Music Team

Setting: Dark exploration
Low Quality Streaming:
http://soundcloud.com/rpthehotrod/ambienc
High Quality File:
http://www.filedropper.com/test10a

and just lil trivia, that's actually my voice at the end. XD

HG Here with some new music. Here is what I came up with this week. I know I'm 1 hour late when I said I would post what I had composed by the 12th, but it's here!

MAIN THEME OF THRIVE
Youtube link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzORDb5U5Bc

The main menu picture is one I created. I compose with an image in mind. The theme's image was the planet and sun image on the background of the forum. It's also what I imagined to be the main menu music, and or cinematic trailer music if we decide to create one. The theme has been extended and has a faster variation to it.

SPACE AMBIANCE
Megaupload link
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=BO0W2S7B

This track was created on a spur! As many people on the forum have requested, the tracks beside the main theme will have a more ambient approach. This is a short space - exploration theme I whipped up in about an hour. Short and sweet yes, but it does have a small hint at some of the theme composed above.

The idea behind this theme was exploring space. Looking for something that we aren't even sure exists. Imagine hearing the roar of rocket engines in the background, the low hum, and throw this composition on top. We've got ourselves a space ambiance feel.

I like this music. Especially the theme. (and menu(e?) image) (Seriously, what's the difference between menu and menue?)

hongchong7 wrote:

imagine hearing the roar of rocket engines in the background, the low hum

Space is a vacuum, you shouldn't really be able to hear the engines.... Except in org mode inside the ship. It'd work great there. Goood music.

And I noticed we don't seem to have much, if any, city stage music. I'm setting a challenge, the person to make the best music for city stage wins...

This guy:

Hey UTeen, THANKS!

I'll be working on the City Stage music now. I feel really good about the theme, but I know we're gonna need to do some more work with it, some minor tweaks here and there. And I know that RP is going to resample it with some better strings, synths, ect when he gets his equipment in.

Now here's what I'm looking at in a city landscape.
First thing that comes to mind is the cars, the buildings, and the ambient sounds like cars honking, construction going on, people user created organisms walking around, ect. All of these sounds can be SFX, but as for the music in the background, would it be upbeat? Slow? Or would it be dynamic to the city, as in a goofy Dr. Seuss-esque city would have a more whimsical feel to the city, as a industrial city would have more of a back-beat and industrial approach? A war-economy driven city may have trumpet reveille happening in the background followed by snare drum rolls, flute trills, ect.

Is this the image we're looking at? Whenever I sink my teeth into a composition, It's always nice to have some sort of image, especially when making video game music, since players are more likely to listen with their eyes than their ears.

I'll keep my eyes posted to the City Stage threads and see what I can find. I'll also look into the concept art. Thanks for my next project UTeen. Wiki will be updated today.

The Uteen wrote:

I like this music. Especially the theme. (and menu(e?) image) (Seriously, what's the difference between menu and menue?)

hongchong7 wrote:

imagine hearing the roar of rocket engines in the background, the low hum

Space is a vacuum, you shouldn't really be able to hear the engines.... Except in org mode inside the ship. It'd work great there. Goood music.

And I noticed we don't seem to have much, if any, city stage music. I'm setting a challenge, the person to make the best music for city stage wins...

This guy:

Would my ambiance be considered something you'd think would fit or is it too dark sounding?

RpTheHotrod wrote:

Would my ambiance be considered something you'd think would fit or is it too dark sounding?

Like we discussed earlier, there's too much going on in there. There will be plenty of action on stage for players to make their own soundtrack to. It's also really dark, almost too dark. We could consider it to be a theme for a worm hole, or nova possibly? Otherwise, I can't really see it work in the game as of now.

Perhaps you could tweak it? Take out some of those bass beeps and more?

I liked both of the tracks RpTheHotrod the dark ambiance one should last a little longer. I think Ambiance music should have slow movement, if any movement.

Onto Hongchong7's theme. I thought it was very good perhaps sad but very strong.
Although I was hoping after the bells solo you would break into a final strong movement but I was upset when I didn't hear it. The lasting impact is important! The instruments sounded very good but I probably can guess that you used a string sample. It might be a good Idea to either get a live recording for the strings or a better sample. But overall it sounds 80-90 percent close to perfect.

