Description
beautiful cover art is a commission by Kettler on tumbr and x!
https://x.com/Eetga110274
https://www.tumblr.com/kettlerr?source=share

the entire text was translated with deepl because english is not my native language, so know that some words and sentences may look strange.

The game's story follows a young man named Saul, who left his hometown due to certain circumstances but is forced to return following the death of his mother, who had left the house to him. Arriving at midnight, Saul enters the old house, where an adventure awaits him.

1. Reverie.
STORY: This is the game’s main theme, which plays during the opening sequence. Consumed by grief, he travels to the place he left behind in hopes of a better life, accompanied only by the moonlight.
GAMEPLAY: This is just an intro, so there’s not really supposed to be any gameplay here, but I like to think it would be cool to hear this track while driving and looking out at the highway, as if the track were playing in the car.
COMPOSITION: Since the protagonist’s reason for returning is far from ideal, I tried to make this theme gloomy and melancholic, using an electric piano and a music box as the main instruments. Later, strings with a heavy dose of reverb come in; for me personally, they evoke a sense of nostalgia or something like that. Later in the soundtrack, the building VHS noise symbolizes the transition into a fantasy world, while the fading noise symbolizes the opposite—the exit from that world. That’s why I decided to include both here; the soundtrack, in a way, briefly summarizes the entire story, immersing you in that world while simultaneously sending you off on a greater journey in the form of the game itself.

2. Ascension.
STORY: Saul pulls over, and his old house comes into view. He spent his entire childhood and youth here, and now he’s back. Upon entering the house, he finds only darkness. Thinking there’s a problem with the electricity, Saul heads up to the generator in the attic, sinking deeper and deeper into the darkness. When he opens the attic door, Saul sees nothing but darkness before passing out.
GAMEPLAY: You simply need to make your way to the attic as everything around you grows darker. The further you go, the more intense the track becomes.
COMPOSITION: At first, I planned to skip this track to save time, but then I realized that my storytelling was already lacking, so I decided to write this quickly and move on—but in the end, I’m happy with the result. My friends said that the bass playing in the background sounds a bit like a ticking clock, which isn’t bad—it’s kind of like a countdown before diving into another world. All in all, the track does a good job of conveying the mounting pressure, and that’s its main purpose.

3. Carnival.
STORY: When Saul wakes up, he finds himself at a vibrant carnival, which greets him with bright red lights. While trying to find his way out, Saul stumbles upon a little jester who gives the protagonist a short tour. Together, they make their way through a variety of attractions, collecting keys that will allow Saul to escape the carnival. After a while, the jester thanks Saul for the time they’ve spent together and, as a token of gratitude, gives him a trinket—which turns out to be the final key. The little jester has no intention of parting ways with the hero forever and doesn’t know how he ended up here; the jester is full of energy and has his whole life ahead of him, so before leaving, he suggests they meet again. Saul nods with a slight smile—even though he can’t promise they’ll reunite—and then leaves the Carnival.
GAMEPLAY: This is the first location in the game, and the gameplay here is rather relaxing—you simply need to play various mini-games, earn points, and save them up to buy keys.
COMPOSITION: It was hard to find any references for this track... The main inspiration is obviously the classic “Entry of the Gladiators” from which I took the chromatic passages and horns; as for the rest, the idea to add an accordion and vibraphone came spontaneously, but I feel like they’ve found their place in the mix. Also I like the percussion here.

4. Castle.
STORY: After leaving the carnival, Saul finds himself in the Castle. The surrounding area looks as if a battle has recently taken place there, but the Castle itself appears untouched. Upon entering, Saul is met by the spirit of a knight. The knight guides the hero through the castle, which is filled with obstacles, leading him to the top, where the knight’s corpse lies. Nearby stands a stand with a suit of armor, from which the helmet is missing. The knight says that Saul deserves to go further, so he should take the helmet and use it to clear his path. He died protecting what was dear to him—the castle—so his life’s journey has come to an end. The knight’s soul ascends, and Saul slowly picks up the helmet and places it on the armor stand. A bridge appears before Saul, leading to the tower standing opposite. With a heavy sigh, the hero moves on.
GAMEPLAY: Things get more interesting here; you have to navigate through obstacles, such as rooms with flying arrows, pits with spikes, and so on.
COMPOSITION: I was inspired to write this track by the “Desecrated Cathedral” theme from Metaphor: Refantazio. The track is quite repetitive, and the string section plays throughout the entire track, but it’s also spiced up with choir, horns, piano, and bass. My favorite part of this track is definitely the orchestral drums—they fill the space really well.

