Independent label Monstercat was one of the first partners for VR music game Beat Saber in its pre-Meta-acquisition days: it provided the game’s first paid music pack in 2019. Now it has teamed up with the developers for a new one: the ‘Monstercat Mixtape 2’ pack. It includes 12 tracks from the label’s catalogue, which can be bought individually in-game for $1.99 each, or as the full pack for $14.99.
In a recent Team Talk interview with Music Ally, Monstercat’s head of gaming Gavin Johnson talked about the label’s work in games, including the knock-on effects of partnerships like this. “Being able to work with a developer and publisher to have ways for you to convert your fandom and also to monetise streams on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music is incredibly important,” he said. “It’s not just about hearing your music in the background of something… We have official playlists for a lot of our collaborations including Roblox, Rocket League and Fortnite, and we’ve had billions of streams come through these gaming opportunities, which result in indirect monetisation for our artists.”
But in the case of Beat Saber, there are also direct royalties from selling the tracks and pack too.
