Description



Summoner of Sounds is designed to be a series of interactive community events where video game music will be celebrated by the means of craftsmanship and community interaction.

Community members with experience in music production will be dared to participate in challenges testing their ability to perform well as a versatile video game composer, while the game developers with other areas of expertise are encouraged to to analyze the challenges, and provide the composers with commentary, feedback and constructive criticism.


Table of contents:

  • 1. Event Outline

  • 2. Event Schedule

  • 3. Licensing Rights & Submission Guidelines

  • 4. RMN as a Platform. What do I have to gain?

  • 5. Post-Processing Submitted Material

  • 6. Role of the Composer - Becoming the Summoner of Sounds

  • 7. Role of Other Developers and the Audience - You are not NPCs!

  • 8. Picking Favorites!?

  • 9. RMN Music Pack 2 and Guardians of the Groove







Summoner of Sounds consists of a periodically recurring series of challenges presented to the composers to participate in and for the developers and audience to engage in throughout the year.

Participants aren't obligated to participate in every challenge, but the more challenges you participate in, the greater the reward.

Presented challenges will test the composers' abilities to perform well as versatile video game music producers in a changing environment. Each challenge will introduce a different set of rules and restrictions, and a new concept where the composers will have to find a way to express themselves in.

The challenges may restrict and determine the video game genre that will need to be composed for, the game world setting to be composed for, a specific game instance to be composed for, or a specific manner to be composed in.

While the challenges will present a number of restricted aspects, each challenge will offer choice of freedom and room to stretch around in some of them.

Summoner of Sounds will be running for several months in total and challenges will be issued roughly once every month, or on a similar pacing.

Each challenge of the series will run approximately over the course of one month and the deadline of each challenge will be stated as the challenge and its ruleset are announced.
























Any work submitted to this event will be disseminated under a creative commons license as publicly usable in any way the end-user wishes as long as they attribute the work to the artist in their credits and that they also do the same themselves with any derivative work based on the artist's.

End-users of this material, and any derivative material, will not, however, be able to legally make any money from anything containing these tracks without the artists' express permission.


All works submitted to the event have to be 100% original work of the participants and must contain no copyrighted material, either compositionally or in terms of sampled sounds. Submitted works must contain no arrangements of any material of a different author, and they can not lift motifs from anywhere else, except possibly from the participant's own works.

Submissions should contain as little audio quality loss as possible, WAV file format being heavily preferred.





The RPG Maker Network offers an extensive network of gamers and game developers, both hobbyists and professionals.

This event series is designed to help the composers of the game development community come together, challenge their know-how and showcase their creative efforts, and the rest of the community to come in contact with the composers.

This event series won't have a panel of judges, and there won't be hand-picked winners. Participants are encouraged to challenge themselves and work together towards solving the presented challenges.

During the course of the event series, the composers will be creating video game music in various forms and manners, and build themselves a diverse portfolio while doing so.

The rest of the community is encouraged to provide feedback and impressions on this material and to be in touch with the composers, possibly giving them ideas, or request something specific from within the given ruleset.

RMN will bring the participants visibility, and the yields of each challenge will be shared on RMN's social media during the course of the events.



Each composer has a completely optional step to sign up for post-processing their submitted material.

In the post-process, the composer will be in touch with the event organizer who will help them personally by offering them feedback on composition and mixing details and assist them by creating alternate, OGG file format versions of their tracks with a coded-in looping point, which will enable seamless looping of their songs in the RPG Maker VX and RPG Maker VX Ace engines.

Enabling looping for the songs requires them to be composed in looped structure, with recurring sections.






Summoner of Sounds as an event series will present a series of challenges that will test your abilities as a composer to express yourself in a wide variety of restricted environments. This will help in readying you to have the tools and confidence to perform well as a composer in a wide range of video game projects.

Each challenge will introduce a different scenario where you may need to compose music for different game genre, imply a different game setting through instrumentation, cultural, and musical genre references, or approach the the task by expressing yourself with a very specific perspective in mind.

