Level 99

I again give my permission to monetize my songs on the ocr youtube channel. I don't post much anymore but the site's existence is still important to me, so anything to help make the site's costs easier to manage and plan for is fine by me. Please upload a video at some point of all of Liontamer's Lamborghini hot tubs, though.

I again give my permission to monetize my songs on the ocr youtube channel. I don't post much anymore but the site's existence is still important to me, so anything to help make the site's costs easier to manage and plan for is fine by me. Please upload a video at some point of all of Liontamer's Lamborghini hot tubs, though.

That's definitely implied where it indicates to have patience. It took me five years to get posted, and took some other people even longer. But once you get it, there's nothing more satisfying than knowing you broke out of the mold and really accomplished something. One of the most rewarding things is achieving and exceeding personal goals.
FWOOOSH!

Who is going to MAGLabs next month?
http://magfest.org/maglabs
It is the newly-named MAGFest Classic at the old location! Besides the elevators, the hotel was super sweet, and the smaller crowd it holds is a lot better for general chilling.
Nothing can take the place of the legit main MAGFest, but the theme this year is sort of like Portal, and features a lot of experimentation. OverClocked ReMix is going to be there as well, experimenting with some new and cool panel ideas.
Also, OverClocked community people performing there:
DJ FLEXSTYLE 
OVERCLOCKED UNIVERSITY
STARGATE
Confirmed OverClocked community attendees:
Arrow
Bahamut
DarkeSword
Detective Tuesday
djpretzel
DragonAvenger
Flexstyle
Geoffrey Taucer
Level 99
Neblix
OA
theshaggyfreak
Tom the Drummer
 
 
If you are coming to but aren't on the list, let me know so I can add you!

Just saying, I make a lot of these.
I mean, like
A LOT
...yeah...
 

Just saying, I make a lot of these.
I mean, like
A LOT
...yeah...
 

