Abstract
This study examines the role of soundscapes in open-world video games, with a focus on The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2. It explores how dynamic music and adaptive audio systems serve as bridges between players and game world, fostering immersion and emotional engagement. Employing frameworks from semiotics, game studies, and cultural theory, the research discusses key concepts such as Karen Collin’s “participatory supplemental connotations”. Hartmut Rosa’s “resonance”, and Jean-Jacques Nattiez’s tripartite model and the dichotomy between memory and monument drawn by Jacoviello. Through an analysis of The Witcher 3’s Slavic-inspired soundscape and Red Dead Redemption 2’s nostalgic Western motifs, the paper illustrates how game music functions both as a cultural document and an interactive monument. The paper examines how adaptive musical cues, ambient soundscapes, and diegetic shifts support exploratory play, emotional resonance, and contextual storytelling in vast, dynamic virtual environments. The study positions game music not as a passive backdrop but as an interactive structure of signs, emotions, and narrative strategies.