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Mindwalker's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Quality | #1 | 4.634 | 4.634 |
| Overall | #2 | 4.456 | 4.456 |
| Impression | #4 | 4.463 | 4.463 |
| Creativity | #5 | 4.427 | 4.427 |
| Composition | #10 | 4.463 | 4.463 |
| Correlation to theme | #16 | 4.293 | 4.293 |
Ranked from 82 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Judge feedback
Judge feedback is anonymous.
- Thank you so much for including such expressive rubato writing here, especially on "A Mourning Sun and his Father", where the beautiful expressive guitar shines through with grace and panache. You have a talent for mixing those synth pads with the string/guitar stuff that's really beautiful. The opening of "False Sun of Shadow" definitely does some neat texture stuff. What great use of Bulgarian choir! It fits into the track in such a unique way-- I loved it. The Ligeti-esque vocal stuff here was also super-unique and effective. Also impressive are the faster little violin gestures which here are skillfully programmed and don't stick out at all-- no small feat, that. I always felt like your writing was going somewhere-- it lived, breathed, and had a sense of organic growth and life that felt deliberate while at once effortless-- each track made logical sense, note-to-note and bar-to-bar. "Guilt that Fades Away" absolutely took my breath away-- a triumph. You speak with such a unique musical voice-- hold on to that! It is so common for our musical language to collapse down into specific styles in game music, but you bring something unique to the table that I think is really wonderful, and I can't wait to hear more of your work!
Description
Cover art and concept art by NekdoNahodny
Tracks composed in Logic Pro. I heavily featured sample libraries by Cinematic Studio, Cinesamples, and Strezov Sampling. I made synths using Vital and Phase Plant. I also recorded acoustic guitar, Venezuelan cuatro, fretless bass, and some auxillary percussion. There are five tracks total: Two area themes, Two boss themes, and an ending theme.
When a god is dying the build up of guilt and the weight of sins absolved festers in their soul, their mind. Upon death all is burst outward ripping apart the known reality. It is the role of the mindwalkers to enter the mind of the dying gods to cleanse them of their guilt, preventing the collapse of reality and allowing this cycle of life to continue. Two mindwalkers are required for the ritual: One must enter from the outside, and the other is the catalyst human tasked with taking care of the god's mind's door since its birth. Together they are able to unlock the door and cleanse the god.
Track 1 - A Mourning Sun and His Father's Field: Upon entering the god's door you are met with a field. Watching over the field is a faint distant sun. The field is vast and plentiful with flowers. You and the other mindwalker explore the field. There are happy memories in this field: a shining child of a god destined to be the sun, and a loving father. But the father wished to be better...
Track 2 - False Sun of Shadow: You enter a house that breaks away upon entering. You are no longer in a field, but a dark void. In the center a skeletal figure tries taking form. A shadow of the son longing to be a bright sun of it's true potential. But he was enough. And his father, the god you entered, knew it but couldn't show it. This is the god's first guilt. You and your companion must defeat the sun.
Track 3 - Here lies a Village Not Saved: A ruined village lies before you. What's left of the wooden houses, churches, and markets are shrouded in vines and overgrowth. The luscious greens of the flora is contrasted by the crimson red flowers growing out of old broken chairs, tables, beds, and the floors of the village houses. Strange twisted trees with human features stand in a line leading you to a stone building in the center of town.
Track 4 - She Who Planted The Flowers: The interior of the stone building is larger than the size of the building from the outside would convey. Fog pours in from all sides. You are greeted by the goddess of life, mother of the sun. She reeks of the bloodlust that preyed on the village. Although merely a reflection, she shouldn't be underestimated. Can you kill death?
Track 5 - Guilt That Fades Away: The mind world melts away like candle wax. You and your companion step back into known reality. All of the gods guilt is resolved. You can leave the god and rest assured that all you know will remain intact.
