. I mostly just fled from enemies. I remember I had least had levels in stuff like cooking and fire-building(?) so I wasn't a complete noob. I was just interested in seeing all the corners of the map. I got bored of playing before I completed that goal and stopped playing sometime after. 

Many, many years later I was interested in giving the game another shot but I think my account may have been deleted due to inactivity. Either way I don't mind, I probably may try it again in the future. I still believe RuneScape 2007 is a beautiful game. 

RuneScape's music was composed by Ian Taylor and it is one of the most famous things about the game. It's a soundtrack with its own unique sound that's hard to categorize. Sure it's 'fantasy music' but it’s way too bright to be dungeon synth and not 'folk' enough to be neo-medieval folk. It's too cartoony to be modern classical. It really is in a category of its own. 

Ian Taylor, or Jagex realized how much people love the soundtrack and capitalized on it. They released limited edition vinyl copies of it and digital copies. Below I have linked a place to buy the soundtrack in FLAC or MP3. I may not have many memories of the game but the music is so good it stands on its own. 

7Digital: https://ca.7digital.com/artist/ian-taylor/release/runescape-original-soundtrack-classics-8448955