RpTheHotrod: Dark Ambience was alright. Good work there, but nothing to write home about.

hongchong7: Ambience is good. Not much else to say. Now, about the theme: I love the variations, but I'd love to hear them earlier and more often. This song is slowly getting better. Keep working, and maybe try redoing it with different insturments. You never know how much they can change the feel, often for the better (If only as an experiment).

Both of you: I know how hard this is, but no matter how fitting, never put ambient noises into music intended for background music. It may turn the entire thing into a masterpeice, but it will still confuse a player.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WHUPvdpyPY&feature=related

I hadn't found this before. Who did it? I actually really like it. It should be expanded upon.

Also, background music can still have a tune. In some cases, where you are doing something that the game actually can recognize as something the player it trying to do (Fighting, digging, climbing, swinging through trees, maybe building) than it'd be suiting to add a tune there.

Tenebrarum wrote:

RpTheHotrod: Dark Ambience was alright. Good work there, but nothing to write home about.

hongchong7: Ambience is good. Not much else to say. Now, about the theme: I love the variations, but I'd love to hear them earlier and more often. This song is slowly getting better. Keep working, and maybe try redoing it with different insturments. You never know how much they can change the feel, often for the better (If only as an experiment).

Both of you: I know how hard this is, but no matter how fitting, never put ambient noises into music intended for background music. It may turn the entire thing into a masterpeice, but it will still confuse a player.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WHUPvdpyPY&feature=related

I hadn't found this before. Who did it? I actually really like it. It should be expanded upon.

Also, background music can still have a tune. In some cases, where you are doing something that the game actually can recognize as something the player it trying to do (Fighting, digging, climbing, swinging through trees, maybe building) than it'd be suiting to add a tune there.

That link actually sounds strangely familiar. I must have run across it before on a random youtube or something.

ThatGuy wrote:

I liked both of the tracks RpTheHotrod the dark ambiance one should last a little longer. I think Ambiance music should have slow movement, if any movement.

Onto Hongchong7's theme. I thought it was very good perhaps sad but very strong.
Although I was hoping after the bells solo you would break into a final strong movement but I was upset when I didn't hear it. The lasting impact is important! The instruments sounded very good but I probably can guess that you used a string sample. It might be a good Idea to either get a live recording for the strings or a better sample. But overall it sounds 80-90 percent close to perfect.

We're planning on resolving the strings pretty soon. Still in the foundational stage

RpTheHotrod wrote:

We're planning on resolving the strings pretty soon. Still in the foundational stage

QFT

No reply on the actual content of my post?

Tenebrarum wrote:

No reply on the actual content of my post?

We're actually deeply taking it in The game isn't the only thing evolving. Things will change based on feedback.

I personally like the main theme music from Hongchong. However, i do have my criticisms

I think the song should be shifted a couple bars forward from about 0:7. The piano comes in waaay to early. And leaves too quickly at that.

and stretch out the percussion section that starts at about 1:08 and ends at 1:38.

All of this is for a great reason:

Game theory. :3..

A menu song should give the user enough time to browse through every menu item without the song restarting.

A great way to do this, actually, is to have an intro, (such as the first 1:08 of the song greatly shortened) and then cutting the song from there into a separate section that can be looped (say 1:08 to 2:20 slightly rearranged)

And then leave the full version of the song for the actual opening Sequences after you click new game.

This also has the great effect of the player going "Oh snap, It's not just the main menu music replayed, its got extra bits on it!"


also i don't like the string note at 2:19.5. I think the piano solo should remain clean

Rpthehotrod:

The bit-rate is horrible. Please encode to at least 240kb/s if not 320kb/s for the love of god.. [Yes I'm an Audiophile. My car speaker system is worth more than my car..]

Other than that, The cave exploration music is good, but needs to have looping taken into account. some if not all of it needs to be repeatable, without interruption.

The synthesizer that gives a constant hum, can it be looped very well? And if not, how difficult would it be to copy it's settings to a software synthesizer? is everything mapped out, or does it come from a keyboard?

