A song request (FOR a game, rather than from a game)

[inZane]

Hello all,

I'm not sure how common this is, but I'd like to make a request for a game I am developing, if anybody is open to the idea. I'd be happy to give credit in every way possible for the creativity, though the game itself is being designed to be free to play.

Lexicaster, as the game is called, is the culmination of years of research for a master's thesis on the topic of teaching a foreign language through video games, which has spanned several continents and fields of inquiry. I've been lucky enough to have help from some great people along the way, such as artists, who have filled in the holes of my expertise (I am a game programmer by trade and game designer by education). This project has been one of the most amazing experiences for me, and as it gets closer to completion I hope that I can continue to share it with others.

I am now at the point that the gameplay and artistic styles have been finalized and are nearing a stage where it is truly presentable. The game is a 2D tile-based game played in a web-browser (so you can play it on a PC, Mac, Linux, etc. with nothing more than an internet connection). Artistically, the two adjectives selected to encapsulate the style were "majestic" and "playful." As you can see from the included pictures, the game is intentionally simplistic and hopefully easy on the eyes. Part of the idea behind the game is to take focus away from anything which is distracting so that the educational experience can be improved.

In line with these ideas, I have a general idea of how I want the music to sound, but I am far from musically inclined. You can see the login screen online at http://Lexicaster.com ; you can see from it and the picture below that the game attempts at a "serene" and "aquatic" feel. I've been taken aback with the quality of music on this site, which is why I come to you now. I find myself rather lacking in appropriate adjectives when it comes to describing what I have in mind for the game, but I feel that the quality I've seen on this site would allow me to give up creative control on this part and let someone have fun with the project.

If this sounds like your kind of project, I'd love to talk more.

Thanks for your time,

Zane

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A screenshot is below... if you'd like to see the animated login screen, you can go to http://lexicaster.com

[Dafydd]

This is the right place to ask for people who can make music for you. Most people aren't interested in participating if they don't think the game will actually be finished, but yours looks promising in that aspect. I'm not personally interested in helping out, but it won't be long before someone else shows up, I'm sure.

[inZane]

Thanks

I thought I'd post a little more about the game/myself for the sake of credibility. I've worked at Electronic Arts as a game programmer, and studied at USC. I first started working in the subject of a video game to teach a foreign language about 2 years ago, and since then have done my best to research the topic thoroughly. I took a leave of absence from school in order to travel to Beijing, China where I have been teaching English and studying Chinese for the past 7 months in order to gain hands-on experience with the subject. The masters thesis itself draws on a variety of disciplines, and is well on its way to being complete (being developed alongside the game). The artist who designed the initial style of the game is a lead artist on one of the well-known projects at Electronic Arts, and I've also received help from others within the industry of varying disciplines.

One way or another, the game will be finished - it's crucial to me finishing my education If anybody who is interested in helping wanted to see a playable version of the game I could provide it, though the level design is still quite rough...

Thanks again for the vote of confidence.

[Dafydd]

I love the idea, because I love languages, and playing games is an excellent way of learning new ones (it's how I learned English, for example). I'm interested in trying the game, but I don't think the kind of music I make would fit very well here.

Some more info on what kind of music you could probably be helpful - you said you didn't know how to describe it, but tell me this - do you want orchestral music or is synthetic ok? Do you want something sweeping, non-melodious, ambient or something more uptempo? Rhytmic or not? Slow or fast? "Serene" and "aquatic" are both good words here, but they can mean different things depending on who you ask. Try to find a mix on the site that sounds something like what you had in mind. You could even contact the guy who made it and ask him if he's interested.

Also, I envy you for being a game programmer.

[inZane]

Thanks again Game programming is fun, but, well, it has its ups and downs like anything. There's nothing better than working on your own project, and working in the industry is also great... but being at the whim of people who may or may not agree with you can be all the more frustrating when you feel so invested in a project. A lot of time is spent coding the desires of other people.

To try to answer your questions:

1) Orchestral

2) Sweeping and non-melodious/ambient sounds more correct for the main music, though I imagine I'll eventually get to the point I want something more ah tension-building at certain points

3) Hm, rhythmic sounds better, insofar as I believe rhythm might induce a more calming state, to get you "into the groove" as it were

4) Slow

I've been listening to the Chrono Symphonic album lately, and slowly making my way through the archives. On the Chrono album, I like a few songs a lot, though they're a bit off. DarkeSword's Blue Skies Over Guardia has a nice big-majestic-city feel to it, for example... I also like Blake Perdue's Door to the End of Time, sephire/SirRus' Morning Sunlight, and a few others.

Still, I imagine a certain, ah, epic and somewhat choir-like sound to the music which I'm not quite finding...