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I'm an indie gamedev. Here is 5 tracks from my game Rashtal.
5 tracks from my game Rashtal. Feedback would be appreciated.
Or each song separately:
The game is still in development. Just sharing some music to get feedback.
I really like them. Like, a lot. "Life in the Treetops" reminded me of "Prologue" from this album. I haven't played that game, but I came across the album on Spotify and love it. Your music has the same adventure-y but natural vibe, and it's fantastic.
Thanks! I also didn't play that game, but I really like the way they build space with their sounds. That's also something I'm going for.
Out of curiosity, what software do you use to make music like this? If I wanted to try my hand at it, how would I get started?
I didn't make the music, I work closely with a composer (Mike Skalandunas). This was done with Logic Pro on Mac. He uses various sound samples recorded from real instruments like this flute.
Personally when I compose music, I like to go with open source software. I like Lilypond (sheet music), LMMS (DAW), QTractor (DAW).
A big part of music like this is figuring out the textures, which instruments to use together. You can then establish a melody, and repeat it in different levels. In the Rashtal music, there's a lot of Counterpoint.
If you have a music instrument with you, you can experiment with different melodies. If you compose something short every day, you build experience. And lot of this is experience. What you are hearing here is music that is mostly final. But hundreds of hours were spent on those tracks. So while this sounds really advanced, if you work on music over long periods of time, you can have quality.
Anyway, the point I want to say is that for the most part, don't think too much about the software itself, those are just tools. And when you start, you won't be working right away with the highest quality samples. It's more about honing your skill as a composer. This is mostly done with practice and by studying music theory and music played by artist you admire.
Wow, great response. Learning more about composition is now on my summer to-do list :)
I highly suggest checking out this site: https://learningmusic.ableton.com/
Ableton (one of the companies that makes popular digital composing software) put this out last year, and I think it's a great intro to some basics.
I also think these are fantastic. I have no expertise in this at all, but I really enjoyed them. I started off thinking that I'd only listen to one of them, but ended up listening to them all because I liked them so much. A few had a somewhat Disney vibe (like Tangled). They all had a sense of exploration and curiosity that I thought was pretty fun. If someone had told me this was music from some sort of Zelda mini game, I would have believed them.
Thanks a lot! This means a lot! Inspiration for the music was drawn from those, along with games like Ori and the Blind Forest, Hollow Knight, League of Legends, or documentaries like Planet Earth 2 and Blue Planet 2. (I'm forgetting some but those were the main ones.)
Pure feedback:
Life in the Treetops: Whimsical. The introduction of Arabic sounds is great and not over-used. Great rhythm - would work amazing as a puzzle solving track.
Song of the Forest: Comes out deep, the flute(?) seems too deep for the setting but works. When you go to harmony it sounds amazing. Sends a feeling of relaxation and calm.
Through the Sunken Glades: Titillating and mysterious opening. Pokes at you while staying calm with the chimes. Was thrown off a bit with the wind-woods but got used to it. Beautiful sound regardless.
The Canopy: Open and airy. Love the strings. A home feeling, especially while the bass is playing. (IMO) this should be how you open your story.
The Forest Floor: Mysterious and deceptive. Every move matters and I don't want to be caught. Beautiful combination of bass and highs.
Overall, give whoever your sound engineer a massive hug. This is really good.
Thanks a lot for your feedback! I'd give him a hug, but we live in different countries, maybe one day. :)
It's really cool the words that you managed to use for each of those tracks. This will help make it even better.
I really like all of them, especially the accent sounds - they give the songs a neat vibe. I really want to add them to my instrumental playlist but I don't usually use soundcloud :(
How do you usually listen to music?
On spotify
This isn't Rashtal, but it's similar: Rashtal – February Inspiration
I can tag you again when the music makes it to spotify. Thanks btw!
I love this album. Thank you