Some of these scenarios may, and most likely will, require you to research and learn new ways of designing video game music, but they will also encourage you to test yourself, and express yourself in ways that you haven't before, and you will experience the joy of discovering new sides of your creative self.

Summoner of Sounds is an event series that will be running for several consecutive months. It may sound intimidating at first, but you can decide which challenges you want to participate in. However, the more challenges you undertake, the greater the rewards.

If you want to achieve the very best yields, then the series will also test your ability to perform under pressure as you'll need to be undertaking all the challenges.

It will test your ability to practice your trade under discipline, not only when you are motivated, and it will test your adaptability at the times when you'll have to find your creative freedom and inspiration while you still have to make your visions meet with a set of pre-existing rules.

Remember, you are not alone! This is a collaboration event. You may work alone if you wish, but you are allowed, and encouraged to collaborate with other members. Do you have the same Digital Audio Workstation as the other participant? You can work together! And if you feel like discussing how to approach any of the issued challenges with the other participants, then nothing stops you.

Building an extensive network of colleagues and other practitioners of your trade will also work greatly in your favor!

Will you be able to take on the challenge? Can you become the Summoner of Sounds, or even something more?

Introduce yourself at the Composer Introductions!





Video game composers wouldn't be composing music for video games if there were no video games, and video games with no music, or audio, would offer us only an experience with half of the things to sense, than what they do with audio, so let's agree that sound design is an integral part of game design.

Video game audio does not only offer us audio clues on game mechanics, but music activates large parts of our brain on fast rate and communicates us a great variety of information, which married with the visual material will bring the gaming experience to a whole new potency.

That being said, video game directors should not underestimate the importance of solid audio design, and advanced communication with the audio designers plays a major factor at what the end product will communicate to the consumer.

Music helps to communicate ideas which aren't visually present, it may also underline and empower the visual ideas present, or it may change the way we perceive the visual clues completely when the marriage of the visuals and the sound refers to a completely new impression than what either part of the combination would carry across alone.

Video game directors need to be able to communicate their vision to the sound designers and together with them, find a way to communicate this idea to the consumers.

While the Summoner of Sounds challenges will introduce composers to predetermined rulesets, the rest of the community may still engage in the process by discussing each challenge and the methods fit to completing the challenge.

Everyone can take the role of a critic. You don't need to be educated in music theory or terminology to be able to tell whether you find a musical piece fitting for a specific game genre, instance or setting. Communication matters, even if you don’t have the most optimal tools for it.

Express yourself with your own words and impressions. A composer will be glad to hear any of it. Tell the composer what their music communicates to you: feelings, impressions, visual images or atmosphere, for example. Does their track fit the description of the given ruleset?

Everyone may also post ideas of any themes they would like to hear. If the ruleset permits, a composer may very well decide to compose your idea.


While there isn't a panel of judges, or winners for the event, everyone is still encouraged to show appreciation for entries submitted to the event.

Simple feedback and commentary alone is welcome enough, but if you really like some track, give it a star to mark it as your favorite! You can give stars for multiple tracks if you wish. Stars play a part in event visibility and achievement mechanics.

To reward composers with stars post a reply to the event explaining which track, or tracks you want to give favorites for. Attaching a star image to the post helps the process.

Image code for the star:
[img][url]http://rpgmaker.net/media/images/events/sos/sosstar.png[/url][/img]







As of today, one of the biggest, if not the single biggest achievement of the composer community of rpgmaker.net still is the release of our RMN Music Pack!

It's a great quality pack of music that we can be proud of, and an achievement that we were able to put together with collaborative effort and all thanks to the network and community that RMN is.

Reception of the RMN Music Pack was overwhelmingly positive and it has been a good while since its release, so it is time we set our sights on the future, and to the release of its successor, the RMN Music Pack 2!

The journey for RMN Music Pack 2 begins with Summoner of Sounds.

Summoner of Sounds is designed to work as a count down and prepare us to bring RMN Music Pack 2 to a whole new level.

