Pioneer dev forum

Every time someone (including me) tries to add new music, a separate thread wakes up, but I want to collect the general design stuff into one thing instead of talking under them. So here it goes:

For existing parts:

• Docked will be populated with tracks, at least the three most known factions will have their own tracks, with others sharing the common tracks (independent or minor factions' members). These will start if the already playing ambient music ends while the player is on a starport, but will cut as soon as player departs.
  
  Some very special systems or starports might get special music, but we probably won't do that to every single thing because galaxy is big.

• Discovery will be separated into sub-categories for different classes of stellar objects, as I originally intended.

• Near-spacestation: complete redo in a different style.

• Ship-destroyed: straight up removal.

• Undocked: (probably) remove this as well

• Unexplored: add variation to the style

For yet-to-exist parts:

• Major faction main themes (not ambient, for info panels or when visiting their capital after some time etc.) (I tried some stuff here: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926)

• Ship manufacturer short tunes (a few seconds long, will play when you buy a ship from them or click on info thingy) - kinda similar to the "Renault commercial tune" at the end of https://youtu.be/v9V4lDWB5Fs?t=28
  
  Speaking of which, since buying a new ship is quite the accomplishment, maybe we can have a more impressive after-purchase screen like "Congratulations on your purchase, you are now the proud owner of a Nerodia Medium Freighter! ...bla bla... OPLI-Barnard Inc. guarantees 2 years of trouble-free operation of the Class-7 Hyperdrive unit ...bla bla... ship is registered as NC-1701 ...bla bla..."

Faction music style
The following is only what I think and may change if someone has a better idea

• Solar Federation

Generally Interstellar/Stellaris/Blade Runner-like spacey. Saw synths, brass sections and church organ where necessary.

SolFed "welcoming tune" #1: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/solfed-space
(Based on the SolFed theme: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/s ... deration-1)

Tune #2: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/f ... -2-jupiter
(Gustav Holst's Jupiter)

• Commonwealth of Independent Worlds

Strings dominated, with the addition of woodwinds. More organic.
CIW "welcoming tune" #1: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/c ... pace-short
(Based on the CIW theme: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/c ... -worlds-v1)

• Haber Corporation

Slow, almost post-apocalyptic. Rather monotone tunes. A corporation in stagnation, but the machine keeps running.
Haber theme: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/h ... oration-v1
2-min tune: https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/h ... ic-complex

• Minor factions/Independent

They are not getting anything from me for now.

Don't hesitate to tell your own ideas.

FWIW, I do use the Undocked category. In it, I have a file that has a spin-up of motors/fans sound (like your systems warming up) and then several seconds of silence. I didn't like that otherwise music would begin playing the instant I undocked.

...which is because for Docked, I have a spin-down sound followed by 10 minutes of silence, so that when I'm docked there is no music -- just the ambient noises of the particular station dock.

We could add an engine/systems spin-up sound effect instead of using the music player for that. We could also use an advanced options drop-down menu where you can check what to play and what not to.

I'm trying out new styles for unexplored space soundtrack.

https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/ultraviolet-bath
https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/binary-ballad

...and the discovery tracks:
https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/f ... smic-giant

https://soundcloud.com/user-211556926/c ... eful-realm

Another short tune for CIW. A bit like a fantasy world thing maybe, and a bit on the edge of sounding asian. I'm not sure I'm satisfied with it yet, but let me throw the link anyway.

I'll get to ambient tracks hopefully, I'm just in the mood for situational music now.

Cool. Better not play that when being chased by police :).

The "orchestrality" of it makes me think of Star Trek.

I wonder if we have any decision on what kind of instruments that should be used for Pioneer? For the menu track, I said the analouge cymbals distracted from the rest of the synthezised music, where as this track is entierly orchestral.

I was going to use synth-dominated music for Sol-Fed, and organic instruments for CIW, to give them some distinct "texture". But if anyone has better ideas, I'm listening.

WKFO wrote: ↑Sun Nov 29, 2020 9:54 am and organic instruments for CIW

Out of curiosity, what is meant by organic instruments? Actual pipe organ or more just the opposite of synth (which would be 'real' I guess)?

The opposite of synth, sounds created by mechanical interactions rather than electronic synthesis.