Pitchfork Launches New Music/Gaming Program Soundplay

Pitchfork is teaming up with Intel for the interactive Soundplay, a new program that focuses on “the intersections of music, gaming, and technology.”

What does that mean, exactly? Well, Soundplay finds Pitchfork working with game developers to “create new, original games inspired by songs we love.” And just in case you were worried about a replay of the infamous Journey video game incident of the early ’80s, don’t fret — Pitchfork promises that its games “don’t just use music as a soundtrack; their scenes, characters, and settings are all driven by the song.”

Soundplay currently has five titles scheduled for its initial launch, with the first two — inspired by M83‘s ‘Intro’ and Matthew Dear’s ‘Street Song’ — already available. Three more are set to follow in July, including one inspired by a Cut Copy track.

The fun isn’t restricted to your browser, either; at this summer’s Pitchfork Music Festival, Soundplay will host an arcade featuring all five games in the series, and later this year, Pitchfork is collaborating with Soundplay partner Kill Screen to host what they’re describing as a two-day “game jam … where independent developers will have two days to collectively build a game inspired by a piece of music.”

Head over to the Soundplay site to negatively impact your Monday productivity, and start buffing up your code skills for that “game jam.” We’re crossing our fingers for a game based on Joanna Newsom’s ‘Good Intentions Paving Company.’