Dafydd Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Ok - I've got most of this sorted out, but before I can actually launch the competition in the proper forum, I need all the rules and regulations set up and decided on, and I need you to help me with this. What would be the best way to handle submissions, the voting process and so on? WTF? I think it's time for a new kind of ReMix Competition here at OCR - one that deals with RetroMixing rather than ReMixing. Similarly to in PRC, all participants will be assigned the one and same song to ReMix, but unlike in PRC, participants will not attempt to modernize the source tune and reinterpret it into "their own", as suggested by the OCR submission standards. Instead, the competition is about making an adaption of the source tune into an NSF - a cover, if you will. Participants will not ask themselves "what would this song have sounded like had it been made today?" but rather "what would this song have sounded like had it been part of a NES game soundtrack?" Whoever makes the best and most accurate, and most pleasant-sounding adaption wins, and will also get to pick the song to be RetroMixed next. Care could also be taken to make the NSF sound like other game soundtracks made by the same company - I remember someone posted a chiptune a while back in which a song from the NES Duck Tales soundtracks had been remade to sound like a Konami game, which was very interesting to listen to. The winner will be elected by means of a voting process. DISCLAIMER: Making NSFs is easy - and free. Anyone can make an NSF. Making good NSFs is hard. Hence the fun in participating in and having this competition. There's already a competition just like this. OSHI - Seriously though, what? Where? If one's already out there, close this thread and nevermind. What's the deadline? Which song is next up for RetroMixation? The competition won't be launched until the rules and practical issues have been resolved. Example RetroMix NSFs Here are two adaptions of mine: Starfox - Corneria (poor adaption) - original SPC Super Mario World - Map 2: Overworld (better) - original SPC Why NSFs? Because I like them and I've just learned how to make them. If you want a similar competition but with GYM's, SPC's, mods or GBS's instead of NSFs, or if you want one where you remix non-game music into chiptunes, I'm not stopping you - go right ahead. What's the point? I need an excuse to waste my time making NSFs instead of something worthwhile. Besides, I know there's a number of people around here who make chiptunes for fun, so I figured they might be interested. Hopefully, there will be others as well - after all, who hasn't dreamed of making their own NES music? What songs can be RetroMixed? Obviously, any song that plays in a NES or GameBoy game will not be eligible. Most songs from any other consoles are eligible, excepting monophonic PC speaker tunes and other overly simplistic game music. Most anything from any fourth-generation console or newer is probably good to go, including PC AdLib music, mod/xm music, CD soundtracks and so on. The winner will most likely be familiar enough with the limitations of the NSF format not to pick source music that is musically dependent on more than 3 melodic parts, i.e. that relies on complex chords rather than melody and rhythm. That said, while I'd love to hear the Mega Man X soundtrack as an NSF, a lot of difficult choices need to made when considering which of the 6 or 7 melodic parts are to be left out in any given part of the most the songs in it. Only a few of the songs in the soundtrack could successfully be adapted into NSFs without losing too much of the original musical content. Songs like the SMW OW theme above are ideal in that they only contain 3 musical parts and a percussion line, which is exactly what the NSFs are capable of, save for the DMC channel, which is normally used for drums. Most songs in the SMW soundtrack would probably make good NSF tunes, simply because of their oligophony. What the competition should be called Like the other competitions here at OCR, this one needs a fancy name and a flashy, easy to remember and easy to pronounce acronym. Ideally, either the name or the acronym (or, preferrably, both) should be a pun on OverClocked ReMix or OCR, respectively. ORC succeeded admirably in the latter aspect, OLR in both. Suggestions: the Monobyte RetroMix Competition (MRC) the People's 8-bit Competition (P8C) the UnderClocked ReMix Competition (UCRC) the Chiptune Cover RetroMix Competition (CCRC) or variations and combinations thereof. You know what I'm getting at - now come up with better suggestions, because I know they're out there. Personally, I like the word "Monobyte" as an alternative for 8-bit. Hosting previous competitions, source tunes and winning submissions I'm working on a website for the competition. The source tune for the current competition could be hosted here, as well as all submissions for all competitions (NSFs are tiny), as well an image from the source game, edited into NES-styled graphics. The website is located at http://8-bit.ngst.nu/ . The site header will be replaced once a name for the competition has been decided. Submissions I guess the best thing would be if everyone just e-mailed all their submissions. The problem is that whoever checks the inbox won't be able to participate in the competition, or he'll be able to "cheat", taking too much influence from the other submissions. Since I'd like to participate myself, at least sometimes, I'd need someone to help me here. Voting Process I don't know how this should be set up and regulated, but would appreciate it if someone who has experience in this field could suggest ways to do this. Personally, I'd prefer a simple forum poll, but since they don't seem to be included with VBulletin, or they're disabled by the administrators, this doesn't seem to be an option. I do like the idea of having the competition run until a set deadline after which the voting process kicks in, and once a winner has been elected, the next competition