While Summoner of Sounds works also as the countdown for the RMN Music Pack 2, Summoner of Sounds will still be the greatest undertaking of the RMN composer community as of today and it will challenge everyone's creative abilities.

Summoner of Sounds will be creating composers a portfolio, but it will also be creating the community a whole lot of great video game music!

If you like what the composers of the community do and you want to show your support to them, you can be directly in contact with them, but if you want to show your support to the community as a whole and help us arrange events such as the RMN Music Pack, Summoner of Sounds and the RMN Music Pack 2, you can now become Guardian of The Groove and donate to the cause!

Every penny counts and the money will be used first and foremost to have artwork to go with the music and then to offer rewards for participating members. Any extra funds to the cause will be spent on future RMN Music events.

To get the Guardian of the Groove achievement you have to PM Happy after the transaction goes through, so that he knows to apply the benefits to your RMN account.

Thank you everyone! Let's do our best!

Illustrations: カラカモ @ twitter / 烏鴨 @ pixiv
Event concept design, visual design, direction and supervision: Happy @ RMN / Matias Heimlander @ tumblr

Details

  • 05/01/2015 06:57 PM
  • 07/01/2016 11:59 PM
  • 3
  • Happy

Achievements

Registration

You must be logged in to sign up for Summoner of Sounds.

Teams Members Entry
Team Happy!
My Composing Stick is Ready
Team Meat
Sum On Her Off Sow And
Team Failed Harmony
Team Where Am I?
Team The Team
Out of practice, so let's get back in practice!
"Insert Team Name Here"
I'll Do My Best...
Chaos Harmony
Symphony Of Enthrea
Super Merengue Bros.
The Spoony Bard
Music for humanity
Bring back the dinosaurs
How do I Music?
Team Drass
Ark of the Arts
Team Koi
To the Beat of a Different Drummer
Team Toni!
Dysergy
Jingle Jangle Jingle
Ylmir
Azhthar
Team Amazing Hotdog
Firah
Team Last Minute Production
Ogarth Munchies
The One-Ghost Gaggle
Team Giznads
Fungus Happy
Maat Wants His Cap Back
Misoundthropy
Rastapopoulos
Sweaty Angle~~~ <3
OneByOne
Toms Introduction Team!
Team Midi
Legion of One
FoxAudio Creations (AKA Team Oh God Who Let the Furry In Here)
Happy Rainbow Panda Bears
Team Curry
Acidbath
Jar Studios
Aersia Sound Team
Plastic, Meat, Smoke, Metal, and Sugar
Team Megollyen
Niyane's Team
Team Unhappy!
The Sword Of The Crest Heart And The Bird That Learnt That Hope Would End One Day
Team Neutral!
Team Probably Not Appearing In This Event
Scion Genesis
Without Creativity
Team Random
Team Cheese
JStewartMusic
No Excuses!
Team currently busy but what the hell
Team Yup
Uncanny Warriors
Team Jawns AKA Boring Team Name
A Team of One
The Singularity
The Duke's Jukebox
Sound Master
Entry Status Key
  • - Pending
  • - Validating
  • - Accepted
  • - Rejected

Posts

Hello ! I have a question about the rules as well.

All works submitted to the event have to be 100% original work of the participants and must contain no copyrighted material, either compositionally or in terms of sampled sounds.


When I compose music, I use a lot of sample libraries I purchased, does it mean I do not have the right to use them for the challenge, even if I have a legal license ? Or is it only to prevent people from uploading something made with sampled music ?

Also, a lot of people uploaded both WAV and OGG versions of their tracks. What would you recommend ? Uploading both for users' convenience, or avoiding duplicate content by uploading only the WAV version ?

Thank you !
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
author=Happy
author=Trihan
I believe you're correct on the first, but as was already pointed out to me it wouldn't make sense to sell tracks made for this as they'll be available in the free pack.
Pretty much this!

