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

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the late reply, things have been fairly hectic these days. Thanks for your feedback on my tune, I really appreciate it.

Anyway, I just wanted to give my star to Ylmir's track, it's absolutely cool. After listening to the first two chords I thought "hmmm that sounds pretty sad and melancholic". But I was wrong, and that's what makes this tune very happy. It's all about the calmness, the simple fact of being deeply aware of your surroundings. It reminded me of those days when you just sit back for a while and tell yourself that you've accomplished something meaningful, and you're happy about it. A very relaxing track :).

My
goes to Ylmir's Home.
nhubi
Liberté, égalité, fraternité
11099
We're allowed to give more than one star right? Because I do have to award another one to Ylmir's Home as well. It's not immediately apparent that it meets the theme of light of heart when it first opens, but as it builds it's obvious that the lightness isn't so much of the jolly dancing variety but more of the feeling when a burden has been lifted from your heart. When the lightness is a counterpoint to what has preceded it. This is an epilogue tune, a piece that encapsulates the title and the theme, a feeling of coming home after the journey is finally done. I had an immediate image of Sam Gamgee returning from the Grey Havens to Rose and Elanor, that sense that whilst the story will go ever on, this chapter is closed and all is as it should be. It's a beautiful lilting piece.

So, a well deserved

10
Wow, thanks a lot everyone ! Actually, all of you are quite right with the intro being melancholic - I composed so many times for dark/sad situations in various projects I've worked on that I sometimes have issues to do something different, although in this case this nostalgia works well with the feeling the track conveys.

author=TungerManU
Not that I think it's necessarily the best one (although the instruments and mixing are very good), but it's very emotional, nostalgic even, and the kind of music I personally love.
Actually, having good instruments really helps a lot. When you have realistic instruments on which you can have dynamic layers, round robins, true legato and vibrato, it really helps to sound natural, and to emulate the feelings a musician can put in his instrument. Sure, I don't think it'll ever completely replace real instruments (or at least I hope it will never happen), but it makes quite a difference compared to the basic MIDI GM sounds.

There is a little negative point though in having high-quality instruments and using them for a music destined to be used in a RPG Maker game. If you forget the game's support, you might end up with something contrasting so much with the game that even if it sounds good, you will have a feeling of incoherence. This is especially true on action-based cues.

author=nhubi
I had an immediate image of Sam Gamgee returning from the Grey Havens to Rose and Elanor, that sense that whilst the story will go ever on, this chapter is closed and all is as it should be. It's a beautiful lilting piece.
Thanks ! Your reference actually made me smile, because I remember the first melody I ever played with this flute (the Shire Whistle from Embertone) was the Hobbit's theme from LOTR. It has almost exactly the same sound, and to express something as familiar as what I wanted to share here, it was just perfect. And actually, I love this instrument, so I HAD to use it here. ^^

It makes me think that if I could give a little tip based on my submission to everyone, it would be to think about your instrumentation and your sounds. It can seem obvious, but sometimes, the way you do it can really make a difference.
For example, I wanted this « familiar » sound, this is why I used this flute, but also the acoustic guitar (had to look around for a good freebie for this one, so if your host software can load VSTs, you may want to take a look to Independence Free), the solo violin, and the cello playing the pizzicati notes from 1:22 until the end.
Oh, and the music box-like sound in the intro is actually three instruments layered : A glockenspiel, a music box (for a sound a bit reminiscent of childhood), and a little instrument from Spitfire Labs called "Bike Bells", which gave some more brightness and character to the melody as well as adding to this childhood feel. It's maybe not exactly your typical orchestra, but what's the point in doing computer-assisted music if you can't cheat ? :p

I don't know if this advice will help anyone, but I hope so ! :)

Oh, and sorry for not giving feedback on anything, didn't had much time lately, and actually, I'm not really great at constructive criticism, especially on the composition part. I guess this is the backlash of being an autodidact, and a veteran procrastinator when it comes to studying musical theory. xD
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
augh need to fish a track.
Augh! Why did I have to find this so late? I've got an idea, but I can't get a fully fleshed-out composition in time. I wonder if I should submit a bare-bones version anyway?
While doing a last-minute production would improve my ability to work in a short timespan, I don't think that making a sub-par work in the process is the best idea, either.
Augh, since light-hearted music is my favorite kind of music I planned to submit at least a couple of tracks and give comments to all the submitted work! Hope I can catch up soon!
Well, I've turned in a rather unmixed version of my submission. I'm still working on fleshing out parts, but I think that the main inflection comes across well in the version I've submitted. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to get a more complete version submitted by the deadline, but we'll see.


