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ORION - OST Composing Jam 8's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Quality | #19 | 4.343 | 4.343 |
| Impression | #57 | 3.886 | 3.886 |
| Overall | #58 | 3.891 | 3.891 |
| Composition | #73 | 3.857 | 3.857 |
| Creativity | #85 | 3.714 | 3.714 |
| Storytelling | #90 | 3.657 | 3.657 |
Ranked from 35 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
ORION is a (theoretical) stargazing puzzle game, following the player as they explore a quaint seaside town in summer while collecting strange requests from the townspeople. You play as a wandering cartographer, who has taken interest in the town's beautiful and ever changing night sky. During the day, the townspeople will ask you to help them find constellations in the mysterious transforming sky of the town, which you spend your nights mapping out; incorporating stars, planets, moons, and even meteor showers into your star maps. You get more rewards by completing requests, and including rarer celestial objects in the constellations you set out to find! As your collection of maps grow, the town will grow around you as you aid the citizens in their requests, resulting in a relaxing stress-free game.
TRACK 1 - THE STARS WE SEE
The Stars We See is a level/main theme, that I see as representing the main ideas I had when creating this concept. I wanted to encapsulate the awe and bewilderment that comes from staring at the open night sky, watching everything move slowly through the sky as stars fade in and out of existence. I focused on trying to create a timbral contrast between the back and foreground elements, like the haze of a night sky versus the brightness of the stars. A lot of the effects in this track are done via building up delay over time with extensive filter manipulation.
TRACK 2 - COMET STROKES
This is a special "frenzy" theme when meteor showers fall during a level, giving the player a chance to score lots of bonus points! I want this theme to have more energy and be less "hazy" then the main theme, but with a warm pad underneath to keep a more open feel. More percussive elements are used here to create additional contrast with the main theme. Originally I was framing this song around an idea of a meteor shower but honestly it felt more right to base my title and description more around comets, something that has a bit more "grace" to it because I feel like meteor showers still have a bit of an implied chaotic-ness to them that I didn't want to be part of this theme.
Everything here is made on Ableton! Feel free to ask about what i specifically used for different aspects .
Message from the artist
Thanks for listening! I feel like I've improved a ton since the last year I participated in this and I hope that you all enjoy this.
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
Both themes made me think of when my partner and I went to a lake at 5 in the morning to try and see the Perseid meteor shower a few weeks ago, and that imagery was what got this idea going.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://on.soundcloud.com/NzZ2GkFA94iiWxcerd
https://pixcelemusic.bandcamp.com/album/orion
Number of tracks2
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any project
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Comments
Yooo this ambience though. I'm in bed trying to get through as much subs before I sleep but ur damn soundtrack is trying so hard to put me to sleep 😭.
GORGEOUS soundtrack, really enjoyed this one.
yo pixcele, this was such a nice ost to listen to. Your take on ambience felt super well put together with the evolution across each track. It also didnt feel like it was too long because of how much they moved naturally. The rhythms used in the second piece I really loved. Great work!
I absolutely love this soundtrack! I can see this being in another update of Minecraft if it were star-themed. The warmth of the pads and extra chiptune synths in the background of Comet Strokes. The arrangement of The Stars We See is perfect and reminds me of C418's Minecraft Volume Beta. The spacing between each part of the song is also perfect, allowing the listener to have a breather after a strong ambient chord hit. Comet Strokes reminds me of Redwood Colonnade - Tunic with the piano and chiptune-esque ambient nature of the song at around 1:47. This is a great soundtrack, don't stop making music!
very beautiful sounding submission, my favorite aspects of this soundtrack are definitely the melodies and the atmosphere presented in these tracks!! (can't really say favorite song because i enjoyed both of them...)
The Stars We See - I love the build/swell with synth at 2:30, then the repeating arp during the break at 3:08. Really beautiful sense of pacing and sound design.
Comet Strokes - Very nice harmonies, voicings, and piano melody. The percussive groove that occurs throughout the track is subtle but adds so much.
I appreciate how your take on ambient music breathes and evolves, considers form, melody, harmony, and rhythm. In addition, this particular soundtrack conveys warmth, nostalgia, and an overall friendly feeling that makes it a treat to listen to. Beautiful work!
The Stars We See: This is so Minecraft and I love it. Great atmosphere, love the swell right around the midway mark. Very dynamic with how it subsides after that part and begins to build up again towards the end. Love the little bits of melody here and there.
