Spiral Knights - ♫ Dumb Ways to Die ♫, Spiral Knights version

♫ Dumb Ways to Die ♫, Spiral Knights version - Update of progress @ comment #35

60 replies [Last post]

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:11

Latisan-Sklay

The song is addictive.

There are a lot of stupid ways to die in Spiral Knights.

Why hasn't this been done yet?

Here's what I've already got:
• The software to mix the song at a professional-grade level.
• The instrumental track to "Dumb Ways to Die".

Here's what I still want/need:
• Vocalists. Obviously I'm not a girl, so I can't do the lead female voice. While I could do the backing male voice for the chorus, if anyone else is interested, that is a-ok.
• Lyrics. The Spiral Knights version obviously has to match the meter. While it would be cool if some of the lyrics revolved around the same theme, this isn't necessarily mandatory.
• (optional) A video. Not quite sure if it needs one, but if we want to keep in theme with the original video, I'm gonna need some help – animation isn't my thing. On the other hand, if we want to do a video and can't get an animator, clips from the game are always possible too.

Please let me know if you have any feedback or interest in being part of this project. Perhaps we can get some steam behind this one... or maybe not.

How you can get involved:
• Be a voice – give yourself up to singing the song when we get the lyrics down.
• Suggest lyric lines that fit the meter and optionally the theme of the original lyrics.
• Suggest death ideas for others (or me) to turn into lyric lines.
• Suggest your idea of whole song (if you feel so ambitious). I'll probably make the final call as to the arrangement, but I know I don't have the best ideas in the world, so that's why I'm asking for ideas. What are the best dumbest ways to die in Spiral Knights?
• Be an animator – open up your services to recreating the original video with a Spiral Knights style. The knights involved will probably be more famous knights/devs/etc. rather than random ones so that they're recognizable (i.e. Cherub, Mawa, Agazide, Tdlob, Dogrock, etc.).
• Be a player willing to die – if we don't get the animated video, we'll probably just do stuff actually in the Clockworks... or something. I'm not sure yet.

/shrug

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:36

Zorbez

Question

Does the dumb ways to die include LD and BN?

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:38

Latisan-Sklay

/shrug

I don't see why not – I don't necessarily think that the song should be dominated by Coliseum references, but the thought of freeze traps, the Slush Puppy, snowballs or rockets, death wishes and the Cautery Sword come instantly to mind...

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:42

Zorbez

That epic moment...

Playing guardian, OP skolver clone kills me, before immediately running into spikes with his boost and dying. Sweet revenge.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:43

Latisan-Sklay

o.O

That's pretty funny.

But do spikes deal damage in LD?
... I thought they just stunned.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:47

Tevokkia

Well ... if you want to put up with my singing ...

... and nobody with a better voice comes along (it wouldn't be hard), I can sing. XD

If nothing else, I'll die in the video.

Death by Knockers is usually pretty embarrassing. Or Chroma Whelps. Or not paying attention in a Treasure Vault and getting killed by a Kleptolisk (that happened to someone who I was talking to at the time XD)

I've not heard the song yet, so I'll give it a listen and come back later with some lyrics, maybe.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:47

Zorbez

Gardens

The Gardens map's spikes do piercing

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:51

Snowdusk

Can we include non-realistic

Can we include non-realistic examples? (For example: Wearing a Trojan Disguise, eating the Prismatic Cake helm, using the mineral gate as a hiding place - the place where you deposit minerals)

In other words, they may not include death reasons in the Clockworks or the Coliseum, as long as they are logically lethal.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:53

Gzilla

Elevator safety people.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 09:54

Autofire

@Snowdusk

What about drinking a fear phial? Eating forbidden fruit? Oh joy this'll be fun(ny)!

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 10:04

#10

Latisan-Sklay

/shrug

Again, I don't see why not. The trick will be getting the proper mix between actual game deaths and silly ones. I do like the mineral deposit gate thing though... hahaha.

On the other hand, there are 22 dumb ways to die per "Dumb Ways to Die" song, so there's room for all kinds of stuff.

Short answer, yes we can and I think should include some of the lethal but not obtainable ways of dying in Spiral Knights.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 10:05

#11

Snowdusk

@Autofire

Haha! Yeah, I just really love out-of-the-box ideas such as these :3

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 10:07

#12

Latisan-Sklay

♫♫♫

"Run into a fire drone,
Get hit by a telephone... (fiend reference)"

♫ Dumb ways to die! ♫

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 10:21

#13

Snowdusk

@Autofire

You know what's the worst?

