I like the airy percussion at the beginning and the quirky orchestral samples. Some of the instruments could’ve sounded a tad more authentic here, especially the strings, but I think a bigger problem is the mixing. The texture sounds pretty muddy and indistinct throughout, and the percussion easily gets buried when there are several other instruments playing at once. I’d suggest toning down the reverb and using some more equalizers to remove the lower-pitched frequencies from some of the non-bass instruments. From there, you could also add some compressors to the percussion to make it pop through the mix more. Compositionally, the piece is solid, although the melodies feel like they could be a bit more dynamic at times. I also would’ve liked to hear more variety later on in the piece. That said, the sound design is cute, and the mood sounds triumphant and adventuresome, which is nice. The modulation at 1:48 also helps keep me engaged later on in the piece. Overall, solid work, NnolokK! Just needs some more attention to detail on the production, and you’re well on your way to an 8-range piece. :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7/10

really enjoy the atmosphere in this! the way you mixed synth elements with cinematic instruments is really clever, and while some of the sampled instruments are not the best quality the orchestration leans into the strength of each very nicely. the kinda distorted reedy synth that plays throughout (first at 0:24) is cool but is just a bit too harsh, i think it just needs a nice warm lowpass filter before the reverb. would be good to get a transitional chord and melodic variation into the key change at the end just to pump up that final climax. and then don't fade the climax out halfway before it's finished - unless you're a dominatrix. i would, however, fade out the delay on the tinkly instrument at the end so that the last note is clear and resolute, without the preceding passage echoing on after it. great work overall though!

important notes on my NGUAC review process: https://www.newgrounds.com/bbs/topic/1476427/18#bbspost26965604_post_text