AuralMuser's Reviews

[PSP Squirrels]

Yea squirrels!

Yeah, the commercials and actual squirrels are annoying, but at least they gave you the idea to make this. My favorite easter egg from the compilations by far, and now it's animated.

I'm glad you enjoy making this stuff, because I enjoy watching it. Your voice work is amazing, and the art style is simplistic yet more than adequate-- I know why you draw the Awesome stuff this way. I also know that you could draw in more detail if you felt like it, so saying "you draw this way because it's the only way you can" is out. I seriously can't find anything that needs work, because you know what you are doing, enjoy doing it, and give us something to look forward to as well.

Superb.

[|~Enemy In The Snow~|]

Very Impressed

This is the first flash of yours I've seen, so I'm just a little confused if this is part of a larger story or something. That doesn't take away from what you've got, though. And you've got quite a bit.

The animation was excellent. Facial expressions were accurate, the mouths were synced with the voices, and the movement, save the scene when Yuriel was running through the hospital, was fluid. There wasn't much voice acting, which is fine, and what was said was great.

Short, and sweet. Very sweet. Not everything needs to be a long, drawn out epic. This is just fine.

I'm looking forward to watching what else you've got now.

[2008| Meet the Spy]

Excellent!

Ok, so I haven't played the game, but I HAVE watched the videos this is based on. I think you got it spot on. I was actually looking watching the real ones yesterday, and I couldn't find some "Meet the.." for a few of the characters. If they didn't finish the series, I'm saddened, since I enjoyed each and every one of them.

It's good to see someone else enjoy them as well, one who likes them enough to try to reproduce them and one good enough to do so. Art style was fine, each character was recognizable and sounded close to what I've heard. The music, while not your own, was pretty much required to be in movie to keep the same feel, so it's all good.

Excellent work.

[STT - Sunset Park Act 3 Cover]

Not sure why this only had two stars when I voted. No indication of plagiarism, it's not a straight rip of the game, the notes are all correct, and the tempo is the same. So what if it is 8-bit? Has a more Nintendo sound as opposed to the original Game Gear version, which I DID play. There are no problems here. Nothing new other than the instrumentation, but not every song needs to have something new. Good arrangement!

[Fusion Dragon (8 bit)]

A very nice rendition! For some reason, i kinda wish the main instrument and counter melody at the phrases like :12 were kinda switched, but it may actually sound worse, I dunno. The counter melody is just a more prominent and better instrument to me; this is all personal preference.

The only other part that seems like it could use some change is 1:13, where the bass is so low and only the melody plays that it feels both empty and hard to actually catch the bass's notes. I kinda wish the bass changed during that part, keeping the harmony and chords moving, but I don't think the original song did that then.

Other than that, great work. I love the way the counter melody creeps in at 1:09, really captures the original essence. I caught no wrong notes, the pace is great, I truly could visualize this being an 8-bit Golden Sun battle scene. Golden Sun was the first RPG I played where I really understood how the mechanics and numbers worked (was too young for that when I first played Pokemon). Love finding others who do as well.

chaoticmarin responds:

There's a very good chance I will give this song another whack sometime in th future~ I'm sure I can improve it! Perhaps I'll give some of your feedback a try while I'm at it, see how it sounds in realtime.

[Aboard the S.S. Anubis]

It's always a treat to encounter another Jet Force Gemini fan. Still one of my favorite games on the N64; and perhaps one of my favorite shooters I've ever played. The music is also one of my favorite soundtracks ever, and may be the best sounding to be heard on the N64.

I'll be honest, while the arrangement overall was great, there were little things that kept me from a full 5 stars. It felt lacking in bass or counter melody at times, like at :16. You fill in with more voices at :25, then drop away again for the following phrase. There were also a few times where I felt the melodies or instruments were ever so slightly off the tempo. Lastly, some points in the song lost the dramatic or stronger moments, like at 1:25; there is much more force and power in the original. While I know all sorts of liberties can be taken to make a piece your own, this one felt like it tried to recapture the power and instrumentation of the original, and so missing these elements brought it down slightly in my ears.

Do not misconstrue this review as angry or the piece a failure, though. I'm ecstatic you arranged it, and the piece still sounds like the S.S. Anubis, and the instrument choices are great. Little things just keep it from perfection. But this is pretty close, though. Good work.