Why hello there!
Welcome to the auditions thread for the NEWGROUNDS AUDTIO DEATH MATCH 2014! If you're new here, and even if you aren't, you should definitely read the entirety of this post if you're planning on taking part, because it has all the important details and nitbits that will allow you to not make a fool of yourself.
Audio? Deathmatch? Wut?
The NGADM (Newgrounds Audio Death Match) is one of the largest audio competitions on the website. It's run by Step and I, and is an annual competition that started six years ago. The competition follows a basic knockout concept, where a number of participants are paired up each round, battle to the death (via music), and then proceed to the next round if they win their pairing. Simple, right? The winner of the final round gets various prizes (see below), including a sum of money as sponsored by Tom Fulp!
Oh. So what do I do?
To take part, simply post what you think is your best song (the one which you feel best represents your talents) in this auditions thread. It may be an old song, a new song, one that's not done yet, or even one that you haven't started. Remember to post only one song - if you change your mind about your best song, then just post again in this thread saying clearly that you've changed your mind. Songs posted elsewhere will NOT be considered.
Once we've reached the deadline, a team of carefully hand-picked judges will listen to each of your submissions, then professionally and thoroughly procrastinate a lot and eventually hand in their nominations for the top 64. Don't worry about feeling like you're not good enough to make it in; you should post your audition here anyway, you've really got nothing to lose, and you never know what might happen!
How long do I have to do this?
You've got until the 30th of July to submit your audition in this thread. After that, no further auditions will be accepted and a seven day judging period will start. The Group Stages start on the 4th of August.
Wait wait wait. Group Stages?
Yes! Last year we felt like taking on 64 competitors worked out splendidly, except that the competition was incredibly long and time consuming, and unfortunately having the exact same format this year will stretch for longer than we'd like. As such, we're doing things a little bit differently. The top 64 that make it through will be split into 16 groups of 4, and each group will compete in a 4-way battle, with the top scorer moving on to the next round, from where the competition continues in its usual format.
Taking it a step further, this year we will also be employing a fixed bracket system in the knockout stage. The winners of the group stages will be seeded into the primary spots on the bracket, but no further seeding will take place as the rounds progress, with competitors facing each other as dictated by the bracket. We feel this will increase transparency in the competitition and reduce claims of bias. It will also allow for a different sort of strategy where people can plan ahead based on who they believe they will likely face. For those of you who are uncertain as to how a knockout bracket would work, you can take a look at this fancy diagram.
Makes sense. So how do the rounds work?
Well, each round consists of 2 weeks where each competitor has to compose a brand new piece to pit against their opponents. After these 2 weeks, the judging period will start.
Same as last year, each judge will still be giving a score for each piece, and an average of all the judges' scores will still be being taken, but due to the huge number of participants, the reviewing workload will be split. In round 1, the 64 pieces will be split amongst the judges evenly, meaning that you won't necessarily be getting a review from each judge.
The number of reviews you get each round will slowly increase as the rounds progress, meaning that getting to the later rounds has the added incentive of getting you more reviews on your track. Also, we encourage you to review each others' tracks and let your competitors know what you think!
Every round of the knockout will have a separate thread (like this one
), and all the competitors will be kept up to date via PM. The schedule for the rounds can be found here, along with links to all the different threads as the competition progresses.
There aren't any rules right?
Although the title "deathmatch" might indicate otherwise, this competition is actually very professional and civilised. Sort of.
So yes, there are some rules. Rules for the auditions phase are:
1.) You are allowed to post a track that you've made from scratch for the auditions, or a track that you've made in the past.
2.) The audition track may be a cover/arrangement, but unless you're entering as a team, the track cannot be a collaborative effort.
3.) If you posted your audition track but change your mind and wish to change it, state CLEARLY in the thread.
4.) If you're entering as a team of two, your audition can be a collaborative effort between you and your collab partner, or a track by any one of you individually. Remember, though, that the prize will have to be split between both of you! Make sure you state clearly who your partner is in your audition, and preferably link to his user page.
5.) Auditions posted after the deadline will not be accepted unless it's for a ridiculously good reason.
Aside from that, we've also got general rules for the knockout competition if you make it through. You can read those here.
What about judges?
So far, we have a few confirmed judges, but we don't as yet have all six. We will be revealing the judging team once we've gotten all the confirmations we need, so stay tuned for that.
You said something about prizes?
Indeed I did! We were a bit concerned this year about the store credit prizes we used to offer previously, due to the closing of the shop itself, but fortunately Tom has been generous enough to sponsor us officially with the prizes below:
1st place:
1.) A 1st place NGADM '14 forum signature.
2.) $100
3.) The option of a frontpage of one of your songs of your choice.
4.) A job as Royal Toe-cleaner in the Dark Lords' Court.
2nd place:
1.) A 2nd place NGADM '14 forum signature.
2.) $75
3.) The option of a frontpage of one of your songs of your choice.
4.) A place as a lesser minion of the Dark Lords.
3rd place:
1.) A 3rd place NGADM '14 forum signature.
2.) $50
3.) The option of a frontpage of one of your songs of your choice.
4.) A day cleaning a miniature version of the Dark Lords' Throne.
Furthermore, we would like to thank those people who graciously offered their support in terms of sponsorship. We are humbled by your dedication to this competition, and although we ended up not taking other sponsorship because we felt like the official sponsorship was enough, the fact that so many offers were made is heartwarming. Thank you to everyone! *wipes tear*
Anything else?
Nope! Remember that so far the contest hasn't started. These are just auditions, so nothing's entirely official yet. This means we're open to suggestions, and the stuff above may be altered slightly. We'll be reposting all the updated rules, procedures, etc in the NG Audio Deathmatch thread when the contest starts on the 4th of August.
If you're interested, simply post a link to your best submission in this thread before 15th July and you're all set. If you have any problems, or if you wish to express your undying adoration, feel free to send me a PM, or contact me in any way.
So that's that then! Let the auditions begin!