Also, Summoner of Sounds entries will not be used for the actual RMN Music Pack 2. RMN Music Pack 2 will run as a separate event. There may still be some sort of collection release of the Summoner of Sounds entries, though.
It wasn't quite clear at the beginning; considering the work everyone seems to be putting into things, however, it's only fair that Summoner of Sounds gets its own release.... perhaps like this:

Cover: Orange notes, rounded as if blown of glass, flow from a Bard's flute while a "Red Mage" uses a baton to direct and shepherd them and notes of various other colors- green, blue, pink- into shaped groups; on the far left red notes have coalesced into a sword shape, while at far right a nearly-complete heart shape waits for approaching pink notes.

Back: Somewhere between dream and imagination lies the world of Musica, where sound comes to life. Join us on a musical journey through this land: flit across the Mirthful Meadows, wallow in the Depths of Despair, and scale the Climax Peaks. Wherever you go, you'll find tracks brimming with life and eager to be used in your games!

(Each overarching theme thus becomes a "place" or "region" on a map; EG Lighthearted tracks hail from The Mirthful Meadows.)

As for entries, I've been rather preoccupied, but still hope to get in an entry for this stage before the deadline. *Crosses fingers*
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
author=Ylmir
Hello ! I have a question about the rules as well.

All works submitted to the event have to be 100% original work of the participants and must contain no copyrighted material, either compositionally or in terms of sampled sounds.


When I compose music, I use a lot of sample libraries I purchased, does it mean I do not have the right to use them for the challenge, even if I have a legal license ? Or is it only to prevent people from uploading something made with sampled music ?

Also, a lot of people uploaded both WAV and OGG versions of their tracks. What would you recommend ? Uploading both for users' convenience, or avoiding duplicate content by uploading only the WAV version ?

Thank you !


When you have bought licence to the samples you are using, you are not restricted by their copyright. The rule was meant to prevent people from using material they do not have rights for. When you purchase samples, it usually means you gain the rights to use them.

If you can make a polished mix and a song, I recommend rendering the song to a loopable .ogg. If you don't know how to build .ogg loop, or if your song will need further revisions and polish, then I recommend .wav.
author=Happy
When you have bought licence to the samples you are using, you are not restricted by their copyright. The rule was meant to prevent people from using material they do not have rights for. When you purchase samples, it usually means you gain the rights to use them.
Thanks ! I was just asking if the contest allowed the use of these sound libraries, since "copyrighted material" can actually mean a lot of different things in this context, but you replied to my question. :)

author=Happy
If you can make a polished mix and a song, I recommend rendering the song to a loopable .ogg. If you don't know how to build .ogg loop, or if your song will need further revisions and polish, then I recommend .wav.
Okay, I uploaded the .ogg version then. I was asking because of the "submit in the highest quality possible" rule. ;)

Enjoy !
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
Ah man, the late entry submissions start rolling in. I should try to get mine up soon, too. Only 1 week remaining!

@ Ylmir: Homely! Very well controlled mood and good volume details. Nice transitions. Love the flute around 1:30! Uh, pretty top notch work really. I like it a lot! Hits the theme spot on.


@ Azhthar:
Yeah, I can see it coming. Light-hearted silliness. Yup, each instrument adds to it very well. Great instrumentation and detail. Only critique is that some of the bass range tones sound slightly overbearing at some parts and clog up the ambiance a bit, but it isn't really that noticable. Great work and very good mix in any case. Goes to my favs too!


Are you two somehow connected? You both appeared at the same time with very good quality works!
author=Happy
@ Ylmir:Homely! Very well controlled mood and good volume details. Nice transitions. Love the flute around 1:30! Uh, pretty top notch work really. I like it a lot! Hits the theme spot on.
Thanks a lot ! :)

author=Happy
Are you two somehow connected? You both appeared at the same time with very good quality works!
Not at all, although I have already seen Azhthar on Newgrounds, and I have been surprised to see his nickname appear here too ^^
@Happy:
Hey thanks a lot! Glad I saw SOS just in time and I thought my piece fits quite well for the light at heart task ;) Yep, the bass is sometimes a problem of mine, since I´m using my headphones for mixing which are quite low in the bass range... Maybe at some point I can try to fix the mix.
@Ylmir:
Yep, really funny coincidence. I stumbled over SOS in the NG forum so maybe this is our connection?
author=Azhthar
@Ylmir
Yep, really funny coincidence. I stumbled over SOS in the NG forum so maybe this is our connection?