I haven't listened to many submissions yet, but from I have heard I see that I took a very different approach to "lighthearted" by composing a battle theme or similarly paced theme, while still trying to feel "lighthearted". I suppose the ridiculous idea of a lighthearted boss theme came from Jake Kaufman (virt), who has composed many video game soundtracks, including that of Shovel Knight and the Shantae series.
Here's my second submission: "Exuberant"

This one is 8-bit theme and I hope to make more of these. I think it ended up being little strange and incoherent especially at the end but I hope it would pass in a light-hearted game although I have no idea in which part of game this could be used.

It's number 3 even though it's the second I'm submitting because I was working on number 2 but I'm out of inspiration and time to finish it so I'm going to submit in this first chapter only two pieces instead of three.
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
I was really stuck since I had trouble turning my tunes into notation, but was suddenly inspired- what's more light-hearted than a sudden musical number? If you don't mind I'll submit a vocal track,and may do the same for other sections as well; after all, every tale needs a bard to tell it. *Begins whipping up lyrics*
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
I'm probably going to submit my entries a hour before deadline, seeing I left a lot of the mixing to the last moments... I am not sure what time RMN is set on, though, so I hope that I understand it right the deadline is in 14 hours or so.

Then I will also give feedback to all entries that I haven't so far!
author=Happy
I'm probably going to submit my entries a hour before deadline, seeing I left a lot of the mixing to the last moments...

Yaaay! I've done it! Got my submission ready! :D Here it is.
HappyVillage!

Oh and my
goes to... Dysergy's Forest_Strolls_1. Well deserved in my opinion! :)
When I listen to this track, I can imagine a small village with it's inhabitants and it does exactly what has been asked for. It puts a smile on my face. :) At first I thought a faster track might fit the theme more, but Dysergy composed Forest_Strolls so nicely, it simply works for me. I love the rhythm and the playful tunes that give you this relaxation... :D
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
I have good tunes but don't know how to put them on the page... it's a struggle. But here's something. I think it sounds kind of like little fairies...
Elf Steps.
(Also Mp3 version available.)
Hey everyone~!

Hilariously enough, I just found out about this contest today through Gamejolt and decided to upload something for it. Therefore Digging all the songs I've heard so far!

But yeah, for someone who's used to making upbeat boss music, I think I was able to get 'happy' down. I think = u =;;;

Glad to have made it JUST in the nick of time!
oops, forgot to put the track I submitted yesterday!
http://rpgmaker.net/content/events/sos/files/speakhigh.ogg

feedback coming soon!
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
edit: adding songs in a bit

test
author=Happy
edit: adding songs in a bit


Gogogo Happy. :) Wanna listen to that!
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
Woke up with another track in my head but no time to do it. Guess I'll save it for when we do battle tracks; those can be light-hearted or jazzy too! (For example under the right circumstances Leibedik un Freilach could well work as a battle theme!)
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
There, submitted my Nobuo / Tenpei Sato influenced entry... The volumes are still a bit mess, so I have to arrange a bit and make an updated mix later.

edit: Also added a last minute mix of the character creation theme. X_x
CashmereCat
Self-proclaimed Puzzle Snob
11638
Happy - Oh_Poor_Me_REMASTERED.wav
The remaster is certainly better. The beginning is very strange, because the VST has a very short release and it's uncanny. But as the instruments continue to be added, they add to a sort of strange delirious cacophonous wonder. It's very interesting. The string well at 1:28 is a highlight. Some melodies stray off the path, in my opinion, such as the string riff at 1:44. But certainly with the new mixing it fares a lot better.


Happy - Character_Creation_REMASTERED.wav
The remaster sounds much better. The bells are more delicate, they present a better dynamic. I could not understand the string riff by itself around the 0:40-1:00 mark. 1:11 I like this riff in particular because it is full of mystery vibes. Again, the second time the string riff comes in I don't follow how the melody meshes. Otherwise, a fine and pensive song.


TungerManU - Idiots_Theme_v4.wav
Very groovy, very nice notes going on. Reminds me of music used in unity's Last Minute Gift. Good for an upbeat, happy colourful game. 0:46 I like this part where you've made the electric guitar mix nicely. There are some points where I feel things like the release on the kick creates a kind of strange "clicking" sound that is barely audible but it's there, and it irks me a bit. I have trouble eliminating that from a kick sample too. But aside from that, this is well-composed.


mjshi - air_v3
I can't really follow the melody throughout, because at some points the rhythms of the melodies cross over and I don't really know which one to follow. That's why things like rhythm and momentum are important when considering the motion of a song.