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
You play as a "mindwalker" someone who has the ability to enter the mind worlds of gods. The game takes place inside the mind of a god. There are two player characters, one who enters the mind world with a more offensive play style and one who lives inside the mind world with a defensive play style who has to let you inside.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
Youtube Playlist Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoZq5D0TNLrDwMoWjYH8pkHJgl7ytgWbp
Number of tracks5
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any non-commercial project
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Comments
Gorgeous! Absolutely gorgeous! The sound design, the ambience, the orchestration - I loved it all!
Wow, this was so, so beautiful. I adore how much effort you put not only into the music, but the lore of the game itself. Definitely has to be some kind of open world big boss kind of game in the style of Elden Ring or Shadow of the Colossus. The concept art with the music, especially the use of guitar reminds me of a bit of southern gothic/weird west, but that just might be me.
I think the songs can get a little too wall of sound-y at times, I heard it the most with the last track, might be the effects or something else in the mix or both. Still, it did not kill my enjoyment of the composition at all, and it definitely enhanced it in some places.
This is like a beautiful mix of hyper light drifter, dark souls and a bit of hunt: showdown, and i am all for it.
Thank you for listening! You're criticism about the too wall of sound-yness is valid, I think it's the reverb, don't quite think I've mastered a balance with it yet. I made the last track in a very short span of time on the last day so it definitely has the weakest/most rushed mix for sure.
Thanks again for listening, your feedback is greatly appreciated!
Beautifully made. I feel like you’ve nailed a lot of different styles here and maybe hinted a bit at some Disasterpeace style sounds in the last track. I love it!
This has a very professional modern open world style sound to it. Easily a top contender for the best. Really excellent work here!
Thank you! Disasterpeace actually inspired me to get into game audio, playing Hyper Light Drifter had a massive impact on the way I thought about sound design and synthesis and music progression. My music used to have even more Disasterpeace influence but then I started getting into orchestral, still one of my biggest inspirations though
Thank you for listening! I'm glad you liked it :)
You should hear some of his more orchestral music too! Very different but very cool. I share the same history there! Absolutely loved Hyperlight Drifter. Huge influence on me as well.
I'll have to check it out! I've heard some of his more different stuff like what he's done for dance theater and the new star wars game but I'll have to look deeper. Cool that we have a similar history! Gonna have to replay Hyper Light Drifter soon
Absolutely blew my mind :0
Incredibly soundscapes, incredible composition. First track gave me chills when it swelled and then the entire ost maintained that same quality.
Can't honestly say much more, but this is amazing.
First of all, a very, very interesting collaboration! One point goes to the attention to detail on the project’s homepage, including the concept art. The music, on the other hand, is exceptionally original!! The synths are used brilliantly, and the solo violin sounds really great, with its exaggerated vibratos (the style of the violin in the main theme reminds me a bit of "Poor Things"). There’s definitely a sense of real instruments being used (I’d be surprised if they weren’t). This is a submission that truly, truly stands out! You could genuinely be among the winners, honestly.
Nice electro-acoustic ambience and textures. Incredibly atmospheric. My only bit of critical feedback is that the mix sounds like it runs a bit hot in places. Great job overall!
Well, my mind is officially blown! The sheer level of depth in the concept with such an intriguing narrative & absolutely gorgeous concept art (alongside the epic OST, of course) have me wishing this was a game I could download and play right now, haha.
I’m a sucker for details, and if I had more time, I would have loved to create something as fleshed out as this, though I wouldn’t have stood a chance at composing an OST anywhere near as stunning to match!
You can really feel the shift in the story with each track as the god’s mind morphs and twists itself into new forms of self-torture, each revealing another layer, whether it be a harrowing challenge to face in False Sun of Shadow or the eerie, forlorn tranquillity of Here lies a Village Not Saved.
The theme of guilt flows seamlessly throughout the tracks that take place inside the mind of the god, and the ones before and after are a nice change of pace from the varying degrees of ominous that haunt the 3 middle tracks.
Every track elevates the narrative far beyond the page. I can see the entire story playing out in my mind like a movie, and it’s goddam breathtaking :D
If I were playing this game, this is the sort of OST that would make me pause to just sit and soak in the music!
