Katawa Shoujo Forums

If at all possible, I would like to see the background music used in the demo to be redone - that is, not used in the full version.
I do not know the specific song titles, but a couple of them were hideous and even laughably bad.
The prologue I thought was well put together and the music fitting, but it certainly went downhill after that.

I have issues with many of the songs. They seem like notes strung together rather than music.
I know this very well because I also am a musician and have this problem when making music as well.

Daylight - What the hell was with the pitch shifting at the end of the loop? I dont know how to say it other than it was retarded.

These songs seem to lack any sort of decent melody and are boring or repetitive.
Standing Tall
School Days
The Student Council

I would go into more detail but I dont want to waste my time if everyone here is going to say "piss off, its good how it is".
I genuinely would like to see this game come out with catchy and good music, since at least for me that is what brings the most emotional power out of the game.

Just look at Cheetahman 2. One track made this shitty game known by everyone on nico.

I forgot to mention the "end of day" eye catch seemed really awkward and out of place. Also, just bad.

I happen to quite like the pitch shift in Daylight... ಠ_ಠ

mallory wrote:I happen to quite like the pitch shift in Daylight... ಠ_ಠ

When it happened the first time, I thought it was some sort of event in the game...

And then it kept going.
It was that out of place.

Piano wrote:If at all possible, I would like to see the background music used in the demo to be redone - that is, not used in the full version.
I do not know the specific song titles, but a couple of them were hideous and even laughably bad.
The prologue I thought was well put together and the music fitting, but it certainly went downhill after that.

I have issues with many of the songs. They seem like notes strung together rather than music.
I know this very well because I also am a musician and have this problem when making music as well.

Daylight - What the hell was with the pitch shifting at the end of the loop? I dont know how to say it other than it was retarded.

These songs seem to lack any sort of decent melody and are boring or repetitive.
Standing Tall
School Days
The Student Council

I would go into more detail but I dont want to waste my time if everyone here is going to say "piss off, its good how it is".
I genuinely would like to see this game come out with catchy and good music, since at least for me that is what brings the most emotional power out of the game.

Just look at Cheetahman 2. One track made this shitty game known by everyone on nico.

That's because most people already like it, to them it's good, if it doesn't please you, it's only you, why should they change the current soundtrack if your the only one who doesn't like it?

They'll be adding more in the future, but it would be selfish of you if you asked for it to be changed just because you don't like it, they take the word of the majority, not just yours.

You can not even complain about video game music being repetitive. That's an illogical complaint considering the point is that it's supposed to be looped endlessly. Obviously considering the popularity of the leek spin video a lot of people like repetitive music.

I don't know jack-squat about music or what makes it "good" or "bad", and I generally don't pay attention to it (probably couldn't recall the music from the last anime I watched, or even any in KS.) but I think I know what people mean by that pitch-shift. And yeah... it sounded really out of place. Like a "failure" noise playing because something silly happened.

While I agree that some songs aren't as high quality as others, I wouldn't go so far as to lambaste it like you have. EvilDragon has already offered his services in re-recording some of the piano tracks. Perhaps some more constructive criticism would be nice? Keep in mind that these are MIDI's (I believe? Correct me if I'm wrong, devs) and aren't made on profession quality DAWs. In fact, due to their nature as MIDI's, importing them into a DAW is extremely time consuming and impractical.

I'm a musician as well, a classically trained pianist of 13 years. I, too, would like to see KS's music be amazing. However, we are not in control of this project. We can only offer our feedback and hope that it's convincing and holds enough truth to be taken seriously. Being polite and reasonable is an excellent start.

As for the pieces that you've singled out:

Daylight -- I agree the shift is jarring and unusual. You don't have to so abrasive about it, though.

Standing Tall -- Note that these pieces are used as background music, so the standards for "engaging" are relaxed, or else they dominate a scene. We're trying to set a mood here. One part I would like to point out, though, is the syncopation between the xylophone and the strings. Normally, syncopation is used for a jazzy and improvised effect, but in a piece like this, it just makes things sound disjointed. Parity did it much better.

