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  #1  
Old Jan 4, 2024, 11:39 AM
MusicDoer MusicDoer is offline
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Question Help needed - University project (NDS music)

Hi all,

This is my first time writing anything on a forum so forgive me if it shows. Basically, I'm in my third and final year of study at university studying electronic music production. One of my current assignments that needs to be completed (within the next 4 days, ugh) involves creating a piece (or multiple) of music which is led by a specific concept. For this project I have chosen to create music in the style of main series Pokémon games on the Nintendo DS which matches a specific vibe of certain areas in said games.

To get good marks on this project I will need to conduct research in various aspects regarding the creation of music (amongst other things) for the Nintendo DS. My problem is that I'm finding it very difficult finding good sources for this information, though maybe I haven't looked for long enough (I've been searching for the better part of this afternoon).

Please could someone point me in the right direction for sources to use (that are reputable enough to reference in an academic essay)?

For those curious, I'm currently looking to find out about the set limitations that music creators would have to adhere to (such as file sizes, audio quality, bitrate, limit for how many different instruments can be used in a track, maximum voicings in MIDI etc.) when composing for NDS games (or Pokémon games on the NDS specifically). I'm going to be creating my tracks in FL Studio, though I'm fully aware that the people who made music for the games used different software.

All help is appreciated, thank you!
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  #2  
Old Jan 4, 2024, 01:53 PM
zierts zierts is offline
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You're f***ed. The problem is you chose a very specific topic without checking first if there are enough academic sources available and then you waited too long before starting on the work.

You might find the odd gaming audio paper or monograph explaining sequenced music on dated hardware in more general terms. But it's unlikely you'll find any detailed scientific sources on the Nintendo DS sound in particular.

Your best bet is consulting the official Nintendo DS/Nitro development kit documentation. You should find detailed information on sound hardware limitations in there. Other than that, you could rely on homebrew programming manuals such as this.

Good luck!
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  #3  
Old Jan 4, 2024, 02:03 PM
MusicDoer MusicDoer is offline
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I have realised, sadly, that yes, this topic is probably too specific to write an academic essay about. I think I'll just have to stick with general VG composition.

Thanks for the reply!
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