starts, similarly to PRC. How do I make NSFs? You need one of the following programs: (more suggestions?) FAMITRACKER - Comes with a good help file and is capable of pretty much anything the NSFs are, save for using special expansion chips such as the Konami VRC6. NERD TRACKER II - DOS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dhsu Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 I know exactly one person who is definitely going to be interested in this. Besides me, of course. Fufufufufu~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 28, 2007 Author Share Posted July 28, 2007 Wait - you're saying you don't think enough people will be interested, or just that you know someone who will be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OverCoat Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Hello! I think this should be open to all emulated console formats like nsf/spc/vgm/sid since there's a way to make all of those, plus you'll probably want to listen to me because I will be the only one capable of participating, unless you talk RushJet1 into it. So there's like, 2 people! Also, everyone here except for me uses FruityLoops or Cubase, they can't write chiptunes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doulifée Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Hello!I think this should be open to all emulated console formats like nsf/spc/vgm/sid since there's a way to make all of those, plus you'll probably want to listen to me because I will be the only one capable of participating, unless you talk RushJet1 into it. So there's like, 2 people! Also, everyone here except for me uses FruityLoops or Cubase, they can't write chiptunes. when dafyd talked to me about that contest, you were the first to cross my mind . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 28, 2007 Author Share Posted July 28, 2007 The thing is, it's not really a fair competition if some submit SPCs, some NSFs, some SIDs... it'd be like midis competing with MP3s. What I'd enjoy most from this competition would be hearing what this and that song would have sounded like if played on the NES. Also, anyone can make NSFs, so you're not the only one who will be "able" to participate. All anyone needs is Famitracker (which is free), musical talent and a lot of patience. I got it like a month ago and I don't totally suck at it. And I had no previous experience with trackers. Anyone could learn how to do it. It would be pretty cool to have a grand-scale version of your suggestion, however - a whole new website named UnderClocked ReMix where all submissions were chiptunes - any source (so long as it's a game) - any emulated format - and with possible creative reinterpretations (what would the megaman 3 title theme sound like on the SNES, eh?). This, however, is not the purpose of this competition, although I'm certainly not averse to the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 28, 2007 Author Share Posted July 28, 2007 Wow, the compo thingy looks very nice. I'll read more about it on the wiki there. I wonder if I could host the thing there, sort of, and use my framework for the visuals, or if I should let only the submission / voting process take place there. Either way, you need a thasauce account both to participate and to vote, which is kind of meh if I want this to be an OCR-based competition (which I do), but if PRC and ORC can do it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arek the Absolute Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 when dafyd talked to me about that contest, you were the first to cross my mind . I am pretty sure everyone who knows overcoat found him to be the first on their mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Less Ashamed Of Self Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Well I'm not UNinterested. I made a few chiptunes before but they always sorta sucked. I'd love to learn to use this madtracker2 I picked up a while ago but I've always just used vsts in FL. Famitracker never did it for me. If someone would put together a quick tutorial on the most ideal and simplest way to get the nes sound I'd be down. So what would it be, like, dod style theme for each competition? Game soundtracks? Anything goes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 28, 2007 Author Share Posted July 28, 2007 Maybe I didn't state it clearly enough, but yes, game soundtracks. What do you mean by "Famitracker never did it for me" - you didn't like it, or you didn't manage to figure out how to use it, or you just plain don't like the NES sound? You have to mess a bit with instrument configurations to get the right sound, but it's not that difficult. Listening to some of the more obscure NES soundtracks, it's obvious that whoever was making their soundtracks was either lazy or incompetent. Koji knew his stuff though. Is "dod style" any different from PRC? I don't know anything about dod other than that the people who participate put out some really good stuff sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Less Ashamed Of Self Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 Well I remember famitracker frustrating me with it's lack of... either sound texture control or... maybe it was I couldn't get it to export... or playback... or... anyway... I'll d/l it again now in the interest of not being retarded. Also, what I meant by dod style was would the competition be like: okay you have one month and everyone has to remix a kirby game, or a capcom game, or a game from FF4... or would it be more like any song will do so long as it's from a video game. And is this strictly a non-re-interpretive project, just cover work? Cause it's cool either way... I wouldn't mind more 8-bit covers of my favourite songs. Overcoat's Cruel Angel's Thesis was one of the coolest 8-bit pieces I've ever heard. EDIT: Well that backfired. In the interest of getting Famitracker to work I subsequently broke my midi devices and don't know how to fix them. Now I'm just pissed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 