In Octave Devlog #5 - Generative Music

I haven't found much time this past week to work on the game. But I still have made some progress in the music making of the game. So I'll share what I have now!

Objectives

I want In Octave to have a procedural soundtrack. Just like the background, it should evolve as the player progress in a level.

My idea is this: each level is a sustained chord played by a synth (with some LFO and slow effects to not make it dull). When the player makes progress (when the circle grows), another synth is added, fade crossing with the first one. Once the level is done and the circle complete, the second sync complete the first one and play another chord. When the player hit the ball however, the second synth fade out completely.

On top of the background music and the notes played by balls, I want a short played for each level reached. Some kind of feed-back for level-completion, a bit like a victory jingle.

My main inspiration is Winter in C Major, by iDisasterpeace, from The Floor is Jelly OST. It has those long chords, one for each screen of the level, with filters applied according to players position. This game has a ton of interesting sound-design idea, and a wonderful ambiant soundtrack! Rain in C Minor and The Last Day are also two relevant track. I can also mention Starseed Pilgrim soundtrack by Ryan Roth. Not only it uses long sustained notes, but also a lot of ambient sounds. Most importantly, the music in Starseed Pilgrim plays a lot like I would like In Octave to, with melody created randomly by game elements.

Accomplishment

I've put in place the system to progressively fade in background music for each level. Actually, increasing gain for the second synth wasn't enough: the first one has to be lowered down to make a better transition.

I've also written the complete partition (which is, deciding which chord to use for each level). I've decided to work on G minor. I dunno, it sounded nice.

And finally, I've composed the four first levels! Here is how it sounds:

… Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not really pleased with the result.

Of course, it's not finished yet: instruments played by the balls need to be louder. And It will definitely be something else than that piano. I think it could even be nicer with some reverb.

But still, the music here feels too aggressive. It sounds like a heavy church organ. Too stressing, ominous. I want something mysterious, but also calm and discrete. Maybe I should listen more Brian Eno… I could also add some more ambient sounds, like wind, abstract noises in the distance… Alternatively, instead of synth, it could be choirs or strings (or at least, something close).

So it's likely I will redo those levels and start the music from scratch. It should be lighter, appeasing. Also the transition between the first two chords feels weird here, I should fix that too. Maybe a Bb Major (III) isn't the best choice? Anyway, it should be changed!

That being said, at least the system is done! I can try and experiment more easily. It's the second time I'm making a procedural composition, and it can be slow to test. I'm glad the tracks loop smoothly, and the transitions seems to work. I would also like to add some progressive low-pass filter, but I'll have to wait for that. I hope I'll be able to find something that sounds pleasant. Until then, have a nice week!