The reason i ask, is that if it needs to be playing constantly and it can't be looped, we'll have to have the game produce the sound itself and have it overlay the rest of the track (the various kicks and the voice etc.)

hongchong7 wrote:

There will be plenty of action on stage for players to make their own soundtrack to. It's also really dark, almost too dark.

Wait, what?

Bashinerox wrote:

Rpthehotrod:

The bit-rate is horrible. Please encode to at least 240kb/s if not 320kb/s for the love of god.. [Yes I'm an Audiophile. My car speaker system is worth more than my car..]

Other than that, The cave exploration music is good, but needs to have looping taken into account. some if not all of it needs to be repeatable, without interruption.

The synthesizer that gives a constant hum, can it be looped very well? And if not, how difficult would it be to copy it's settings to a software synthesizer? is everything mapped out, or does it come from a keyboard?

The reason i ask, is that if it needs to be playing constantly and it can't be looped, we'll have to have the game produce the sound itself and have it overlay the rest of the track (the various kicks and the voice etc.)

I'll take a look at the settings I have the synth set to.

Also...I'm deathly afraid to click that spoiler of yours...

RpTheHotrod wrote:

Also...I'm deathly afraid to click that spoiler of yours...

Muahahaha :3

Bash, is this any better for bit? If not, I'll tweak it further.

http://www.filedropper.com/test10b


btw...that hum in the background I have looping every few seconds, btw. I'll look into the settings though.

Bashinerox wrote:

I personally like the main theme music from Hongchong. However, i do have my criticisms

I think the song should be shifted a couple bars forward from about 0:7. The piano comes in waaay to early. And leaves too quickly at that.

and stretch out the percussion section that starts at about 1:08 and ends at 1:38.

All of this is for a great reason:

Game theory. :3..

A menu song should give the user enough time to browse through every menu item without the song restarting.

A great way to do this, actually, is to have an intro, (such as the first 1:08 of the song greatly shortened) and then cutting the song from there into a separate section that can be looped (say 1:08 to 2:20 slightly rearranged)

And then leave the full version of the song for the actual opening Sequences after you click new game.

This also has the great effect of the player going "Oh snap, It's not just the main menu music replayed, its got extra bits on it!"


also i don't like the string note at 2:19.5. I think the piano solo should remain clean

Hey Bash, thanks for your feedback.

If you want to make the music dynamic like you're saying (ex. Clicking New Game will trigger more instruments to come in), what do I need to do to make that happen? Do I need to make separate sound files, or do I need to make one really long one with extensions of each section? Let me know when you have a chance. Thanks!

hongchong7 wrote:

Bashinerox wrote:

I personally like the main theme music from Hongchong. However, i do have my criticisms

I think the song should be shifted a couple bars forward from about 0:7. The piano comes in waaay to early. And leaves too quickly at that.

and stretch out the percussion section that starts at about 1:08 and ends at 1:38.

All of this is for a great reason:

Game theory. :3..

A menu song should give the user enough time to browse through every menu item without the song restarting.

A great way to do this, actually, is to have an intro, (such as the first 1:08 of the song greatly shortened) and then cutting the song from there into a separate section that can be looped (say 1:08 to 2:20 slightly rearranged)

And then leave the full version of the song for the actual opening Sequences after you click new game.

This also has the great effect of the player going "Oh snap, It's not just the main menu music replayed, its got extra bits on it!"


also i don't like the string note at 2:19.5. I think the piano solo should remain clean

Hey Bash, thanks for your feedback.

If you want to make the music dynamic like you're saying (ex. Clicking New Game will trigger more instruments to come in), what do I need to do to make that happen? Do I need to make separate sound files, or do I need to make one really long one with extensions of each section? Let me know when you have a chance. Thanks!

That would be cool, yes, but what i actually meant was:

in the main menu you have an intro, and then a looping section


[---intro---][---loop---]

with the intro being one sound file and "loop" looped forever, i suggested maybe 1:08 to 2:20, but maybe rearranged with sections cut or made longer to accommodate the fact that it is looping.

however when you click new game and the cinematic introduction begins, the song restarts, but not in "loop mode", essentially playing the full song.

