RE//\EMBER OST

RE//\EMBER is a fictional game about a young girl named Roja, who has set out on her own to save her planet from a mysterious mechanical evil. It combines orchestral sounds (strings, woodwinds, and brass) with electronic synths and drums for an intense aesthetic that spans past and future.

After setting out alone on a journey to save her doomed planet, Roja comes across a crashed space-ship, within which lies Cobalt, a mysterious stranger from the future. Trapped together and faced with insurmountable odds, the pair teams up to fight off the forces threatening her planet, becoming close friends along the way.

This soundtrack was a collaboration between Aran P. Ink (@nesciosquid) and Alexander Petrov Sanchez for the OSt Composing Jam:

itch.io/jam/ost-composing-jam/rate/1071566

Sound Guide:

Roja: Flute, woodwinds

Cobalt: Brass, electronic drums

Evil: Bass synths

1. Home

Roja has always felt like an outcast. People question her competency, her choices, her clothing, even the sound of her voice.

When darkness and danger threaten the few friends she has left, she sets out on her own to save the world, like any young heroine would. 

2. Blue Shift (Cobalt's Theme)
Meanwhile, Cobalt hurtles toward the planet at high speed, bending time and space to race the source of a critical disturbance. 

A last-minute malfunction sends him crashing into the planet's surface, unconscious and badly hurt, only to awaken to find a young girl staring through the cockpit window.

Cobalt's face and demeanor are hard, determined, and calculating... but his eyes look so familiar.

3. All Fired Up (Roja's Theme)

Roja's new to the heroing business, but she's never let things like that stop her. She's excited about this new journey, worried about what will happen if she can't find the source of the evil and stop it, and determined to keep moving.

4. Oil & Water

Cobalt and Roja don't see eye-to-eye -- in fact, Cobalt won't even look directly at her, and she would have left him behind if they weren't trapped on the side of a dangerous mountain and surrounded by lurking mechanical monstrosities.

Along the way,  Roja considers giving up and going home, but Cobalt won't let her. The task is too important for her to give up, and he's certain she's more powerful than everyone else gives her credit for.

Tensions come to a head as they quarrel, and it nearly leads to Roja's demise as they confront their most dangerous foe yet... but some quick thinking and desperate teamwork help them make it out alive.

5. La Despedida

With his ship repaired, Cobalt makes preparations to depart the planet. He's surprised to find Roja tearful, and reminds her that it's not the end -- she'll see him again soon, he's certain of it.

When they lock eyes for the last time, Roja realizes she might only have one more chance to ask... 

"Are you my father?"

Cobalt laughs it off. "Of course not. That would be... impossible."

6. Reflection (Credits)

As the credits roll, we get the final reveal -- Cobalt's inner monologue reveals that he's not Roja's father, he's her, come back from the future to prevent the catastrophe that stole the world he called home. (Surprise, he's trans!)

Cobalt reflects on the experience of meeting his past self -- back when he wasn't sure who he wanted to be. Maybe his decision to transition was driven by the loss of his home, but he hopes he's given Roja the strength she needs to forge whatever future she wants.