Results
Ranked from 30 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
"Two investigators specializing in supernatural crimes are tasked with the search for a series of disappearances in a rural area of Japan, including a girl who vanished during a summer festival. With aid from benevolent local Yokai (spiritual entities from Japanese folklore), the pair face off with malicious spirits and entities as they uncover the mystery surrounding the disappearances."
This is a primarily orchestral soundtrack for a mystery/action game featuring a few Japanese instruments (and their imitations) to reflect the setting.
1 - Title
Pretty self explanatory... I imagine this track as the music that plays when you've just booted up the game. The first half of the track is a loosely timed solo section featuring a koto accompanying a cello solo playing the theme of human spirits/souls (or in other words, the dead). The second half has a taiko passively keeping the rhythm in the background as an alto flute and hichiriki (reed instrument) plays the melody of the mystery theme (that also kind of serves as the theme for the living, I guess). I substituted a duduk for the hichiriki because there aren't any good samples :(
2 - Battling the Oni
The pair faces off with the main culprit! Turns out an oni (demon) had claimed a part of the mountains neighboring the village as its own territory, kidnapping and devouring unsuspecting people wandering within its boundaries.
This track is all about fighting a giant demon, hence the super-aggressive nature of it. Lots of taiko. I play a sopranino recorder solo in this one, imitating a traditional japanese flute.
3 - Release of the Spirits
After defeating the oni, the spirits of the devoured are released, free from the demon's torment. The girl that disappeared from the summer festival is found frightened but alive. She explains that she was reminded of a recently deceased family member that would accompany her to the summer festival every year, and wanted to visit their grave in the mountains but was then kidnapped by the oni.
This track is sort of a recap of the title track, but this time starting off with the mystery theme.. 2 shos, furin bells and a cluster of soprano/alto/tenor recorders create a pad, representing the freed spirits fluttering around. This eventually develops to a fully harmonized version of the spirits theme (more recorder playing yay) before ending with the cello solo heard at the beginning again.
Message from the artist
Hope you enjoy this one. This was a challenge!!! The first half of the jam was just researching what scales and instruments to use. The second half of the jam was realizing I had waaaaaaaay overestimated how much I could write in the given amount of time. I was also challenging myself to NOT include a cello solo for this jam, but as you can hear from the very first track, I failed that one. Lol.
Cover artist is done by Asahi Yonaha! This cover art is not the full version. I think I'll use the completed version for a separate release of the soundtrack with a bunch of other tracks I couldn't finish in time.
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
It mostly fits with the text theme, as this fake game takes place in a single night during a summer festival. I saw the picture theme as a photograph of the missing girl in question handed to the investigators, but that's about it.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://on.soundcloud.com/ptPaC586URWUTagpCJ
Number of tracks
3
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Yes (CC BY-NC)Any non-commercial project
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