Absolutely one of my favourite submissions that I’ve listened to so far, and when I have more time, you can bet I’ll be listening to what you made for previous iterations of this jam!! :3 I can only ever dream of making something so hauntingly beautiful!!
this felt so epic! it fit the scenarios you wrote perfectly! im really impressed!!
Wow! amazing work!
Super creative take on the prompt, and concept in general!
Also, a wide array of sound on the tracks.
Great job!
Great Production! Wtf moment with the bass in first track enjoyed it a lot x) Really love the sound design.
Some Rhodope in here, Kevin moment ahah ! Some Dark soul vibe in the 2nd track
Cool ambiences and i love that dark mood.
I feel sometimes the reverb is killing the mix and clarity is needed but its fine overall.
Last track was the best ^^Those violins pads are so cool to create great landscape.
Really unique and original OST Good job!
Thank you! Definitely some Kevin Penkin inspo, I listen to his music a lot when I go on walks. I honestly agree that reverb is killing the clarity, I just can't resist slapping it on everything tho...
Thanks again for listening!
Very phenomenal listening experience, amazing texture choices, powerful and emotional arrangements. The mix is amazingly soundstaged, the organic noise floor in some of the tracks adds so much depth to the composition. The instrumentation is a perfect fusion of cinematic basses, ethnic voices, traditional orchestration, and varying timbral percussion. Sound pallette reminds me a lot of FromSoft games with a more cinematic take.
Really inspiring work, makes me regret not working long enough on my composition...you've lit my creative flame for month!
One of my favorite this far, crazy concept and excellent delivery, just a blast of an OST
Great work! This reminded me a lot of Kevin penkin work, my favourite composer. Had a really good time listening!
I definitely had some Kevin Penkin influence, I love listening to his music when I go on walks. Thanks for listening!
A Mourning Sun and His Father’s Field: The guitar and strings set up such a sweet scene. The large synth sounds definitely convey the sound of a sun character. The overall arc of this track makes for great story-telling on its own. I imagine this track growing in intensity while the scene in the game starts to distort - love it!
False Sun of Shadow: I really like the two phase boss battle idea. The second phase is my favorite of the two. Love the folky humanistic sound of the electronic instrument you used at the end.
Here Lies a Village Not Saved: Great use of ambient sounds with aural positioning of the stream and birds. I am a big fan of the simplicity and ambient nature that still has direction with the string and other orchestral elements. This area in the game is where I would want to spend my time. This is my favorite of all your tracks!
She Who Planted the Flowers: What a cool story concept for this boss. Without the description, I am not sure I would have pegged this as a boss theme, but when adding the story, it makes it a crazy good boss theme because of how unsuspecting it sounds.
Guilt that Fades Away: The piano reverb is so poignant and the ending is so beautifully performed. I certainly think you succeeded at capping off the OST in this piece.
Overall: I think that it takes skill to write a good story, skill to write good music, and a crazy more amount of skill that it takes to write a good story through good music. You have nailed all of it. Your game concept is very intriguing on its own, but the music would suck me into the world and dictate my heart rate at even the subtlest musical choices you made. I really like the more acoustic approach to this OST as it gives a more intimate feel and helps convey the theme from a musical standpoint even if I were to not have read your lore. The quality of what you produce is top notch, as always. Excellent work and thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for the in-depth review! You've noticed a lot of things that I wasn't sure anyone would! Like the synth representing the sun, the humanistic synth at the end of False Sun of Shadow, and the ambient sound layering. I've started to become obsessed with boss music that doesn't sound like boss music because it makes you think about the music in less of a combat way and in more of a storytelling way and how to build intensity around the boss character and their past. It's less of a "I have to fight this boss" and more of a "this is why I have to fight this boss", I think that way of writing boss music is interesting and can also help when writing more conventional boss music
Thanks again for listening, I really appreciate your review!
