Katawa Shoujo Forums

I said this in the Act 1 feedback thread, but it seems appropriate here also:

"The Student Council": This one was very disappointing, not in the least because it used to be my favorite track. The core of the old one was its strong solo violin part. While the violin was not perfect, it worked and made the song what it is. In the new version, the violin has been removed completely to be replaced by very weak guitar and clarinet parts. These two are much less powerful and end up being drowned out by the background parts. Also, the synthetic flutey sounding part that comes in near the middle is now so overpowering that it becomes distracting whereas before it had been covered up by the strong violin part. As a fix, I would suggest bringing the violin back but making it more orchestral if it really was so distracting or problematic before.

"Out of the loop": by muting the beginning, its no longer as distracting and therefore much better. It still keeps the main silly, kooky feel it should have, which is another plus. Quite different from the original, but in the same spirit.

"Ah Eh I Oh You": The newly added... plucked cello? part is quite strong and a bit odd sounding. Its quite distracting and needs to be toned down a bit. The rest of the changes are ok though and the sax part is quite nice.

"Concord": the new orchestral part is excellent and gives the piece the majestic feel that suits Lilly. "High tension": This song was not changes, and thats the problem. The loud honk of the trumpet at the crescendo does not sound dramatic, but is instead mood breaking and ruins the tension of the dramatic scenes.


I am also a bit curious as to whether the old songs could be included in the juke box. While having new ones is good, I also like the old versions a lot.

EternalLurker wrote:

delta wrote:Do you want to imply that a completely irrelevant poll about which character you like most which is also massively skewed by bot voting is not dumb?

My point revolved around the username of the thread creator, obviously.

I very much see a difference between a whimsical character poll and attempts at armchair development decisions via voting. The former is merely dumb, the latter will earn you a kick in the pants.

Shades of Grey wrote:I am also a bit curious as to whether the old songs could be included in the juke box. While having new ones is good, I also like the old versions a lot.

Not until the DVD version is on store shelves (i.e., never). The music already makes up three quarters of the download volume and I won't double that just because it might appeal to a minority of people who can just install any version they like and listen to that version's jukebox anyway.

The new nurse theme kinda has an "INCOMING BAD END!!!" air to it.

Shades of Grey wrote:I am also a bit curious as to whether the old songs could be included in the juke box. While having new ones is good, I also like the old versions a lot.

I would feel pretty weird about putting anything old in the game. The old materials were changed for a reason: we don't want them to be in there.

well it's just the contrast between the music played up to the nurse... nice calming music then WHAM in your face smack that the nurse's theme hits you with, it just sounds really, and i mean really out of place... like heavy metal at a opera house... or something like that.

just my 2 cents.

by the way, did anyone feel the crushing disappointment when you go to the homepage, notice the download is circled red, saw the words Full Release and thought OMG its here! and then saw

TBA

it was almost like my heart stopped.

ah well, patience is a virtue...

Really don't like Nurse's new theme. :\

Actually, I don't like a lot of the synthesized instruments, either. Especially that bass prevalent in the Nurse and Kenji themes... >.<

EternalLurker wrote:

Warwick wrote:And EL, the only real issue I have with Concord is the large amount of reverb and rubato on the strings in the middle section, otherwise I don't really see what you're getting at. The B-C transition is a shift from 4/4 time to a waltz. Of course it's going to be jarring.

First part: yes. Second part: what. You are seriously saying time switches are inherently unpleasant? The original had the same switch and didn't sound bad in the process. I don't wanna have to redownload v3 with my current Internet connection (will be back to normal in a couple days), but IIRC the issue in the new version at that part was that the lower notes basically drop out abruptly due to the aforementioned bad volume variances, which makes the time switch sound terrible; in the original the bass sticks around to back it up. Might be talking out of my ass since I've got a memory like a thingy that lets water drain out of it while keeping back solids of appreciable size, Iunno, if so I'll listen again in a couple days.

I never meant that it would be bad, just noticeable. I took a quick listen to both the new and old. To me, the notes were exactly the same. Maybe there's something in there that made it stand out to you. In all honesty, when listening to either the old or new Concord, I never noticed exactly when the transition occurred. It was more like, "wait a minute, it's a waltz now?" The shift throws me off a little, yes, but the transition itself was fairly imperceptible.

As for balance within a song, some people bring up valid points, but I don't mind too much. Then again, I'm the kind of musician that likes to emphasize the counter-melody at times, so my perception of balance may be off.

I don't like the new version for kenji's theme. It hurts my ears. I love kenji's parts because he is a funny character but there is a problem when his music is painful to listen to. And I mean that literally.

Shizune's them is ok but it's too quiet.

...

which song is nurse's theme again?

ubergeneral wrote:which song is nurse's theme again?

The one you hear when you talk with Nurse.
ta daa

ubergeneral wrote:I don't like the new version for kenji's theme. It hurts my ears. I love kenji's parts because he is a funny character but there is a problem when his music is painful to listen to. And I mean that literally.

Shizune's them is ok but it's too quiet.

...

which song is nurse's theme again?

a e i o u

ubergeneral wrote:
which song is nurse's theme again?

Ah Eh I Oh You

The only song that I can actually notice changing and feel disappointed about is The Student Council. I loved the violin part. Probably the most memorable song from when I played a year ago, seeing as I can still remember it so vividly. Everything else I love. Kenji's theme seems much more quirky and lively, and now that's stuck in my head.

Utumo wrote:Kenji's theme seems much more quirky and lively, and now that's stuck in my head.

Agreed, but I'm missing some notes in the main lines, which have a bit of a jarring effect on my ears... Other than that, music-wise, I suppose the Nurse's theme needs a little getting used to, maybe... But I didn't think any theme really needed changing.

Well, in hindsight, most of the changes to Kenji's theme did improve on my ability to endure his scenes... ">_>

Okay, just today downloaded and installed Act 1 V3 and listened to the new version of The Student Council. Composition seems fine, although I do miss the old violin. There are some mastering issues however, like the fact that it peaks at -12 dB, and audible clicking starting around 1:20 into the song:
The -12 dB peak is easily fixed by normalizing to 0 dB, which I would personally prefer to having the rest of the tracks RG'd down to -12. I think the clicking is the most pressing problem with this track though.


By the way, the main site's "samples" section still has music from V1.


Edit: Looking through other criticism of the new soundtrack, it appears I'm the only one to mention the clicking. Am I the only one to hear it, or am I just the first one to point it out?

And I realized after posting that this probably wasn't the most appropriate place to put this since criticism of the soundtrack is now spread across at least three threads. whoops~

I've mentioned some clicking in tracks to Blue on IRC, but I don't think anyone mentioned any for Student Council. Like I've said before, blue's already on normalizing and replay gain (at least, Delta passed the ball to his court since Ren'Py doesn't support replay gain).