Play soundtrack
Did I ever tell you about the aquarium inside the hospital?'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Correlation to theme | #4 | 4.464 | 4.464 |
| Overall | #67 | 3.957 | 3.957 |
| Quality | #101 | 3.964 | 3.964 |
| Impression | #104 | 3.821 | 3.821 |
| Creativity | #120 | 3.821 | 3.821 |
| Composition | #181 | 3.714 | 3.714 |
Ranked from 28 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
Genre: Dramatic, emotional, Japanese-inspired music
Runtime: 5 Tracks, 8:35 min aprox
Software: FLStudio
As a team of two, we approached the soundtrack from a narrative standpoint, akin to a visual novel. Each track explores a different part of the story, trying to cover the full emotional spectrum of the game.
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
For the theme, we chose both the image and the text prompt. We used the girl, the underwater bubbles, the motherly figure holding her hand, and the hand-drawn fish, as key elements to develop a narrative. We also considered the image as a visual representation of the girl being “inside her own world”.
In the soundtrack we explore the relationship between a girl and her severely ill mother, who is currently hospitalized. The girl spends most of her time in the visitors lobby, drawing the fish from a large fish tank, not fully understanding everything that’s going on, as she tries to sort out her thoughts and feelings.
Through these drawings, she starts to create an imaginary aquatic world full of wonder, where she can play and explore with a subconscious representation of her mother, as she envisions her. In this world, we get to see how various aspects of their relationship are abstractly represented through gameplay and music, that range from memories of fun & games, as well as present moments filled with worry and love for her mother.
In her real life, the girl has been shielded from the truth by the adults around her, putting her in a metaphorical "bubble" where everything seems to be fine. However, she can sense that things are not quite like they say.
Since the image portrays a Japanese child wearing a kimono, we also decided to approach the music composition with a very Japanese-feeling approach, studying the musical elements of references we love from Japanese game composers and 80-90s City Pop, mixing them with our own aesthetic sensibilities. Overall, we also used the themes as guides to compose music using dreamy, aquatic and childlike elements (melodies, harmonies, instruments, ambience, etc.)
Tracklist
1. Sunday Funday (1:31)
This track is about the girl and her mother having fun during weekends, going out for walks, or even doing housework in fun ways.
We tried to make a simple, yet funky tune inspired by 80s japanese city pop, to convey this feeling of carefree fun.
2. A World of my own (2:04)
After her mother gets hospitalized, the girl spends most of her time by the aquarium in the hospital, drawing the fish to avoid boredom, as she is loosely cared for by adults. She tries to show the drawings to her mom in any chance she gets, but since most of the time she is sleeping, the girl decides to tape her drawings all around the room, so her mother will see them whenever she wakes up. As days go by she starts to worry more about her mother and wonder why they can’t see each other like before. She starts imagining herself exploring this magical underwater world with her mom, as a happy place she can reach within her mind.
We tried to evoke the feeling of exploring a magical underwater world that sparks curiosity and wonder, while staying true to the hopeful yet melancholic nature of this moment.
3. The nurse told me to be good and come back tomorrow (2:17)
Even though adults (family, nurses and her mother’s friends) keep saying that everything is fine - and even her own mom told her that they would have fun again once she got better - the girl notices that something is off and can no longer enter her mother’s room. The girl starts to asks questions to the nurses and her uncle, and even though they avoid giving information, she notices that they are no longer saying everything will be fine. As her uncle gives the girl a ride home, a sense of eerie dread fills her mind, as she puts the pieces together and start to realize her mother’s real condition.
We tried to evoke the feeling of a moody afternoon, where the future is uncertain and getting darker, but still gives a glimmer of hope.
4. Mommy's a liar (2:06)
One day the girl overhears the nurses talking about her mom in the hallway. They say it’s unlikely she'll make it, and they feel sorry for her daughter. With this, the girl’s bubble is broken, as the promise made by her mother of having fun again together begins to fall apart. In her fantasy world, a twisted image of her mom appears in front of her: a liar. The girl must face and overcome this distorted version of her mother, so she can realize the lies were just an act of love, trying to protect her.
We tried to evoke the feeling of a boss-fight, but facing against someone whom you really wish you didn’t have to fight. The music is meant to evoke disappointment and despair. It starts out sad and melancholic, and it slowly gets more and more intense, to find closure returning to a feeling of calm after the fight is over, and finally seeing things objectively just as they are: her mother is very ill. Since this song is still set inside her fantasy world, we included the same musical elements as in track number 2 but with a twisted feeling to it.
5. I love you, mom (0:37)
Once the girl manages to come to terms with reality, only one thing is left: love. She truly loves her mother and deeply cherishes all the moments they’ve lived together. Even though she’s scared, her only wish is to see her mom healthy again. As she talks to the nurses with a new found maturity, she manages to go into her mother’s room one more time to say her feeling out loud: “I love you, mom”.