Cap_H - HappyCastle.ogg
A very 8-bit sounding song. I feel like the melody of the synth in the left ear can be composed better so it makes a more pleasing melody. But overall I'm kind of a fan of the direction you chose to go with this. It's very distorted, much like some of your other output. I think some of the "adlib" sound effects that happen throughout - that is, the sound that plays at the exact beginning of this track - are overdone, so that it becomes annoying, but generally there is enough progression in this song so it doesn't become disinteresting. I think it would become a little grating if this were to loop, so I would consider turning some of the grating elements down a little bit and providing a more smooth flow.


Fulminis-ictus - Banjo_Utopia.ogg
Bluegrassy. I do like the unique spin you have on this concept. The clap sounds a bit thin. The violin-ish riff is a little too busy and messy for me, and it feels like it's in a crowded hall in my left ear. For the rest of the way, the bluegrass arps are a bit over-the-top, they could be mixed to be less grating. It loops at the end, which is a plus.


Vanillatogether & ResidentEcruteak - 01_Village_of_Tranquility_v2.wav
The bass at the beginning is kind of bare and a little too huge on the low-mid frequencies. The shaker, in comparison, is too intense when introduced. When 0:30 happens, the pieces fall into place and it's more bearable. I think the bassline needs some editing to provide a bit more cohesion. Because some of the melodies are too busy, when it just sounds like something too busy such as having two busy melodies at the same time. Especially when the 1:15 violin comes in it's fairly harsh.


Vanillatogether & ResidentEcruteak - 03_Exuberant_v3.wav
This seems to have a 3/4 signature. I like the composition and style of this. It's distinctly old school. The snare is decidedly retro, but then again a lot of the synths could be improved by EQ'ing if this isn't an actual 8-bit song that doesn't have EQ possible or anything. But even still, there are ways I believe to reduce the timbre of certain instruments such as the lead. Nevertheless, I prefer this to Village of Tranquility.


Someoneman - Emotion.ogg
This starts off quite emotional. Some of the melodies are quite random and feel just a *little* out of place especially in the first 10 seconds, but at the 15 second point, there is something resembling a motif that is very memorable. 0:34 is a very neat swell in the emotional side of the spectrum. It feels like it almost delivers on something truly transcendent, gets close but does not quite reach it. I believe there needs to be a moment of "breakthrough" in the song. Like a true "note" of triumph. But, essentially, this is a well-composed piece and I quite enjoyed it. I wouldn't mind it being on repeat during a game sequence or cutscene.


Someoneman - Emotion2.ogg
This sounds very similar to the first except shorter so I'll assume it's the same.


TheRexion - the_fellow_with_the_hat.ogg
There's a very wide palette of sounds in this. I really like the composition in this one. The bells are well-mixed, they're lurking in the background. It's a very reflective soundscape. 0:28 is a good moment of entry, provides a wonderful adventurous spirit amalgamated with modern electronic influences. There is a moving moment at 1:26 when the instrument I cannot name but can only describe as a kind of glockenspeil or cowbell, or a mixture of both is played. One thing I can say is that perhaps a change of chords at a certain point may provide some break in the progression, although this is not absolutely required. Well done.


BurningTyger - Elf_steps.ogg
Nice sounds used, I like how they're mixed, although the composition is not making sense to me right now. There's a very interesting sound played at 0:18 which captures the attention. This certainly is a good master of the mood it is trying to portray, but the repeated notes often provide a sense of unwarranted syntheticism to an otherwise delicate riff. However, it at least has a unique vision.


Lyrahel - HappyVillage.ogg
Very unique concept, with an interesting drum beat being the base for some contemplative string chords. Panning of the tom-like drums is used to convey a sense of whimsy. There are many plucks and melodies but they cohere to a certain momentum, which causes none of them to feel particularly out of place or busy. Has an exotic feel. Well-mixed instruments, even if the panning can get a little disorienting to the headphone user. Good job.


Dysergy - Forest_strolls_1.ogg
A very nice mixing of the flute instrument. Well-timed melody. The timing is very swingy. Sometimes the flutes overwhelm the soundscape and each other, but overall the composition is so pleasing that it does not matter so much. Snare has a lot of reverb on it that makes it seem less in-your-face, but perhaps lacking a little immediacy. However, on the whole it is well-mixed. I enjoyed this track and would not mind hearing it on repeat in-game. Cheers.