5. Tower.
STORY: After crossing the bridge, Saul stumbles upon a tall tower. It started to get dark outside rather quickly, so the tower became the only place he could go. Inside, there are many books and telescopes through which one can gaze at the beautiful starry sky. There, he meets an old woman who introduces herself as the owner and guide of the tower. Gradually, as he climbs higher and higher, Saul comes to realize through his conversation with the woman that this entire world is a reflection of his mind, and that everything he has seen up to this point should be interpreted as an allegory for the life he has lived. The carnival symbolized Saul’s early, carefree childhood, and the little jester represents Saul himself—a boy just as young and ambitious. The castle served as a reflection of the onset of adolescence, an age of change and trials that Saul endured before entering adulthood. The greatest of these trials was his father’s departure. He died in war, defending what was most precious to him—his home and family—just like a fallen knight. Accordingly, this tower also reflects Saul’s life—his coming of age, personal growth, and the beginning of his passion for astronomy, which later helped him get into college and become an astrophysicist. That is precisely why he left the town in his time, hoping to find a good job and provide for himself and his mother, but unfortunately, his mother died, and realizing this, just as he nears the summit, Saul looks at the elderly woman who is his guide. Smiling, she understands that Saul has grasped everything, and so her time has come. Just before reaching the top of the tower, the woman vanishes as the last tear of happiness rolls down her smiling face. Saul is crying, too, because even here he lost everyone, but after wiping away his tears with his hand, he lets go of everything and climbs to the very top.
GAMEPLAY: The tower is connected to the sky, space, and astronomy, so most of the gameplay consists of puzzles involving constellations that you must observe through a telescope. Occasionally, there are moments where you need to decipher ancient seals on doors using books in order to proceed.
COMPOSITION: While writing this, I often thought about the “Observatory” track from Dead Cells—there, too, it was the theme for the final location, connected to the stars. Most of the instruments used here are electric piano, but there’s also room for a pad that adds a touch of synthwave.

6. Light.
At the very top of the tower, Saul finds a lantern; when he turns it on, the entire world around him is bathed in light. From here, he can see his entire journey—from the carnival to the castle, and from the castle to the entrance of the tower. As he looks at this, the hero is overcome by a sense of the beauty of this world. What moves him most is the realization that all of this exists within him. A series of terrible events had led him to ponder the meaning of life, but now he understands that he has found that very meaning. As long as his soul remains as beautiful as this world—just as bright and full—he can live and find joy in everything around him. A few moments later, Saul’s eyes close, and he wakes up in the real world. He spots a light switch nearby; when he flips it, light floods the attic. He looks at everything scattered on the floor—his old toy carousel, a small plush jester, a toy castle, and a knight figurine—next to which lies a stack of astronomy books on the floor, and by the window he can see his very first telescope, with which he used to gaze at the starry sky alone at night. After this moment of reverie, Saul smiles to himself, realizing that he hasn’t lost everything. He goes back down to the first floor as dawn begins to break outside.
FIN.
GAMEPLAY: After climbing to the top of the tower and turning on the lantern, you can look out at the world around you and admire the scenery; then, when Saul wakes up in the real world, a cutscene plays showing all of the above.
COMPOSITION: VERY heavily inspired by “I Will Protect You” from Persona 3 Reload. The second part of the track, with the pizzicato strings, even sounds like plagiarism...

Message from the artist
This is the first time in my life I’ve written a cohesive body of work like an album, so I was nervous. I forced myself to write some of the tracks, but even when I didn’t have a clear concept, I saw them through to the end, drawing inspiration from my favorite games. In some places, the soundtrack turned out a bit hollow; in others, it’s a bit short; and the mix definitely has some issues (especially the last track), but if you ask me if I’m happy with the result, I’d definitely say yes. It was an interesting experience, and I hope to write plenty more soundtracks. Thank you for listening, and an even bigger thank you to those who read this entire story and perhaps even found it moving.

Theme

How does it fit the theme?
For me, the world isn’t necessarily something big and vast. The world can also be something small, something cozy—like the protagonist’s inner world, where he finds himself. This world is forgotten because of Saul’s grief, but by remembering it, seeing it, and hearing it, he finds the strength within himself to carry on living and to expand this very world.

Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-reverie-1

https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-ascension-2

https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-carnival-3

https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-castle-4

https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-tower-5

https://soundcloud.com/justpaps-511854816/justpaps-light-6

Number of tracks
6

Genre

Soundtrack use permission