Man what a phenomenal submission. This thing took me on a journey I 10/10 would take again. And I certainly will :D
Good lord, this is incredible the mix is inpecable, the vibe is so cool, the orchestration on point, I need a list of the plugins you used, I have to know.
Thank you so much! I was unsure of the mix going into this (because of crunch) so I'm glad you liked it!
For instruments CSS/CSSS/CSW by Cinematic Studio hard carried. Balkan Ethnic Orchestra by Strezov Sampling, Albion Solstice, and Symphonic Destruction by Heavyocity were great for layering and adding some spice. Requiem Pro by 8dio for some choir stuff (goes on sale regularly for dirt cheap, also learned that this the choir that was used in Dark Souls 2 and 3, and a bit of Elden Ring recently which is cool)
Synths are Vital and Phase Plant, and I didn't go super crazy on FX this time but Rift by Minimal Audio, Subvert by Glitchmachines, Transverb by Destroy FX and Valhalla Supermassive by Valhalla DSP were very handy.
There's definitely more I'm forgetting but this is what I remember off the top of my head
Ha right CSS, been a while since I wanted these but never bought it I keep staying with LASS3 and CineStringsCore, I've also wanted to look at Strezov Sampling apparently its something. Thank you for the list.
honestly with LASS3 and Cinestrings you might be set for strings, CSS really succeeds in being a great base for layering, being really good at the small handful of articulations it comes with, and working seemlessly with the rest of Cinematic Studio’s libraries. It also has some of the best legatos I’ve heard
Strezov Sampling has some great choirs and “ethnic” stuff
Awesome submission! Reminds me a lot of some FromSoft soundtracks. Especially a lot of the vocals and strings. I'm blown away by how polished you managed to get everything in such a short amount of time.
Hey, a fellow enter-someones-mind entry! :D
A Mourning Sun and his Father's Field has a really gentle buildup and then intensity strikes, as if to signal that the scope changed.
False Sun of Shadow, I remember hearing this track while it was in progress. Awesome then, awesome now. Honestly one of the best I've heard so far, really love it. But wait, there's more! The second half is cool as well, but I'm simping for the first half too much, should be standalone imo :D
Here Lies a Village Not Saved also has an excellent buildup. Definitely fits an exploration vibe and I love how it transitions into the second half.
She Who Planted The Flowers, wow. Really dark and moody but still hopeful. Excellent track.
Guilt That Fades Away, good track but the weakest of them all in my opinion. Love the way it ends, though.
Overall, an extremely well made soundtrack! False Sun of Shadow is the goat, and the others are great as well. Excellent job! :D
Thank you! Your submission is next on my list to rate so I’ll be listening to yours soon!
I would have made False Sun of Shadow two separate tracks and fleshed out the first idea more but since my idea for it was a two phase boss with contrasting phases (skeleton blob to a literal sun god) so I kept them together.
Your criticism of Guilt That Fades Away is completely valid, I made that track in like 3 hours on the last day to have something that ties everything up in an ending so it’s by far the most rushed track.
Thanks again for listening! Looking forward to a fellow enter-someone’s-mind entry!
Really nice sounds here. Great mix of orchestral & live instrumentation and synths.
Really fits the narrative you've laid out in the description.
Reminds me quite a bit of from software soundtracks in places in a very good way!
The guitar combined with the mournful strings on Here lies a Village Not Saved is a particular highlight for me. The final track is also very good for managing to feel very in line with the others but offering a brighter uplifting and satisfying end.
Mixing is top notch.
Thank you! Definitely some FromSoft inspiration, I just finished Dark Souls 3 a few weeks ago and started Shadow of the Erdtree so it's been on the mind. Yuka Kitamura is the GOAT
Glad you liked the mixing! I was very unsure about it when submitting since I was spending so much time on the composition, some parts I wished I could have polished more but oh well. Thanks again for listening!
Ah I'm glad I was correct to spot that haha I love those soundtracks too.
Yeah I mean there's always space to polish more but I think you did a pretty solid job!