School Days -- I really don't see your issue here. It's generic background music and I feel that it sets a calm mood very well. It's a contemplative piece that moves at a relaxed pace. Perhaps the guitar accompaniment could use some more inspiration, but I see nothing wrong with the melody in particular. Perhaps you think it's repetitive because it's short?

The Student Council -- I've offered my feedback on this before. Yes, the strings are wandering and feel like they don't go anywhere, plus there's hardly any phrasing whatsoever, leaving the (subpar quality) strings to play a generic blob of sound. The strings need less quantization and more humanization, and the embellishing "bell/squeaking things" are annoying. However, I've also mentioned that in the context of the game, the piece is a lot less grating. The instances where the melody gets to slow down and breath are where the piece shows promise (last parts of the first melodic theme). Those moments are also more noticeable because they stand out when the reader is focused on the text. While this goes against character, I'd suggest taking inspiration from Concord, Lilly's theme. Take the wide, graceful phrases from Concord and apply it to the melody of The Student Council without destroying the energy and business-like feel.

Aside from small ticks like the last 10-20 seconds of School Days and the middle of Lilly's theme where the melody switches (Could really use a vibrato), I don't have anything against the music.

Others have voiced my opinion on School Days more than adequately.

Did anyone else feel deja vu after they read this thread's OP? At least this time we're not punished with WALL OF TEXT.

I agree with the strange pitch change in Daylight.
Well, other than the vastly varying decibel levels across the music tracks, I either like the music or don't notice 'em. Mostly the former. I can't really give any criticism, though, as I also know jack squat about music. I'll leave the critiques to someone like Warwick here, who seems knowledgeable enough to use several dozen music terms I've never heard of before.

Am I the only one who likes the pitch shift... D:?

When I speak of a repetitive song, I mean measures upon measures of little to no variation in the melody.
I would like to reference 潮鳴り from Clannad since I have no other OST on this computer to listen to.
Its an extremely simple song that repeats a simple melody but in a way that is never boring or repetitive.
In fact, thats what makes it bring out some sort of sad emotion more powerfully.
I would like to see more of this type of music - simple yet good.

Something like Painful History, but with less predictability.

I thought that Out of the Loop was well done and fitting for what its worth.
The same goes for Parity.

I think I know what you guys want.
You want professional quality music. Well maybe your right it would be cooll of them to license songs.
How epic would it be to have a presex scene play along exactly to Paradise by the Dashboard Lights.
On a more serious note I think they did a good job as far as composing go's and you may be right about technical issues but in the end I think many of the songs are good considering that they aren't meant to be standalone but to simply set the tone.

mallory wrote:Am I the only one who likes the pitch shift... D:?

I also like the pitch shift in Daylight as well. Kind of reminds me of the Autumn tune of one of the Harvest Moons.

And in regards to Student Council, I find the busy/jumbled sounding piece to fit well with Shizune and Misha's character. Since they're in the Student Council and are supposed to have a clear direction and purpose but in reality they're not as organized and streamlined as people would expect and in fact are rather whimsical girls doing things as they please.

Although I suppose my opinion probably doesn't count for much in this thread since I'm no musician and can only play the game and enjoy the music as one of the ignorant mass end users, unhindered by professional expertise.

BcDed wrote:I think I know what you guys want.
You want professional quality music. Well maybe your right it would be cooll of them to license songs.
How epic would it be to have a presex scene play along exactly to Paradise by the Dashboard Lights.
On a more serious note I think they did a good job as far as composing go's and you may be right about technical issues but in the end I think many of the songs are good considering that they aren't meant to be standalone but to simply set the tone.

I do not want the game to be good.
I want it to be so great that it blows people away.. thinking "what the hell, that was surprisingly awesome".
I dont get that feeling from the demo. Thats why I am here expressing my opinion, to hopefully get enough attention for the music to be changed and blow people away.