Here is a Stevo-approved guided tour of what a general noob's first steps on the site of OCR should be. This is assuming the person in question is coming here either because they like video games, video game music, OC ReMixes, or want to share/make music themselves. These are the recommendations from someone who is seasoned in the goings-on of our fair community, so take it as you will.
1) Register for the forums (duh)
2) Go to the Newbie Introduction Thread and say hello. Read that thread a bit to see all of what people are coming here for, and make your intentions known. Don't worry, you won't get bitten for telling us about yourself.
3) Go to the OverClocked ReMix wiki pages and read up on site policies, including forum conduct, FAQs, Submission Standards, and many other very useful things. The best way to get off to a good start is to get an idea of what is expected of you in the area that you're wanting to participate and contribute. Official site policies are in place to do just that.
4) Familiarize yourself with the site and forum layout. Navigate a bit, see what the different areas are and get used to how to get around. Learning to use the search feature is highly recommended, because what you're looking for may likely already exist somewhere.
Now comes the CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE part of this guide! Magically, your computer screen turns dark and some DOS text types on the screen. You see five selections:
* I WANT TO LEARN HOW TO REMIX LIKE YOU FOLKS AND GET POSTED!
* I WANT TO SHARE MY MUSIC, REMIX OR ORIGINAL, AND IMPROVE MY MUSICAL SKILL!
* I WANT TO TALK ABOUT VIDEO GAMES AND MUSIC AND OTHER STUFF!
* I WANT TO GET A SONG REMIXED BUT DONT WANT TO DO IT MYSELF!
* I'M NOT SURE WHAT I WANT TO DO. HALP!
Type your answer NOW!
-----------------------------
* I WANT TO LEARN HOW TO REMIX LIKE YOU FOLKS AND GET POSTED!
Whoa there, fella. Slow down a sec, because chances are this is going to take a lot of time, effort, persistence, motivation, and above all else, patience. There are a few things that everyone needs to know before they endeavour to become an official posted OverClocked ReMixer:
- A ReMix is not simply taking a source MIDI and adding drums to it while changing instruments and tempo. A ReMix is more akin to a song arrangement. To get all the details on what qualifies as a ReMix, read up on the Submissions Standards and Instructions. If you're still having trouble comprehending, many people have asked specific questions in the Judge's Q&A thread which can potentially help shed some more light on the matter.
- All the site staff are here to help you, not put you down. If you get rejected or receive negative feedback in the workshop forums, don't cop an attitude. Be receptive to all criticism (though you may need to sift through some less-than-helpful material) and always strive to improve. Ask questions, expand your knowledge and skill, and in time you will reach the goal. Turning a review thread into a catfight or accosting the judges doesn't accomplish anything.
With that out of the way, here comes the meat of the section: how to get a song posted. First, it depends on if you already have musical skill and experience or not. In either case, the Workshop area is the first place you want to go after reading all the official policies and whatnot. The majority of the musicians here use computer programs such as trackers, sequencers, and DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) to create music. This is in contrast to using a traditional studio, which very few hobbyist musicians have ready access to. So if you've never made music on a computer before, head to the Workshop. If you have made music before, awesome!
The next step is to pick a song or songs you want to work on. One is recommended to start with, and it really doesn't matter what it is as long as it falls in our allowed source material guidelines. Just a quick list of what isn't considered allowable as a source tune for posted OC ReMixes: licensed music (example: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater music), folk or classical music not written for the game (the only exception is "Korobeiniki" from Tetris), and music from non-video-game materials (the Pokémon TV Show theme song isn't allowed; usable source has to be written specifically for that video game). There is more, but that is also addressed in the OCR wiki.
So now you've picked a song, and it is time to get to work. What happens next will vary depending on the situation, but when you feel you've gotten a good body going and are ready for some feedback, make a thread in the ReMixes section of the Workshop area. Please read up on the Workshop area rules before posting: there are a few sticky threads that provide guidelines for how to post and what to expect.
Go through the workshop process, from getting regular forum-goer feedback, improving your song and updating it for more feedback, wash rinse repeat until you're ready to call it finished. Once it is finished, you can mark it for Mod Review, which is where site-appointed staff will review your material before you sub it to the Judge's Panel. They are by no means real judges but are in the process of getting to that level, and have demonstrated the knowledge, skill, and verbal abilities to give critical feedback that is distinctive of OCR's quality bar.
After that and any subsequent revisions, you'll be submitting the song to the panel. Make sure to include ALL material mentioned in the submission guidelines, and cross your fingers for good luck. Remember to be patient now because the process of receiving the song, giving it a preliminary evaluation (whether or not it is directly rejected, passed on to the Judge's Panel, or directly posted), Judge's evaluation, and eventual posting varies. The average time depends on how busy the staff are, but it is not uncommon for a song that goes through the motions to take anywhere from six months to over a year to get posted. The staff are always working hard to keep the line moving.
If you get rejected, don't get mad. Just keep working at it and improving and one day you'll surely get there.
-----------------------------------
* I WANT TO SHARE MY MUSIC, REMIX OR ORIGINAL, AND IMPROVE MY MUSICAL SKILL!
Easy peasy, person! The Workshop area is where you want to be. Just browse around there and contribute to discussions. You are encouraged to post your own material as well as commenting on other people's, since listening to songs and figuring what works and what doesn't will expand your knowledge of how to construct a cohesive arrangement and quality production. Be respectful of everyone since we're all here to learn and grow.
Also definitely check out some of the running compos (short for competitions) that are run by OCR community members. Compos are a great way to boost skill and work with others. They're friendly competitions, the most of which have no real "prize" other than the work you do. All of this is located on the Competitions area.
Another thing you could do is to check out the Recruit and Collaborate area. Here is where people running projects, such as remix albums, post requests for people to hop on board. It is also where people who want to collaborate on songs go to look for people to work with.
Additionally, you can seek out people who make music in a similar vein as you, and ask them to give your material a listen. Finding peers on the forums and on IRC will facilitate a feedback system that will help all people involved grow and learn. The best thing about this community is the people, as you're likely to make friends who end up being a critical part of your musical growth.
-----------------------------------
* I WANT TO TALK ABOUT VIDEO GAMES AND MUSIC AND OTHER STUFF!
Video Game, VGM-related, and Music talk mostly takes place in Community. Make sure you go over those forum guidelines before posting or making a new thread.
For other things, there is Off-Topic. This includes the subsection about Politics, Philosophy, and Religion. You need a forum account to read these threads, and the conversation here is a bit more unrestrained.
------------------------------------
* I WANT TO GET A SONG REMIXED BUT DONT WANT TO DO IT MYSELF!
There's a place for that: ReMix Requests. Flooding this area with song requests won't increase the likelihood of them getting fulfilled, as this section is just for people pitching songs that they would like to hear be ReMixed by the musicians on OCR. Some suggestions get done, and many more do not. If you want to hear a song ReMixed, the best thing to do is to do it yourself. But if you have no want to learn or to do that, posting here is the best chance you have. Plus you can find some really great obscure video game source tunes here which you wouldn't have ever heard of otherwise!
------------------------------------
* I'M NOT SURE WHAT I WANT TO DO. HALP!
Shhhhh, I promise it will all be okay. Dry those tears and be not afraid. There's always a few things that we are welcoming more of:
* Participants in the Workshop area, specifically giving feedback on ReMixes and Originals posted there. Always in need of more people to comment on the work other people have done so they can hone their skills and improve their stuff.
* Writing reviews for OC ReMixes. If you liked a song, didn't like a song, or just wanted to tell the creator you are looking forward to more of their work, go over to the ReMix Comments/Reviews area and speak your mind.
* Chat it up in our IRC room. You can connect using your favorite flavor of IRC client, or you can use the java IRC applet hosted on the site. Information on the room can be found in the Chat section.
* Check out the non-music Competitions and consider contributing. There's numerous competitions that don't involve making music! There's video competitions, like the OCRMVC series. There's word competitions, like the Writing Competition thread. There's art competitions, such as the Fan Art Competition. Just browse around and strut whatever skills you have.
-------------------------------------
This guide will be changed as is necessary.

Edit: Okay, after further consideration and some conversation, I'm tentatively going to keep my tack on here.  I'm going to contact everyone with done or near done songs to get this into a small OCRI EP release.  No new track assignments, no updates from stuff that isn't close to finished, this is basically just a cleanup job so that the music that is mostly done can be out and we can all move on with our lives.

Edit: Okay, after further consideration and some conversation, I'm tentatively going to keep my tack on here.  I'm going to contact everyone with done or near done songs to get this into a small OCRI EP release.  No new track assignments, no updates from stuff that isn't close to finished, this is basically just a cleanup job so that the music that is mostly done can be out and we can all move on with our lives.

Bring back the old forums, and the sidebar, and all the mixes that were removed!
 
These new forums are legit in all seriousness.