Year: 2011
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST)
Composer(s): Kan Gao
Number of tracks: 31

★★★★★

Hidden gem

In 2011, when the first indie games emerged from the shadows and began to compete with the big productions, a small one-man project called To the Moon was among them. The game was programmed by Kan Gao, who used the RPG Maker for the game, meaning that the look is sure to delight fans of early Japanese role-playing games. I only actually played the game myself because it was given to me as a gift in the library - thanks for that, Jacko!

So I approached the title without any expectations and was somewhat surprised by the story. It's not about saving the world and fighting monsters, but about the employee duo Dr. Eva Rosalene and Dr. Neil Watts, who we control on their mission to implant new memories into a man called Johnny Wyles. This is because he is dying and their employer offers to do a little memory doctoring as a kind of last service. So To the Moon is more of a psychological drama that delves into the depths of the human mind and takes us through the various stages of Johnny's life with a wink and a tear.

So we're not so much dealing with a real game as with a graphic text adventure. Although this initially turned me off, the story is actually well written and moving. On the one hand, this is due to the pleasant contrast of tragedy and humor, such as the dorky researcher duo who experience and comment on Johnny's memories and get stuck on solving the mystery of why their client wants to see the moon so much. But also because of the great soundtrack, which is what we're talking about now. But before that, I would like to join the more than 50,000 positive reviews on Steam and say: you can give it a play, it only takes about four hours - or you can watch a Let's Play.

The soundtrack was also created by Kan Gao, who enlisted the help of Laura Shigihara for three tracks, who we already know from the fantastic Plants vs. Zombies-OST, for example. Here, however, she plays the second violin, as the remaining 28 tracks by Gao are all of a high standard, but tend to be more for piano lovers and romantics.

As someone who has played through the game and knows the story of Johnny's desire to fly to the moon, the music perhaps touches me differently than it does non-players. But even the uninitiated might be moved to tears by the depressingly beautiful “Born a Stranger” or the dreamy “For River - Piano [Johnny's Version]”. However, Gao does not drift into the dramatic, but masterfully navigates the fine line of a rom-com. A direct example of this is the main theme “To the Moon”, which comes across as both soulful and playful, driving and inviting the listener to drift along.

Gao uses the two researchers, whose music is rather amusing, as a contrast in the music: “Between a Squirrel and a Tree” is tongue-in-cheek and curious with its combination of pizzicato sounds and oboe, while “Bestest Detectives in the World” inevitably makes you think of the smart-aleck pupil who has just raised his finger teacher-like. And even “Too Bad so Sad”, despite its duration of just nine seconds, is inevitably funny due to its exaggerated theatricality.

There are also mystery tracks reminiscent of Professor Layton or Trine such as “Spiral of Secrets” and “Uncharted Realms”, feel-good music in “Take Me Anywhere” and “World's Smallest Ferris Wheel” as well as effectively ominous action tracks (“Teddy”, “Beta-B”), which could almost pass as a homage to the great Japanese role-playing games of the Final Fantasy brand.

The heart of the soundtrack, meanwhile, remains the deeply emotional pieces that take the story of Johnny and his longing to a whole new level. The theme about River, Johnny's love, is beautiful in all its variations. ”Having Lived” and “Lament of a Stranger” are bitterly melancholic, while ”Moongazer” and ”Anya by the Stars” are dreamy, and ”Once Upon a Memory” even features a guitar - beautiful!

The only thing that can be criticized about the OST are the tracks themselves, which are not only all quite short - which wouldn't be a problem in itself - but also often end abruptly. Although my testing has shown that this is not a technical defect, you often get the feeling that a fade-out would certainly not have hurt. As it is, the songs remain pleasantly snappy and catchy, but it doesn't feel really rounded. What a pity!

But that's it for the criticism, because To the Moon doesn't need many words. It manages to tell a story in four hours that hits closer to home than many a Hollywood movie. And it's all done by one person, who has also composed one of the best indie scores - fantastic. So it's all the more sad that To the Moon still didn't make it into my Top 10 Indie soundtracks . You can find out who ended up in there instead here.

Nostalgia warning

The rating of the individual tracks is purely subjective and clearly colored by my own experience with the game. You can find out more in the article About Nostalgia.

Nr.	Title	Interpret(en)	Ratings
01	To the Moon	Kan Gao	4
02	Between a Squirrel and a Tree	Kan Gao	4
03	Spiral of Secrets	Kan Gao	4
04	For River - Piano [Sarah & Tommy's Version]	Kan Gao	4
05	Bestest Detectives in the World	Kan Gao	4
06	Too Bad so Sad	Kan Gao	1
07	Teddy	Kan Gao	5
08	Uncharted Realms	Kan Gao	4
09	Having Lived	Kan Gao	4
10	Moonwisher	Kan Gao	5
11	Born a Stranger	Kan Gao	5
12	For River - Piano [Johnny's Version]	Kan Gao	5
13	Lament of a Stranger	Kan Gao	4
14	Everything's Alright (Music Box)	Laura Shigihara	4
15	Moongazer	Kan Gao	4
16	Anya by the Stars	Kan Gao	4
17	Take Me Anywhere	Kan Gao	4
18	Warning	Kan Gao	1
19	Beta-B	Kan Gao	5
20	World's Smallest Ferris Wheel	Kan Gao	4
21	Once Upon a Memory	Kan Gao	4
22	Once Upon a Memory [Piano]	Kan Gao	4
23	Everything's Alright	Laura Shigihara	4
24	Everything's Alright (Reprise)	Laura Shigihara	4
25	Tomorrow	Kan Gao	5
26	Launch	Kan Gao	5
27	To the Moon - Piano [Ending Version]	Kan Gao	4
28	Eva's Ringtone	Kan Gao	1
29	Trailer Theme, Part 1	Kan Gao	4
30	Trailer Theme, Part 2 (feat. Laura Shigihara)	Kan Gao	4
31	Trailer Theme, Part 2 [Instrumental]	Kan Gao	4