Lana42 - speakhigh.ogg
Very well-mixed here. I am extremely impressed by this track. It has a cohesive choice of instruments, and a well-chosen composition. The instruments each have their place in the frequency spectrum. Some chords may be overly mixed on what seems to be the low-mid portion (I am not so sure, I sometimes find it difficult EQ'ing this kind of problem). But the composition is pleasing enough that this is not noticed. Instead the uplifting progression that is presented is welcoming. Good job.


Ylmir - Home_2.ogg
This one blew me away, a very well-mixed and well-composed song that sounds professional-worthy. Each instrument has its place and it provides a very blissful and emotional arc from start to finish. Moments such as the 0:29 build up into a soft flourish at 0:39 make this very listenable territory. I would seek this out outside of the game to listen to, in fact I already have on multiple occasions. Makes me jealous, which is a good sign. I have no complaints. Keep it up. This one gets a favourite from me.


Azhthar - The_Kings_daughter_1.wav
Starts with some horns that sound like you're in a marching band. The high pitched synth is a little too disorienting for me. Then the pitch-bending synth comes in and crowds it up a bit too much. Adding one element at a time. At 0:40 it becomes a full-on composition but I think the elements are a bit too bombastic and don't leave too much of the "space" that a track should have. However, the actual chords and melodies themselves are great. The drums have perhaps too much reverb on them in my opinion, and could be mixed to make the jangling less grating. However, at the 1:30 mark, this part feels mixed well and is more jubilant and more in line with the idea that leaves an impression. In fact, by the point of 2:00 it explores transcendent territory and actually becomes very catchy. I am a much greater fan of the second half of the song than the first, because the first set me up to believe this was a lesser song than it was going to be. I commend you on the second half of the song, which just got better and better as the runtime elapsed.


larrylpope - Unusual_Inhabitants.wav
The drums are host to a large amount of reverb that makes it synthetic-sounding. The main melody feels jarring. However, the percussion patterns in general and the overall theme of the song are admirable. Especially the portion in each set of bars in the loop where the plucked strings create some kind of discordance. The portion from 1:00 is groovy and sets a happy, somewhat mischevious tone. Then from 1:22 on things get better as the song is fleshed out. I think this is really where it picks up. Ends on a finishing note, but I'm wondering if it should loop instead. Otherwise, the latter half is more fleshed out than the first, in my opinion. Good job.


FirahFabe - Fabian_Fabro__A_Blissful_Step.wav
Sounds somewhat 20s with the filter on it. However I think the piano would benefit from having the velocities altered. The rhythm feels a little scatterbrained and not in a way my brain could follow. It needs to be altered in my opinion. Otherwise, the mixing of the strings and the bass strings, etc. each have their own slot in the spectrum and provide a well-mixed, easy listen. The concept is satisfactory. I am not sure if this loops, but if it does then you can correct me. However, it would be nice if it did.


Anorax - Candied_Contenders__simple_mix.wav

An exceptional start, and a brilliant concept for a happy-go-lucky carnival-themed funride. This has a lot of attitude about it. The composition oozes of brilliance. The key change at 0:32 is simply inspired. It is playful, subversive, and very well-thought-out. I am in awe. This would be a great addition to any playful, happy, adventurous scene. I thoroughly recommend this, and it is probably one of the best adherences to the original theme that I have experienced. Simply brilliant. This gets a favourite from me.


blinktjp - Ogarths_Morning.mp3
Starts off with a strong impression. Unfortunately, the synth here is quite grating, and the delay is a little obvious. The little riffs that come in every so often, about at the 0:23 mark are very distracting and do not add to the overall feel of the song. I would consider nixing them. 0:50 The chords here add more to the beat. But unfortunately, with the style of only introducing one element at a time, you're leaving this crucial part of your composition to a very late stage in the game. I'd recommend bringing this in earlier, and leaving the rest of the time to progress into different stages.


dreamingghost - Home_Town_Jaunt.wav
Interesting usage of vocal oohs. I do not like the usage of the snare, which sounds suspiciously like the FL default. However, the overall composition is competent. The arpeggios are very interesting from the 0:30 point onwards. Then the chords get really interesting and weird, and the song starts to take very many different progression points. What's nice about each point is that it feels like a very new stage in the progression. It is a little lengthy. Aside from that, it is a competent song and I wouldn't mind listening to it a few times during a stage.
Happy
Devil's in the details
5367
Well it seems I managed to butcher the mix before submitting my pieces.

Edit: updated the submissions with better mixes.