Vox Mundi

"And the music and the echo of the music went out into the Void, and it was not void."

-- AINULINDALË: The Music of the Ainur

Vox Mundi is the local multiplayer creation myth of the twin minstrels who sang the world back to life. Together with a friend, you'll pick up the lyreharps of the the twin minstrels, two enigmatic figures using a strange machine and wondrous music to breathe life into a desolate island.

Certain combinations of base notes form chords, which can be further combined to create songs, which creates growth and life all around you. Work together with your twin to become fluent in all that can be created through music, and be part of your own creation mythos.

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This short game made by a five-person team was awarded Best Sound Design in McGameJam 2024, McGill University's 48-hour jam!

How To Play (Basic Controls)

Player 1 moves around with WASD, and can strum notes on their instrument using 1,2,3,4, and 5.

Player 2 moves around with the arrow keys, and can strum notes on their instrument using J, K, L, the semi-colon key (;), and the comma key (,).

How To Play (A Brief Guide to Singing Creation)

Play notes at the same time as your twin to sing Chords: raw creative energy, made manifest through music. 

Some basic chords will affect the world on their own, but many ideas are more complex: try stringing together two-chord sequences to form more nuanced Musings. You'll know these have worked when you see the green light flash. Yellow means you've discovered a valid Musing, but your world isn't ready to accommodate it yet; try exploring and unlocking a bit more before coming back to it.

Speak the minstrels' language and create the world around you by playing combinations of notes together to form chords, then combinations of chords together to form words! Finding new combinations will lead to more parts of the world being made.

Walkthrough

A full list of everything in creation (start here if you're stuck):

The Land

The Sky

Celestial bodies; day/night

Clouds

Riverbeds/Ravines

Mountains

Water

Grass

Trees

Caves

Ocean

Birds

Pollinators (Bees)

Sea life (Fish)

A comprehensive list of everything in creation, their prerequisite elements, and the chord-sequence that creates them:

Sequence	Prereqs	Result
Land	-	Terra
Air	-	Sky
Dark/Light	Sky	Celestial bodies; day/night
Water/Air	Sky	Clouds
Stone/Decay	Terra	Riverbeds/Ravines
Stone/Grow	Terra	Mountains
Water	Mountain	Water
Land/Flora	Terra	Grass
Flora/Grow	Grass	Trees
Stone/Dark	Mountains	Caves
Water/Stone	Ravines	Ocean
Air/Fauna	Trees	Birds
Air/Grow	Flowers	Pollinators (Bees)
Water/Fauna	Ocean	Sea life (Fish)

When you are satisfied with your creation, try playing Land/Water/Fire/Stone/Air to hear one final song.

External Assets

• Game art direction heavily inspired by https://www.artstation.com/rezaafshar.
• "Blockout" addon used for level design: https://assetstore.unity.com/packages/tools/level-design/blockout-100388.
• Royalty-free birdsong and water sound effects from Pixabay