Brian Reitzell composed the soundtrack to THQ’s latest Red Faction title, Armageddon. While I was disappointed with the shortness of the campaign as well as the on-rails style, the 
soundtrack itself is another matter.
The opening Overture brought to mind images of Total Recall and the surface of Mars from the very beginning. Truly a masterpiece of game composition on Brian Reitzell’s part as with but a second of music he put my mind into the setting of the game. Of course if you’re younger and you don’t remember Total Recall then you might have to rely on more recent renditions of Mars and the previous games for your mental imagery.
The Cavern, track two on the soundtrack, bring to mind a mysterious and danger-filled cavern with some good use of reverb that gave an effect not unlike the echoes that one would encounter in an underground chamber. The dark and slow tune gives you the feeling of walking through endless intertwining networks of underground caverns where around any corner danger could await you.
Track three on the Red Faction Armageddon soundtrack, The Swarm, stands in stark juxtaposition to the darkness of the previous track. It opens with a more TRON-esque electronic sound that is quickly partnered with some rapid, almost tribal, drumbeats that call to mind a horde or loping creatures chasing you. The beat isn’t frantic and furious as one would expect from a chase scene which is what gave me the impression that the Swarm was loping after me and almost like the classic Peter and the Wolf, the addition of new instruments over time made me feel like the Swarm was not only growing in number but also in type of creature. An excellent use of sound to create a vivid mental image.
The use of bells and gongs really adds a wide dynamic range to many of the tracks and with the electronic sounds give both a futuristic feel as well as a spirtual feel to the music. Considering that the story centers on the conflict between a fanatical cult and the now-militant Red Faction on Mars the music is quite well suited to the story. With the addition of the ancient Martian threat comes a new twist in the story and at times that is well represented in the music.
