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A jam submission

The Deer in the Moon: A Conceptual RPG SoundtrackView project page

Written for Lone Rabbit's OST Composing Jam #2
Submitted by Ian Martyn (@IanMartynMusic) — 15 hours, 59 minutes before the deadline
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The Deer in the Moon: A Conceptual RPG Soundtrack's itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Correlation to theme#223.7223.722
Composition#293.6113.611
Creativity#303.5563.556
Overall#393.5003.500
Impression#423.3893.389
Quality#523.2223.222

Ranked from 18 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

Description
This is a soundtrack that I wrote for a hypothetical game for Lone Rabbit's OST Composing Jam #2. As someone who will always be fond of 1990s JRPGs, I feel like those are the soundtracks to which I turned for inspiration for this project. I was particularly inspired by the music of Kenji Ito (Romancing SaGa) and Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy), and I tried to incorporate their styles while giving it my own touch.

The story here revolves around a magical deer in the moon, revered as a god by the people on the planet. Once a year, the deer comes down to the planet, and it is considered an auspicious sign to see the deer on this day. However, is slowly being drained of its life force. Four heroes suspect that the deer is to blame. By acquiring the power of starfall and subsequently visiting various locations, they ultimately make their way to the moon to defeat the deer, restoring the balance to their planet.

#OSTCompJam

Theme

Picture theme

How does it fit the theme?
The story of the conceptual RPG is that the deer appears once per year on the planet, but is secretly sucking the planet dry of its resources. The heroes must journey to the moon in order to defeat the deer so that their planet does not become a dry husk.

Link to streaming services
https://ianmartyn.bandcamp.com/album/the-deer-in-the-moon-a-conceptual-rpg-soundtrack

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Comments

Submitted

The instruments used are nothing new, but they're handled well. I hear a lot of what appears to be modal composition, chromatic flourishes, and very clean harmonies over otherwise dark changes. While some more diversity may be desirable with regards to percussion, dynamics, and key changes, nonetheless the soundtrack sounds like a recognizable homage to the classics in your chosen genre. I gave it Four Stars in all the Categories. There's a lot of potential here, but I fear that it just barely falls short of those "inspired risks" that would make it unforgettable, less like an imitation and more like its own style. Of course, the guitar is always the spot-on, distinctive feature wherever it arises, and I can tell what each track is for the moment that I hear it.


[({R.G.||S.M.G.)}]

Submitted

I must add that the timpani runs simply don't work in your software, unfortunately. I would advise incorporating some variation into the velocities and amplitude in general, so that they sound more like live instruments than a motor. That's just my most honest assessment. The premise was legitimate, despite the execution.


[({R.G.)}]

Submitted

Nice soundtrack, sounds professional. Good job!

Submitted

This is amazing! A Whole soundtrack! Town themes were really on point. Maybe Fight! should be a little more intense. I've enjoyed the little album!

Submitted

I think you nailed the Jrpg vibe ! definitely ! Good work !

Submitted

Wow! You have put a lot of work into these tracks. Some really great music here. Nice work!

Submitted

wow, i love the jrpg vibes, there's some good musical ideas in here, and it definitely seems like a lot of work went into this. it felt like there was something missing though... some tracks seemed to lack impact that wanted to be feeling based on the musical material. im thinking maybe tasteful dynamics or tempo changes could do the trick? anyway, great work!

Submitted

These are some serious JRPG vibes and I am here for it! I'm definitely loving the Final Fantasy and Octopath Traveler sounds in here, it's great. Some of my favorite tracks were The Journey Begins and Our Town (I love a good guitar and banjo 6/8 sound). Dark Forest too, with that galant/baroque waltz sound. I wish the sheet music folder were as organized as the mp3 folder, though! The Mp3's are organized and ordered and the sheet music, with that many pieces, is not fun to hastily search through and find a similar name (sometimes the names don't perfectly match). That's an organization thing, it's nothing musical. 

The only musical constructive criticism I have to offer is this: make sure not to copy+paste your melodies, at the very least. Harmonies you can sometimes get away with, but melodies you cannot. You need to at least change the second half of a melody the second time you repeat it to keep it interesting. Overall, amazing work! 

Submitted

Dude! That's a busload of work. Hats off to you. I think "Deep in the cave" is my favourite, but other pieces also have these moments that make you reach for your controller :D  

Good stuff.

Submitted

Nice job ! It definitely has some Nobuo Uematsu vibe and that sounds great

Submitted

This is a great take on the theme! The soundtrack itself also has great ambiance.