I knew about the SOS thanks to @Happy 's post as well, although I wanted to finish my 1st submission to the NIM contest before contributing here. Oh, and by the way, good luck with your track ! ;)
author=Ylmir
author=Azhthar
@Ylmir

I knew about the SOS thanks to @Happy 's post as well, although I wanted to finish my 1st submission to the NIM contest before contributing here. Oh, and by the way, good luck with your track ! ;)
Thanks! Good luck to you, too!

author=Happy
@ Azhthar:
Only critique is that some of the bass range tones sound slightly overbearing at some parts and clog up the ambiance a bit, but it isn't really that noticable.


Remixed it with less bass and updated the track. Hope it´s a bit better now.
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
author=Azhthar
Remixed it with less bass and updated the track. Hope it´s a bit better now.

Yeah this is much better!
Updated mine as well. I fixed some minor issues on the piano, and the first melody played with the flute felt a bit too rushed in the first version. It's maybe only details, but it was disturbing me. Sometimes I should really wait at least some hours before submitting something. ^^
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
*Wishes for the umpteenth time he had a midi keyboard, as getting the right time signature and rhythm by ear is difficult....*
author=Happy
The mix feels a bit left centered in general, especially the violin sounds it could be closer to center - or at least I personally feel it's a bit distracting when the entire soundscape leans too much to either monitor, considering the banjo is panned slightly left as well...

Damn you East West! Anyway, I fixed the panning and reuploaded the file. It's kind of weird how their VSTs are slightly panned left by default.

author=Ylmir
Sometimes I should really wait at least some hours before submitting something.

That's usually a really good idea. I even wait a whole day before sending off any pieces because it's easier to hear small mistakes after you've taken a longer break.
author=Fulminis-ictus
Damn you East West! Anyway, I fixed the panning and reuploaded the file. It's kind of weird how their VSTs are slightly panned left by default.
For Symphonic Orchestra, I know the instruments are panned like they "should" be in a "real" orchestra (at least on the Stage mics) because of the way they are recorded. This practice is not exclusive to EastWest, a lot of orchestral libraries are recorded this way (same with CineSymphony Lite, for example). Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't, but if you want to pan your instruments differently, you can still swap your stereo channels (left becomes right and right becomes left), or just play with the panning knob.

author=Fulminis-ictus
That's usually a really good idea. I even wait a whole day before sending off any pieces because it's easier to hear small mistakes after you've taken a longer break.
That's what I usually do as well. Usually. xD
Well, actually, the last time I did that, I "waited" for two weeks because I was always finding something else to change each time I listened to it. And since the deadline was quite close for this one, I preferred to submit it directly, even if it meant reuploading another version later. ^^
Hello everyone, I'm new to this website and I was wondering where I upload my file on this forum to share? I was going to share it through my soundcloud but it seems that everyone's links come from the rpgmaker content site itself.
nhubi
Liberté, égalité, fraternité
11099
FirahFabe, go to your user name in the navigation bar at the top of this page (in fact on every page) and access the drop down menu, the last but one says 'locker'. Click on it and it'll open your file storage on the site, you can upload your file there and then link it back here.
Here is my first submission: A Blissful Step

And thank you nhubi.
I'm excited to read the feedback. :)
nhubi
Liberté, égalité, fraternité
11099
No problem at all, but what you should do is join the event. Go to the section above all the team names where it says registration and give your team a name and hit the sign up button. Then you can submit that theme as a submission to the event and it'll be linked at the top with all the others and show on every page of the comments rather than run the risk of it being missed as the pages roll over.