Cover art by @vinylc.art on Instagram
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/vichoeq/sets/hospital-aquarium
https://youtu.be/tjs-Ewj57gs
https://youtu.be/WtY6Pzb177w (spanish)
Number of tracks5
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any non-commercial project
Leave a comment
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.
Comments
This is gorgeous from start to finish. The artwork, story-telling through the titles and the music and the write-up - stellar. I'm going to just refer to 'you' as both of you in this to keep it from getting too wordy.
Sunday Funday captures some really fun and dreamy vibes - I love how thoughtfully arranged this. Solid choice of instrumentation and progression. Minimal percussion but it does exactly what it needs to do. The mixture of both piano and rhodes is really good - something I never think to combine myself, despite loving both of those individually!
A World of My Own continues on with that dream-like quality. Great voicings, memorable melodies and the pop SFX sounds are a lovely bit of ear candy. This track, for me, is a great example of a less-is-more approach - the arrangement does not need to be crowded; a thoughtful instrument or two with some complementary melodies will tell a far deeper story than a mix packed to the brim.
The Nurse Told Me to be Good and Come Back Tomorrow is a wonderfully intriguing title, and the arrangement does it justice. It has this kind of cherubic curiosity and reservation to it. I can't quite describe what it is about this track that appeals to me so much but you've captured a really unique kind of vibe with it. Nice touch having the lower-end of the spectrum fill out toward the ending section.
Mommy's a Liar has a strange kind of whimsy to it. It's ambling along at its own pace, striking a kind of ambiguity that is not easy to pin-point. Abruptly ending and transitioning to a more defined forward-moving arrangement was a surprise, but it works well given the title. In comparison to the other tracks, this is very bass-heavy and I think that really works well here. Percussion growing gradually more complicated as the pace picks up is great, feels like that curiosity from before has been quashed and replaced with a kind of sombre, unwanted realization. The use of the EKG beeping toward the end of this piece puts an entirely different spin on it; turning it on its head. Really nice use of subversion there.
Finally, I love you, Mom caps out this soundtrack on a still sombre but more resolved note. A short, evocative piece driven solely by piano to round it all out. It doesn't lessen the blow but makes it easier to process.
This is a special piece, I think. As others have commented - this feels complete as a submission, and its one of the more thematically adept entries I've come across. I love your choice of instruments and way of going about writing them in tune with the story you want to tell. This is wonderful and evocative - fantastic work. I can't wait to see what else you'll do in the future!
For me, this was a complete soundtrack. Each track has a unique role in the world/narrative while still feeling unified. The decisions made in terms of composition feel deliberate and well thought out, but it’s also just a nice soundtrack to listen to on its own. Sunday Funday is the perfect vibe for exploring (I imagined a game like Space for the Unbound). I like the sound design and floaty feeling of A World of My Own - that might be my favorite. I really enjoyed this soundtrack! Great work!
Great soundtrack, and also a great story to go with it! Love the cover art as well!
Sunday Funday: Straight vibes. Nice e-piano.
A World Of My Own: This track reminds me of Omori. Very sweet!
The Nurse Told Me To Be Good And Come Back Tomorrow: Love the name lol. Nice piano, nice chromatic movements.
Mommy's A Liar: Introducing a darker tone. Does have that more tragic boss theme feel.
I love you, mom: Very emotional! Satisfying ending.
Great work!
素晴らしかったです。全ての曲に込められている切なさ、悲しみ、そして家族を思う愛。センスのある効果音の配置と音楽の絡み合いで、それがとてもよく表現されていました。絵も素敵で、感動できる作品でした。共有していただき、ありがとうございました！
This was fantastic. The sadness, melancholy, and the warm familial love that was in every track was expressed beautifully through the music and the perfectly placed sound effects. Along with the really well done art, this submission was a very moving work for me. Thank you for sharing!
..No one has ever told me about aquariums in the hospital... Will you tell me?
Sunday Funday - Heh, the atmosphere of the old hospital simulators (Let's remember all the patients who died due to a shortage of benches)
A World Of My Own - AAH I LOVE THE SOUND OF BURSTING BUBBLES
The Nurse Told Me To Be Good And Come Back Tomorrow - Good. I will be happy to behave myself!
Mommy's A Liar is intense, melancholic and.. I'm scared :_)
I love you, mom - I love you too...
In general, I feel a big, beautiful but sad story... Thank you for the interesting experience!
P.S. I liked your avatar on SoundCloud, heh)
These are really fun tracks. I really like the style you went for. Great job!
Very gripping story and the music works really well for it!
1 criticism I have is that the snare sample you used in Mommy's lair sounded a bit harsh in comparison to everything else. Especially when it first came in during a quieter part.
You guys have done a great job on the vibe, capturing the aspect of everyday life, and the imaginative nature of the child.
You got me thinking, about how a child easy going with their life, not knowing about the world, yet their heart is so fragile, yet we ask them to cope, and live strong, how would they know how to do that? (when we even can't) ...
