Music is somehow at the core

Share your ideas and thoughts for the game with the community and team.
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david
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I'm getting the sense that one of the core themes of Ghost of a Tale is music... it won't be just a background thing.

I've listened very closely to Jeremiah Pena's music... imho there is no question about it: he is a flipping genius. Also, way back before he went into animation, Seith was a musician. As you know, the main character of the game is a lute-player... who carries his instrument on his back :)

So what I am wondering is, how do you see music being woven right into the fabric of the Ghost of a Tale experience?
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evilkinggumby
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I like the idea that back in the day (and by the day i mean long long ago) Minstrels were there to travel and pass along local folklore, bring news and music and art to different areas. They sort of brought a certain amount of color and inspiration to the lands through song and story and dance.

I don't know if that would be a core element of the game, but I'd love to see facets of it brought to the table. The one thing that would be GREAT but likely not possible would be dynamic music that changed it's complexity and tempo based on the situation. It is likely a lot of code that wouldn't fit into the time and budget of the game (unless someone has a useable utility compatible with unity? I don't know), but I love the synergy of music and gameplay to help heighten the emotion or mood of a scene. It is one of the reasons I liked SSX Tricky, the whole series makes great use of remixing the music to match the onscreen action and really make big moments HUGE.

In terms of gameplay, or even story.. One idea for a subplot/side story woudl be to cleanse the "song of the forest". They say if you stand still and just listen, you can kind of hear the voice (or song) of the world. It is most evident in the woods, because of the orchestral cacaphony of different sounds possible. Well what if said orchestra was tainted, rearranged, and 'spoiled' ?.

Seith would need to create a series of environments and assets for a normal lush forest/field/etc and then copy them and tweak the shadowmaps and normal maps to make them look "tainted". Tweak some textures and a few meshes and he could recreate said zone to look ruined or sickly. Not dead, just wrong. This taint can be due to magic crystals planted at the center of the woods, poison plants growing like weeds that the hero must destroy (finally a good reason to obliterate bushes like SNES Zelda) or even because of an enchanted instrument hanging in a tree that continuously plays the last bitter tune it heard (in which case our hero simply has to find a nice piece of sheet music that they play to teach the instrument a new tune and when you go back to said zone later it is lush and green again). You could even stack the benefits and the more sheets you collect, the longer and more powerful the song to teach. Initially it makes the trees and grass green, add another and bushes and foliage down low sprout, another sheet adds wildflowers, one more and you get small insects and creatures, one more and berries and fruit trees, and finally the last one produces larger trees, gorgeous flowers, and something special (like an audience with the spirit of the forest. :) )

I guess this ties in a bit with the collection quests thread a bit. Still, if it was done dynamically so that you could find different sheet music in any order, and so change how the forest grows, replayability would offer different views of the woods. :) Which is kinda a fun side thing.

It could also mean getting different tunes or suites made for the lute based on the different aspects of the forest. From "The frolic of the fruit" to "Green Acres" to "Flower's Folly". hehehe. That'd be an interesting but possibly fun challenge for Jeremiah, if he was up for it. Each little ditty could be just a short portion of a lengthy song, or (if he was crazy enough) they could accompany each other into a true layered orchestra of grand design. :)
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King_Yoshi
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I am hoping that music is an important part of the game.
(Mind you, I would consider myself a high end Graphics Connoisseur as well.)

I feel that many newer games seem to see music as "just in the background".
However I personally find that, if done right, music can really add some extra depth to a game.
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evilkinggumby
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King_Yoshi wrote:I am hoping that music is an important part of the game.
(Mind you, I would consider myself a high end Graphics Connoisseur as well.)

I feel that many newer games seem to see music as "just in the background".
However I personally find that, if done right, music can really add some extra depth to a game.
I think you'll be in for a treat. Jeremiah seems to really appreciate what added depth music can add to a scene and so when he composes there is much more to the piece, and so the scene, than just background filler. I don't expect any of the music composed for GoaT will feel like flat background filler at all.

And I agree music can really REALLY bring out a scene and push the emotion, tension, atmosphere, playfulness, or whatever. To not take advantage of this is a shame.
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