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The Cold Realm Within's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Composition | #55 | 4.082 | 4.082 |
| Quality | #64 | 4.082 | 4.082 |
| Overall | #88 | 3.871 | 3.871 |
| Correlation to theme | #138 | 3.847 | 3.847 |
| Impression | #151 | 3.694 | 3.694 |
| Creativity | #220 | 3.647 | 3.647 |
Ranked from 85 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
This is an OST for an imaginary adventure game called The Cold Realm Within, created for OSTCompJam #7! Cover art is a public domain image (Zes kerkuilen slapend op besneeuwde takken [1939] by Theo van Hoytema).
The game is a single player adventure game that takes place on a frigid mountain. The main character (you) finds themselves alone in an abandoned village. High upon the peak of the nearby mountain, they see a light emanating from what appears to be some sort of shrine. Staying in the village surely means death through starvation or freezing, so they begin their ascent to the mountain's summit. Along the way, they are descended upon by shadowy creatures that strangely feel all too familiar.
Upon reaching the summit, they encounter an idealized, almost god-like imitation of themselves. The being taunts them, mocks them, and challenges them to stand against it. When defeated, the being is absorbed by the main character, and we learn that the shades were insecurities and manifestations of feelings of failure and unworthiness in the mind of the main character, and the god-like being was the reality of who the MC is - a fine creature only antagonistic to itself. The landscape we trekked through to arrive to this conclusion was nothing more than a representation of our own inner mind - barren of warmth and comfort for oneself.
Track list:
1. The Cold Realm Within (Main Menu)
2. Alone (Introduction to the world)
3. Snow Buried Village (Village Theme)
4. Footprints in the Drifts (Starting the Ascent)
5. Shades on the Trail (Combat Encounter)
6. Failure (Game Over)
7. To Claim Oneself (Boss Fight)
8. End of Self Discovery (Ending/Credits)
Composed in FL Studio 21!
Message from the artist
This was so much fun! Thank you for doing this!
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
The entirety of the game takes place in the inner world of the protagonist, though they don't realize it until defeating and absorbing the boss. They realize how cold they are to themselves, how their insecurities and fears manifest as dangerous beings hell-bent on attacking them, and how they have an idealized version of how they think they should be, but even then, that version only speaks negatively to itself.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/circles-in-the-sky/sets/the-cold-realm-within
Number of tracks8
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any non-commercial project
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Comments
Great orchestration! Each track is unique and plays to its strengths accordingly. I like the mix of styles throughout - whimsical Snow Buried Village, pensive and slow evolving Alone and the regal, foreboding To Claim Oneself. The two stand-out tracks for me are Footprints in the Drifts and Shades on the Trail. Can't quite put my finger on it, I just feel as though they're the frontrunners of the album. All in all a great mix, good work!
Hey thank you so much for the feedback and breakdown! I really appreciate you giving it a listen :D
Very soothing and expert orchestration!
Thank you so much!! That really means a lot to me!