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Forest Runaway OST's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Correlation to theme | #58 | 3.765 | 3.765 |
| Quality | #68 | 3.765 | 3.765 |
| Composition | #91 | 3.529 | 3.529 |
| Overall | #100 | 3.576 | 3.576 |
| Impression | #114 | 3.353 | 3.353 |
| Creativity | #128 | 3.471 | 3.471 |
Ranked from 17 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
I imagined an atmospheric adventure game set in a forest with some spooky supernatural stuff going on. The main character runs away from home for mysterious and sad reasons (because of course they do), and discovers a dark secret lurking in the woods they traveled into. I pictured a top-down pixel art style for the game.
"Forest Runaway Main Theme" would be played on the title screen.
"Woods Exploration" would be played while the player moves about the forest world, discovering secrets and solving puzzles.
"Secret Under the Village Ruins" would be played while the player explores an area that appears to be the ruins of an old town. They find their way into an underground chamber where they will have to fight a boss.
"Dark Encounter" plays during the boss fight.
"Memories of Home" plays during a cutscene in which the player re-lives their childhood experiences, as well as the reasons for why they left home in the first place.
I started on this project by brainstorming melody ideas in Sibelius, then pasting the MIDI data I wanted to use into Logic to make full arrangements. Most of the mixing was done in Logic, with a final levels check in Pro Tools. As for VSTs, I used Kontakt, Reason, Massive X, BBC Orchestra, and Logic stock libraries, as well as Creative Commons Licensed audio files from Freesound.
Runtime is almost ten minutes (not counting loops), managed to make 5 tracks. I'd say the style is... electro-acoustic? I used all VSTs, but there is a combination of synthesizers and sample libraries of acoustic instruments in each track.
Theme:
How does it fit the theme?
I imagined a story in which the player character runs away from home, and then comes upon a forest with a dark secret. It was difficult to portray "runaway" specifically in the music, so I tried to reference that by having a more emotional "Memories of Home" track. As for the picture theme, I attempted to invoke the image by including flute/reed instruments (that I've observed are often associated with woods and greenery), as well as a track that uses a recording of birds chirping/forest ambience.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/hendershot-music/sets/runaway-2022/s-hWRMw0kbY4b?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing
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Comments
Really enjoyed the opening to Secret Under the Village Ruins with the ambient recordings and that instrument with the flutey hits, idk what it is but I love it! The ending to the whole thing is also bery beautiful and just the right amount of spooky. Great submission!
It is a very very nice piece of music, I love the little sfx you put here and there, it really settles the world. I would say, i found it somehow hard to find the link with the theme "Runaway" but I understand what you were going for.
Congratulation, very nice work !
Thank you! Yeah but I totally get where you're coming from about the theme, it was tough for me trying to connect it to Runaway haha. Glad I challenged myself though, and that you found the SFX effective!
Yes, it was effective for sure !
Very nice work! I really like the synth and sound design elements against the piano and other acoustic instrument samples.
Thanks for listening to it!
Great tracks and sound! My favourite is Memories of Home, very good work!
Thank you for giving it a listen!
Great use of "foresty" woodwinds. Also Great use of panning in Dark Encounter, as if something is coming up behind you/all around you. I also liked the nature sound effects. Very well put together!
Thanks for the feedback! Yeah it was fun to explore what sounds felt "woodsy" to me haha.
It's a nice soundtrack. I quite like the percussive element in Woods Exploration. The castanets set a nice pace. My favourite is probably Memories of Home though. I like how it transitions into the calm piano that really feels like the title suggests. Good work!
Thank you for giving it a listen! I was afraid the Memories track felt too vague, so I'm glad I was able to pull it together with the piano section.
This is some great work. They go together really well and really illustrate a dark, mystical forest. I like the main theme the most. It sets the tone for everything else. "Woods Exploration" also has a great curious feel. The castanets help to set the song in the woods.
Interestingly enough, I feel like the main theme is my weakest track here haha, but it allowed me to make a main melody to use for everything else. And yeah, the Exploration track was my favourite to make! I really enjoy starting with a simple idea and adding layers to it. Thanks for giving it a listen!
As tracks that would be playing in the background as I run around a pixelated forest, I can easily see how they would fit and enhance the overall experience. Well put together and evocative tracks, nice job.
Thanks for listening to it!