SotW - Actual Contest Versus Top Ten List?

I know there have been long discussions of a SotW Best of Contest encompassing the full year of music on it. That time has obviously arrived with this week being the 52nd.

I believe the door hasn't been fully shut on a contest, though there was sentiment that a Battle of Battles would settle the deal.

Though nothing official has been declared, can I propose an alternative? How about a personal Top Ten list of your ten favorite tracks from SotW's first full year? It's simple, easy -- and gives a broad idea of what everybody's tastes have been through this odyssey.

Here would be the point where I put my own list in to get it started, but damn if I don't have time for it right now. Either someone else will do it and get it started, or we'll discuss some more and I'll watch this thread die a natural death.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Would this list include only tracks which earned medals, or could it encompass nominations that didn't win at all?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Every song ever nominated. Obviously everyone can't recall every single song, but I would think there are others like me who have been keeping their favorites along the way. Now that I'm done this huge project, perhaps I'll have time to put such a list together.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

If we allow every song ever nominated, I would think people would end up listing their own past nominations which would include tracks which fared poorly. If this format is chosen, I'd limit it only to tracks which placed 1-3.

We were discussing what to do wit SoTY in chat the other night and I believe we agreed upon creating a thread (similar to the one before the crash) where people could list their ideas which would then be discussed and narrowed down to two or three formats. We would then vote on it and proceed from there. I know I had an idea for a bracket format while CHz and Moo came up with a tournament style format and here you have a top-ten list idea. There were a few more ideas but I can't quite recall them.

So who else from staff wants to get the ball rolling on this? Continue discussion hear or in a new thread?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I'd be really disappointed if people just listed their own noms. That wasn't even my aim, and there's so much good music that coming up with 10 songs that aren't yours should be easy.

I'm not suggesting this as a comprehensive contest, just a way to see what people really liked.

[Edit: Now I realize people nominated songs that I had already listened to and enjoyed immensely, and feasibly those could make the list. But screw it, mine would be all tracks that were new to me.]

I was speaking idiomatically.

This is by no means a definitive list for me, but it does represent a good cross-section of what I've enjoyed from previous SotW rounds. Unfortunately, placing them into a pecking order is asking a lot since they're so different.

Instead, I'll just list ten that really impressed me.

This list also excludes my own nominations, for which I have an obvious bias.

Kukeiha Club <Motoaki Furukawa, Kukeiha Club> - Quiero Voar

Symphony Sorcerian <Kentarou Haneda, Falcom Sound Team JDK>
- Chapter 2: Where We Meet / Underworld / The Dark Swamp

The Sims 2 (PC Game Rip) <Maxis> - Pop Station - Track 4

Johnny Bazookatone <Andi McGinty, Des Tong> - Deadbolt

Sakura Wars 3 Vocal Collection <Kohei Tanaka> - The Future (Voyage)

Impressive <T-Square> - Amaranth

Arc the Lad Piano Album <Keiichi Oku> - Arc

Music Contest 6 (The Hornet Archive) <Alexander Brandon> - Carpe Diem

Ys -The Oath in Felghana- Original Sound Track <Sound Team JDK> - Sealed Time

PlayOnline Viewer (Game Rip) <Noriko Matsueda> - Dolphin


I think it's plain to see that I gravitate toward the cheerful, up-tempo tracks and a fair chunk of the eclectic.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I like Chuckster's idea implemented as a Song of the Year contest. It gives a nice amount of flexibility that can be tailored to one's tastes and likes. I do think restrictions of some sort on nominating one's own past nominations should be in place. Admittedly, I'm not terribly fond of a "Battle of the Battles" contest.

If SotY does take place, I'm more in favour of a SotW point allocation system to determine winners as opposed to a strictly bracket system. Alternatively, songs can be divided into groups of 8 with the usual SotW point distribution in place to determine the top 4 songs that wll advance into the next round.

Some problems I can think of:

1) Not everyone has heard past nominations, particularly the ones that haven't placed at all since these wouldn't be on the SotW site, thereby making nominations for SotY difficult. (I need to bug Kaleb about those old nominations one day :P)

2) For newcomers, it would be intimidating to sieve through all the songs even if all of them were available for nomination purposes.

FELIPE NO

This would be my list, 10 new songs that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Uncharted Waters II -- Southern Twilight ~ Dance on a Cape of Good Hope: I wouldn’t hesistate to call it my favorite of the whole shebang. Besides destroying my preconceptions of Yoko Kanno, it’s given me an elegant jazz piece that’s staggeringly complete and whole despite such a marked shift between the two sections. The middle interlude at 3:10-ish is heavenly.

Now in no particular order (it ends up being alphabetical anyway):

Aka – To The West: An oldie in this contest but a favorite. Being a sucker for piano doesn’t hurt this track.

Age of Wonders – Snowscapes: Smart, moody stuff from Michiel van den Bos.

Air – Summer Lights: I also like the Clannad piece that Shinji Orito did, but this track is exquisitely elegant (and shockingly another piano track).

Dune Spice Opera – Exxos – Wake Up: It’s an odd piece, but also atmospheric and intriguing.

Gitarooman – The Legendary Theme (Album Version): Great stuff. Simple guitar melody, but so catchy in its conception that it's hard not to love it.

Kukeiha Club – Quiero Voar: I wish I could put my finger on what that main instrument is. Reminds me of another song I can’t remember. The whole thing is so sweet and bucolic without being too saccharine.

Kukeiha Club – Power of Anger: Surprisingly, two Kukehia songs on here. Love the measured of use guitar in the beginning.

Music Contest 6 (Hornet Arc.) – Carpe Diem: Infectiously upbeat.

Tie: Spin Jam – In-Game Music 1/Ratchet and Clank -- Distribution Facility ~Planet Smolg~/Sim City 4 – Oasis: I couldn’t pick a final one with a clear conscience.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by _DH_

So who else from staff wants to get the ball rolling on this? Continue discussion hear or in a new thread?

http://gamingforce.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2752

Jam it back in, in the dark.