I... (If you have ever been to hospital, you would understand the sadness)
I think you two nailed the vibe you were going for. The first track is very 80s Japan pop for sure. I wanted for a bit more movement or variation at some points but the sparse arrangements were effective at telling the story. Good work. Thanks for making and sharing.
The storytelling in this submission is really peak, I was super excited going in to this and found myself on the edge of tears going in to the last song, the beeping at the end of Mommy's a Liar just really hit. I think you told your story really well, and on top of that its great music!! Excellent work you two.
Amazing work! You guys really know how to tell a story through music. Loved every moment and will be looking forward to more compositions <3
I think I had the most fun with 'mommy's a liar' because my own creations are biased toward a darker twist on stuff.
Very pleased with the overall quality of all tracks. Nice Job!
Really love your progressions throughout the tracks! The instrumentation is simple yet effective, really fits the theme of a young girl dealing with escapism with it's initially cute and fun melodies. The buildup of tracks to Mommy's a Liar is pretty good, it definitely feels like the inner world she had is falling apart. IMO though I feel like it could've been expressed more deeply in the arrangement with different instrumentation decisions. However, I love you mom feels like a nice resolution of acceptance that she needed after the guilt. Good stuff overall!
I really love how pretty-sounding tracks 3 and 5 are, and how you portrayed grief in track 4. The explanation behind each track and the artwork also really add to the feel of it all :D
A lovely Ghibili-style piano style on I Love You Mom and The Nurse Told Me. I can hear the potential influences in the score, though that is not a bad thing. It's all about how you blend your inspirations to create the world you want to make that is uniquely yours. The compositions by themselves are really lovely, and I do think further developing the melodic ideas in tracks like "Sunday Funday" and "The Nurse Told Me" with a B section would give you more room to show off your unique musical voice and enhance the already strong storytelling.
曲の雰囲気とストーリーがとても好きです！！！
（あとアルバムのジャケットのイラストが可愛くて好き。）
素敵な曲をありがとう！！
I love the atmosphere of the song and the story!
(Also love the cute illustration on the album cover.)
Thanks for the great song!
どうもありがとうございます！！！
音楽とイラストを気に入っていただけて本当に嬉しいです。c:
Sunday Funday: this track reminded me a lot of the old Wii and 3DS menu music! It has that calm, animal-crossing vibe to it... perfect for the story point you are trying to convey.
A world of my own: Smart use of the bubble popping sounds to actually tie in the image and the story into the music! For me, I used scribbling noises throughout my soundtrack to convey the doodled fish at the bottom of the picture. Attention to detail like the bubble popping sounds is what distinguishes this from any other synth pop track.
The Nurse Told Me To Be Good And Come Back Tomorrow: I appreciate the emotional affect of this piece. I don't want to say it left something to be desired, but I almost wish there was a more contrasting b-section, perhaps with different chords, to show the depth of the emotional impact this would have had on our main character.
Mommy's A Liar: this superficial, evil-sounding melody is actually perfect: it's not truly evil, but just a fantastical evil created by the mind of the girl. This track also would have benefitted from a more active rate of change. It's largely comprised of one bassline and one percussive countermelody. Perhaps introduce the countermelody sooner, then add a b-section with entirely new material? (Loved the heart monitor at the end-- between that and the car engine sound used earlier, and the bubbles, you're doing a good job of bringing the game material right into the soundtrack.)
I love you, mom: short and sweet. What a sentimental story, and this ending didn't need to be anything but pastoral and melancholic.
Your concept for the visual novel is very fitting for the artwork, and one of my favorite interpretations so far. Great work, and keep writing!
First of all, thanks a ton for all the detailed and constructive feedback!!
Reading your comment made us both really happy and was really encouraging, since It's our first time entering an event of this kind.
I'll definitely try out some chord variations for the third track to check with my partner! I agree and believe there are some reharmonizations that might really boost the B section without changing the emotional tone, so I'll go figure it out in the lab :P
Thanks again!!
It's pretty nice. I think concept of a game is pretty simpe and basic but can be of course good if execution would be great. My favorite trakc is Mommy's A Lair. It gives me a diffrent vibe from the rest of OST which is intended I see, but also I think concept is better than actual song. I would give it a little bit more spark, a kick like you need to feel this realisation of that girl, it need to be extreme. More agresive, but I like that small detals like beeping at the end and intro made of bass. I also like the sort of cliffhanger at the end :>
Thank you! The initial draft of that song was a fight against a toxic parent, so it built more and more intensity by adding more layers until becoming unbearable, but we wanted to lower the intensity a bit when we decided that her mom was actually good. Also we wanted to explore building intensity with a melody to help with the calm after the storm.
Thank you for your comment and feedback! c:
We really wanted to build a narrative through the music, so the fact that you felt the cliffhanger through the sound/music is a huge compliment!