so epic!
i love it!!!!!!!!

cool, fun composition with great dynamics and progression. the quieter sections are especially interesting and i love that you took extra care to flesh them out more. the drums sound really weird though! the overall software instrument quality is quite good but the drums sound really dry and mechanical and don't fit in at all imo. the guitar solo at the end feels a little fake too but the brass unison sells it for me and feels really nice.

I like the dramatic string swells at the beginning and the eerie atmosphere around them. The part at :39 is catchy, but I think the percussion is missing some bass frequencies there. I love the rhythmic content and string melodies at :57, and the choir at 1:15 is a nice touch. At around 1:30, the mix becomes a bit strained, with the drums and choir not coming through quite as clearly as earlier. Scaling back the reverb might help with that. The accordion (?) at 1:33 sounds a bit inauthentic and unnatural, both the sample itself and the way it suddenly fades out at 1:51. I like the mellow section that follows, as well as the melodies at 2:12. I also like the injection of energy at 2:30 and more bottom-heavy mix at 2:57. The synth guitar at 3:16 was a pleasant surprise, and also a good way of hitting the piece home, but the mix also sounds a bit muddy there. I’d try doing more with stereo widening, especially on the choir, so that the lead stays front-and-center there.

Overall, this is an enjoyable piece with some fun sound design, a strong cinematic flair, and some memorable melodies. Keep at it, GDRH1988. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.5/1.5
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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10

Damn 43 Kontakt instances? I have a powerful computer but I feel like it would crap itself if I tried to run a project like that haha

This sounds really good though! Very well written cinematic piece and amazing usage of strings. I feel strings in cinematic pieces are so important because they can build up both emotion and action at the same time with how you articulate them. And in your case, your usage was very well executed. The other instruments really helped contribute to the action and sometimes even magical-ness of the song if that makes sense. And the drums really helped set the rhythm in a clear and exciting way. Amazing song, and good luck in the contest! Keep up the great work :D

I'm gonna Lose with this one for sure :)
Nice I like it <3