29, 2007 Author Share Posted July 29, 2007 That's funny, I installed it and it worked with my midi stuff without changing hardly any settings... Remember you don't need to choose a midi out port. Did you create an instrument before trying to play something? I know that had me for a while. Also, you must "enable midi" in the Edit menu, but that's about it. Where do you go to screw up your midi devices? I mean, I'm sure there's a built-in button in windows that does just this, but what did you do? The competition would be like: You have X weeks (3, maybe?) to remix a specific song from a specific game, and it's non-reinterpretive in the sense that you're making a cover, but it's reinterpretive in that you have very limited technology to work with and will have to "reinterpret" the instruments used in the source into NES sounds (and velocity curves, arpeggios and duty cycle switches means there's a lot of possibilities there). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Less Ashamed Of Self Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 I see. That is kind of a cool idea. Winner picks the next source? It would be fun to screw people into some 8+ channel song. I kinda would prefer a theme instead of a particular song... cause then it's just a matter of who did this song the best; where as if you just picked a game, and maybe even assigned people to different tracks, it could be an ongoing collaboration thing. VG Chipdisk releases anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 29, 2007 Author Share Posted July 29, 2007 Hehe, yeah, but then it wouldn't be a competition, I don't think. I wouldn't mind a "remix project" in which you took a whole soundtrack and made one big NSF out of it. We all know this is a bad time to launch yet another remix project though. Besides, there could always be more chiptune competitions than this one - one where you remix non-game music, or one where you make your own song based on a set theme. I'm all set on what I want this competition for though. Winner picks the next and The winner will most likely be familiar enough with the limitations of the NSF format not to pick source music that is musically dependent on more than 3 melodic parts, i.e. that relies on complex chords rather than melody and rhythm.Well, we now have 3 people interested, or possibly 5, so I guess I could launch this now. I just need to read more into the ts:combo thingy, it looks like a good solution.If you're interested in a more open NSF competition, you should check this out: http://www.2a03.org/ Wow, I just listened to some of Virt's chiptunes. zomfgz! I think he's pressing beyond the NES's abilities though - I doubt he could make an NSF sounding like that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzumebachi Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 If you're going to the trouble of rearranging a song for the NES, why limit it to video game songs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 29, 2007 Author Share Posted July 29, 2007 Because I want to. It would be too broad if any song could be included, and I want to hear what non-NES game music would sound like on the NES. Again, if you want a competition where anything goes, there's no one stopping you from starting one, and if this one doesn't gain enough popularity to make a competition (i.e. no one wants to participate), then it will be cancelled and die. Rearranging music for the NES isn't "trouble", it's fun fun fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerrax Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 This topicmakes me want to brush the dust off of GoatTracker and give it another whirl! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted July 29, 2007 Author Share Posted July 29, 2007 Ok, but this competition isn't for SIDs. If you know how to use GT though, you shouldn't have much trouble learning FT... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerrax Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 I thought GT could do NSFs...oh well. I'll have to get CheeseTracker (I have a Mac. I don't think there is a Mac versionof FamiTracker) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted August 1, 2007 Author Share Posted August 1, 2007 Please confirm whether GT is capable of making NSFs (I've never used it, so if it is, my bad, sorry about that - I just looked it up and all it said was it made SIDs), and I'll add it to the list of useable programs to the bottom of the first post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OverCoat Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 No, GoatTracker is for SID only. The only options for NSF are FamiTracker, MML, and a s3m-to-nsf conversion tool, which isn't hosted anywhere right now as far as I know. I'll see if I can get the link for that util from reduz! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzumebachi Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 No, GoatTracker is for SID only.The only options for NSF are FamiTracker, MML, and a s3m-to-nsf conversion tool, which isn't hosted anywhere right now as far as I know. I'll see if I can get the link for that util from reduz! You forgot Nerd Tracker II. (for those who still use DOS?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gollgagh Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 If you need someone to collect submissions, I should be reasonably available to do that, and maybe the votes, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dafydd Posted August 2, 2007 Author Share Posted August 2, 2007 That mean you're interested in the participating in the competition, but not as a competitor? I'd welcome that - while the TS:COMPO looks nice, I'd rather not involve TS here, as I've already spent hours making a website for the compo and all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundeslang Posted August 3, 2007 Share Posted August 3, 2007 Wow, looks interesting. I really like the name the 'Underclocked Remix Contest'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.