[---intro---][---what was looped in the main menu, but played only once---][---remainder of song---]

which would essentially be the equivalent of what you have now.

If we wanted to make dynamic music, it would be separate time-aligned sounds

Tenebrarum wrote:

RpTheHotrod: Dark Ambience was alright. Good work there, but nothing to write home about.

hongchong7: Ambience is good. Not much else to say. Now, about the theme: I love the variations, but I'd love to hear them earlier and more often. This song is slowly getting better. Keep working, and maybe try redoing it with different insturments. You never know how much they can change the feel, often for the better (If only as an experiment).

Both of you: I know how hard this is, but no matter how fitting, never put ambient noises into music intended for background music. It may turn the entire thing into a masterpeice, but it will still confuse a player.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WHUPvdpyPY&feature=related

I hadn't found this before. Who did it? I actually really like it. It should be expanded upon.

Also, background music can still have a tune. In some cases, where you are doing something that the game actually can recognize as something the player it trying to do (Fighting, digging, climbing, swinging through trees, maybe building) than it'd be suiting to add a tune there.

Yeah, who made that?

Quote :

MAIN THEME OF THRIVE
Youtube link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzORDb5U5Bc

The main menu picture is one I created. I compose with an image in mind. The theme's image was the planet and sun image on the background of the forum. It's also what I imagined to be the main menu music, and or cinematic trailer music if we decide to create one. The theme has been extended and has a faster variation to it.

I really like the variations, except for the drumbeat in the middle.

Hey all!

I know I disappeared off the face of the Earth for around 3 weeks. I have been hacking and slashing a new theme for Thrive. I have received mostly positive feedback from the community and Mod-DB on the theme, so with some minor changes and cuts, the melody, harmony, and instruments will stay the same. Until I get a full, "YES! THIS WILL BE OUR AWESOME THEME MUSIC!" Approach from all the Team Leaders, I will not create a score for final sampling that RP will engineer. RP has the top of the line production materials that I don't have, so to get the best quality of sound, it will be in RP's hands. I will ensure that the essence of the audio tracks are kept, and nothing will be taken out, i.e - Don't insult the composer :-D Not that I'm a vengeful spiteful angry bitter person.

I've created a 1:47 loop of the menu music as spoken of by Bashinerox. Here is a Mega Upload link to the tune.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=4XVER10D

Go ahead and comment. I understand it is EXTREMELY rough, as I'm not really super happy with it, but I'm hitting a wall with it and trying to find the perfect balance and blend of sounds for the theme. As tiresome as this process is, I really am learning a lot about writing music for games and I do appreciate all the support and help of those on this forum. Enjoy it!

-Ben

I like your theme, ben, it gives me the ideas of solemnity and omnipotence!

hongchong7 wrote:

Hey all!

I know I disappeared off the face of the Earth for around 3 weeks. I have been hacking and slashing a new theme for Thrive. I have received mostly positive feedback from the community and Mod-DB on the theme, so with some minor changes and cuts, the melody, harmony, and instruments will stay the same. Until I get a full, "YES! THIS WILL BE OUR AWESOME THEME MUSIC!" Approach from all the Team Leaders, I will not create a score for final sampling that RP will engineer. RP has the top of the line production materials that I don't have, so to get the best quality of sound, it will be in RP's hands. I will ensure that the essence of the audio tracks are kept, and nothing will be taken out, i.e - Don't insult the composer :-D Not that I'm a vengeful spiteful angry bitter person.

I've created a 1:47 loop of the menu music as spoken of by Bashinerox. Here is a Mega Upload link to the tune.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=4XVER10D

Go ahead and comment. I understand it is EXTREMELY rough, as I'm not really super happy with it, but I'm hitting a wall with it and trying to find the perfect balance and blend of sounds for the theme. As tiresome as this process is, I really am learning a lot about writing music for games and I do appreciate all the support and help of those on this forum. Enjoy it!

-Ben

Ben, is there any chance you could upload to a site such as soundcloud? Megaupload has a limit of how many downloads a day. Sorry for the lack of activity on my part, as well. Christmas holidays and new years is a busy time for me, and also I'm learning/studying this new material. There's so much o-o.