Comet Strokes: I like how this one is a little more melodic. Very pretty melodies. Also very C418. Love the chord choices. I love the pad sounds so much. I really appreciated the little subtleties in the percussion, while it's buried under the field of pads, it adds some important movement that really helped increase the immersion for me.
I could easily hear this fitting in Minecraft. I was so immersed throughout. Great work!
This sounds like the good Minecraft music
That was truly soothing and relaxing to listen to, honestly some of the best ambient tracks I’ve heard in this jam so far.
I really enjoyed the way you combined synthetic sounds to create such rich textures, and you really know how to shape ambient music beautifully, with entrances and fades handled so delicately. Everything feels carefully crafted, and the overall sound world fits perfectly with the concept you’re presenting. The choice of space-evoking timbres makes complete sense, while still connecting well with the image by inviting a sense of reflection.
Congratulations, and thank you for sharing such a wonderful work!
Great job Pixcele!
I think the way I would describe this music is that I feel it in my body like it's making me feel peace, in my chest and gut. Very, very pleasant to listen to.
It's understated in its style, yet it is also clearly very tasteful.
Really well done, I enjoyed this one thoroughly. <8
pretty high quality i must say 🙂↕️ however i do think that the first track was a bit too long and overstayed its welcome (i guess you could say that after a while it was.... unwwwelcome... haha get it......), and the songs arent too memorable, didnt quite catch my attention
This was nice and I liked it much. Thank you a ton for creating! im learning to appreciate the more ambient moments in these songs. Very delicate pads and tender moments.
Great submission!
Oh that's some lovely ambience. I could easily imagine looking at the night sky for hours with "The Stars We See" in the background, so relaxing. I really enjoyed that while "Comet Strokes" had more rhythmic movement under the hood it still had that charming and pretty relaxed mood despite being the more 'intense' part of the game. Had a great time while listening to this soundtrack, thanks for sharing!
i noticed ur submission has a space theme.... u know whats also in space.... comets.... my name is comet.... no autographs please
really nice use of synthy ambience! the first track is befitting of the minecraft end dimension with that spacey vibe and that C418 feel. my only note is that the low bassy synth drone kind of hurts my ears (i have hearing problems so it may be a #skillissue on my end) but it was a lot more palatable when the piano chords began to interject. loving the chord progression you build slowly! its very impactful when all of the instruments drop out in the middle and it all slowly builds up again. this is VERY minecraft coded like i where do i even begin i literally love this style of music
first off i am NOT having a stroke </3 second off i like the chord progression you set with the synths right off the bat, fading in and out kind of like swells of an ocean. the melodic line built with the chiptune-like synth is very nice. i really like the timbre of this track specifically. you have a really good understanding of musical texture overall and the quality of this submission is quite nice!
overall this was a very nice, calming, and interesting submission. i loved listening! thanks for sharing :D
Having played some Blue Prints now, I have a much easier time visualizing these kinds of tracks in games. The story you presented also helps in my visualization.
I like that it wasn't just pure ambiance either. There were good melodic bits and some percussion in there too to make it an enjoyable listen.
So calming and meditative, what a beautiful OST! It's got a very expansive, soothing feel to it, but the way you intersperse fun rhythms and melodic fragments throughout, especially in "Comet Strokes", keeps it really fun and engaging to listen to. Wonderful job, and thanks so much for sharing!
The sound design and the texture of the synth sounds you made are very good, I especially liked the second track with the soft synth keys at the second part. It would have been nice if the soundtrack was more elaborated with more tracks. Overall this was pretty good!
Small but heartwarming atmosphere you‘ve created that somewhat evokes a familiarity like this could have been created by C418.
Really loved listening to both of your songs. The instrumental was very fitting and just left me wanting to stay a little longer.
Great work!
As soon as I listened to both songs I immediately got a crazy sense of nostalgia for when I used to play Starbound with my friends like 10 years ago. I loved the soundtrack and your submission is giving me a similar feeling. Everything sounds really pretty and I kinda wish there was more!
i feel like i'm walking around in a huge open space at nighttime, listening to the earth hum, and the stars shimmer, waiting for the sun to rise. super lush and beautiful. thank you for sharing, your music is awesome :)
This might be the most soothing submission I've heard so far, really nice music!