Steve Kirk

It's 1907 and President Teddy Roosevelt has been kidnapped! That's the premise of Barttlow's Dread Machine, a fantastic creation by Tribetoy and Beep Games, which looks as if the mechanical game actually dates from 1907. Now that the full game and soundtrack have been released, I caught up with composer Steve Kirk, who filled me in on how he created a (mostly) authentic soundtrack with period instruments including a temperamental banjo.

What if the very first "video game" was actually invented in 1907? That's the premise of Bartlow's Dread Machine, created by Beep Games and Tribetoy. Teddy Roosevelt has been kidnapped, and it's the player's mission to rescue him. Composer Steve Kirk says his inspiration for the rollicking soundtrack was a suprising combination of Ravel, Schubert and John Philip Sousa!