Heyo, Retroman. Good to see you got a complete song this time! time for your complete review, open wide. :)

Stuff that's great:
- Right away, 8-bit sound is awesome. Super retroman, lol.
- I remember these drums back from Mass Extinction years ago. They're really well-done and quite tasty-sounding.
- 1:22 - 8-BITMUNCHED BREAKBEAT. That's awesome, super happy with that.
- Episodic composition is neat, and I can hear the differences in each section fairly clearly.

Stuff that can be improved:
- As I listen through this, I am struck by how the main lead is really not that good with the release tail. It feels slippery and is hard to really get into any melody it plays.
- Speaking of melodies, while you have some good phrases they aren't really put together into any kind of coherent melody for the piece. Each episode has its own melody which is okay, but very forgettable.
- One other thing contributing to the whole thing is just the emptiness of the mix. It seems like the piece's mix is set up to work around the breakbeat drums, rather than to be a full mix. I'm only counting three instruments aside from drums - bass, and two higher waveforms. For comparison, check out X-ray's "Zizibum" for a really neat and lush 8-bit soundscape.

You know, I think Zizibum is a great comparison for this piece and does a lot of what you're trying to do - but a bit better overall. (aside from the breakbeat stuff, that stuff you have nailed down super hard) Perhaps a good thing to look into for improvement - with a bit more filling out, your 8-bit stuff would be really neat!

8/10

The texture at the beginning feels a little too busy, and the piece kinda throws the listener into the middle of the action without much of a proper intro. I also thought the transition at :31 could’ve been smoother. There are a lot of good ideas here, between the instrumentation, melodies, and rhythmic elements. I just think the pacing could’ve been a bit slower so that all of the rapid changes (1:21, 2:15, 2:25, etc.) didn’t seem as jarring. Between the beat and the frantic melodies, the texture was pretty overwhelming for most of the piece. It’s certainly a fun piece with a lot of creative ideas, but the arrangement could use a little more nuance and shape to keep the listener grounded. Overall solid work! ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.5/10

I can't give much criticism since I know you're going up against me so I'd be a bit biased.

But there are some really cool ideas going on. I really like your work with the percussion. I think that's the best part and I love it. The main synth for the melody is pretty rad. It has the right tone for the NES era and it's cool.

Good work and best of luck.

Man, with that level of alliteration, you could probably rewrite the entire Series of Unfortunate Events haha

I love the massive amount of flavor in this track! The way you made descriptions for each of the different levels in the track not only enhanced the listening experience, but also shows how much detail was put into the making of the track itself :P :P

Also have you ever used breakbeats before? I've listened to some of your stuff and have been really impressed by it, but I've never heard anything quite like this, and I'm again impressed at how well you use the different musical elements!

pls pls pls make this game a reality and write the soundtrack. I really wanna play it! And good luck in the NGADM!! :)