Play soundtrack
the day I dove off the pier's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Storytelling | #186 | 2.949 | 3.118 |
| Creativity | #198 | 3.060 | 3.235 |
| Composition | #207 | 3.005 | 3.176 |
| Overall | #221 | 2.893 | 3.059 |
| Quality | #240 | 2.726 | 2.882 |
| Impression | #240 | 2.726 | 2.882 |
Ranked from 17 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
I’d say it’s the first one is lofi, but i don’t know how to categorize the second one.
The game is based of this idea i have where a someone dives off a pier one summer night and is introduced to a magnificent underwater world. His goal is to return back to the surface before sunrise, or else he’ll be stuck underwater forever.
The first soundtrack is meant to be the end of my game, where credits roll (whether or not you return is a surprise ;)). It’s meant to be calm, like the worst part is over and put you at ease after your long adventure.
the second one is a looping track that plays in the capital of the underwater world: The Great City of Glass! It’s a very shimmery soundtrack that feels bubbly and adventurous, which fits the personality of its residents.
Each track was mainly approached through the lens of storytelling. There was a vague emotion i wanted to convey, then i just made something to match the intended result of the track. As for the DAW, i used FL mobile for everything. Start to finish.
Not much to add onto that, but i will say that compositionally, it was modeled after Toby Fox’s use of harmonic tools.
Message from the artist
Pls like it pretty pls :D
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
The character dives off of the pier on a summer night
Number of tracks2
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any project
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Comments
Just an all around charming minimalist production and I had a lot of fun with it.
Gave you an itch follow, if you like the thing(s) on my page(s), consider doing the same.
Cheers!
--D
Nice compositions! I made some notes so here goes.
Could hear some interesting melodies in horns but they were too quiet, so doing some basic mixing to get the right levels is a good next step. Would be cool to hear some counterpoint between the instruments, there are parts where and instrument plays the same thing as bass where it could play a different idea that "answers" the piano melody. Bass playing chords doesn't usually sound good (unless it's a bass solo, maybe).
I think just let your melodies breathe more! There's some strong ideas, but you need to consider phrasing and pacing to make them their best. A good melody is often easy to sing, and as humans we like things that sound like the voice so leave gaps for "breathing" (I know it's all midi, just trust me it'll make things sound more natural). As I said earlier give your melodies answers! If you have an ascending line that repeats a bunch, maybe every fourth one is descending for example. Or another instrument could play something completely different. At the end of the day, if it sounds good, it is good, just use music theory as a means to experiment.
This all takes practice, trial and error, writing lots, and most importantly, active listening! Make sure you're listening carefully to your favourite soundtracks and thinking about stuff like rhythm, phrasing, harmony etc.
Hope you found any of those thoughts interesting or useful, nice work on the submission!
The first track is super quiet and then I got jumpscared by the second track from having my volume real loud.
I liked the chords in the second track but it could feel a little grating with the instrument choice.
Pretty nice selection of songs, it was very nice to listen to !
Both tracks are well made and the instrumentation, eventhough pretty simple, works nicely with your setting.
Maybe I would have liked this being expanded a bit more upon (with more variations or a third track with a mood that differs a bit) but as it stands it's already pretty solid so great job !
Thanks! I’m still pretty new, so I don’t have a huge repository of instruments I can use yet. I definitely would’ve liked a different drum set for the first song,
There was actually a third track I wanted to add, but I never got past the composing stage. The third track would’ve been a festival-based track that would play in an area I call “Iridescent Beast Lair”
Now that you mention it, I do actually have the link for it somewhere.
Obviously, there isn’t much variance and this is VERY bare bones, but this would give you an idea for how the area would feel like. Definitely would’ve wanted to get this in if possible, but I don’t work that fast yet. I’ll keep working at it though!
cool piano solo in your opening track! i think the bass provides a great amount of harmonic support in its entrance - despite the melody being a repetitive motif, it signifies the chord progression quite well. noticed the nod towards deltarune's sanctuary in there! i do agree with what doozybootz said about mixing, when the brass instrument comes in i can't really hear it and wouldve loved to hear more! (i also have hearing problems so that may be it)
the second track sounds super magical! love the chord progression and how the melodic line mirrors that of the first track with the repetitive motif. i could definitely feel the magical city vibe in your composition here! i wouldve loved to hear more variation in instrumentation, but it's still a beautiful composition and it feels like something i would hear from a much older and retro gaming system wowow
great work! thanks for sharing:D
Thanks! This jam honestly gave me such a hard time. After I exported the first track and uploaded it, I realized I made a mistake with the limited which messed with the master volume. Wish I could’ve made it sound more distinct in the mastering phase, but you live and you learn.
I love repeating my phrases all the time, but honestly? The biggest challenge was establishing it without making it sound repetitive. My main composing style is very much rock and touhou-esqe with emphasis on interval-based harmony. I feel compared to people who know how harmony works, I’m super into stacking and intertwining lines different rhythms and notes to make it feel like there’s always a note being played at least every half (even if that isn’t the case)
If you listen to the second one again, you’ll probably notice that the bass just kinda does its own thing. I’m not sure if this is a quirk I’ll ever change, but I like messing with distances and weird harmonies.
hopefully I get a chance to post here more. I’d love to have more people listen to what I make!
You did a great job. I really enjoyed the second track the most, it fits the description well. The song helped me picture an underwater city too like a glimmering and freeing city surrounded by various sea life.
Thanks! I’m glad you liked it! Truth be told, there was a secret third song I wanted to submit, but I only got as far as composing it. That song would’ve wrapped off the feeling of sea life even more since it was meant to be a festival song with fast paced aggressive rhythm to fit the scene I had in mind, but alas, I couldn’t finish it in time. After I tweak it and give it some additions, I plan on possibly posting it here.
Thanks again for the comment!
Cool! Just finished listening.
I enjoyed the first track, although I think it could benefit from being much louder.
The second track was pretty cool too! I would've enjoyed more variety in the composition and writing, and maybe a bit more on the mixing side.
Thank you for submitting!
estes_
Hey! Thanks for the feedback!
yeah that’s completely fair, I still got a ways to go in terms of mixing (these were my first attempts at it) and writing definitely needs some work. I appreciate the notes and I’ll probably lock in more on them more for the next jam
That being said, I’m happy you liked it! Thanks again, and best of luck going through the submission!
ON