Chewing swordstone as a gum xD

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 11:57

#14

Tevokkia

Dangit...

That song is stuck in my head now.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 12:01

#15

Latisan-Sklay

Join the club.

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 13:41

#16

Hatbot

@Zorbahs

Guy kills you and runs into spikes?
POETIC JUSTICE!

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 16:20

#17

Possiblespy

Make sure someone gets killed by a rock jelly!

I'd like to volunteer to die!

Pros:
I've got an elevator pass and plenty of free time.
I've got lots of gear, I can likely have the right resistances/weaknesses/weapons to die in the funniest way possible.
I can rhyme words decently okay, maybe I can help with lyrics.

Cons:
Don't have skolver, can't dress up as a LD clone...
Don't have any program/knowledge to record stuff myself...

Suggestions for ways to die:
Burn for a really really really really long time, then die. (full mad bomber)
Get swarmed by kats, then get killed by a chromalisk or jelly. (shadow armor, scarlet fortress)
Lose MASSIVE amounts of pips at once. (ancient plate + heart pendants)
Rev-die-rev-die-rev-die (mist energy, FSC's shadow fire or other floor traps)
Die, then have the bomb you just placed kill the last of everything. (nitronome, or something like it)
Get freeze-locked or whatever as a skolver clone. (skolver, shiver, teams made up of cooperative knights)
Repeatedly walk straight towards a polaris, repeatedly get knocked back. Due to disconnection, maybe? (polaris)

Thu, 03/07/2013 - 19:22

#18

Snowdusk

Make way for the boring designer's speech.

Note that in terms of "dumb", we aren't talking about the situation coming to us inevitably. It's more like you yourself are being so retarded as to do something of insignificance, and consequentially results in death.

Everyone dies by fire and freeze and [insert all status here], everyone dies by a Trojan/Vanaduke swing (at least once), everyone dies by a hard situation, so they're pretty ordinary. We need really, really retarded and unique ideas here to make the song stand out as being truly "dumb".

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 01:38

#19

Breaker-Xd

Dumb Ways To Die Prototype Lyrics

♫♫♫♫♫
Set an Oiler slick aflame (Fire theme carried through)
Call a Skolver clone an offensive name (Skolver clone = grizzly bear... close enough)
Eat medicine that's out of date (Word for word, referring to health caps)
Bring a Nova to a Gremlin gate (Seriously, its a bad idea. 1/10 would not recommend)

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.
Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.

♫♫♫♫♫
Walk into a lava tile (Derp)
Go AFK for a while. (Double Derp)
Solo Heart of Ice (0/10 WOULD NOT RECOMEND)
Take a swing at guy who was trying to be nice. (Meh.. it's not usually fatal)

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.
Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.

♫♫♫♫♫
Use a Nitronome on a team (Lag hell)
Step right into a retrode beam (Herp a derp)
Smack a Trojan right across the face (No effect... expect the club-smash in 3... 2.. 1......)
Use the mineral deposit as a hiding place (Stolen from a previous poster :P)

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.
Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.

♫♫♫♫♫
Keep a spookat as a pet (Not the cute ones)
Sell all your armor on the internet (and DIE EVERYWHERE)
Eat a tube of Jelly Glue (It probably won't kill you, but i want the "glue" part for the next line)
And I wonder what's this red button do? (Activating a trap button and having ARENA DANGER ROOM HELL pop out in half a second, creating a wormhole of latency and pain and suffering. Oh, and dying in 3 seconds flat from full health)

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.
Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die.

♫♫♫♫♫
Wear Mad Bomber's set to King of Ashes (burn baby burn!)
Run away from a striker as he dashes (2/10. Try it if you want, but the odds are not inyour favor)
Set bombs on an elevator platform (FATAL! GASP)
Get disconnected at the loading screen (Legitly fatal)
Shoot a blaster at the platform (SO FATAL OMG CANNOT HANDLE)
They may not rhyme but they might possible (be?)

Dumbest ways to die, the dumbest ways to die.
Dumbest ways to die, so many dumb, so many dumb ways to die.

Be safe around elevators, a message from the Recon Rangers (Cuz DESNA <3)

~T2 LD Fiend :P

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 02:19

#20

Zorbez

Wow.

@Breaker-xd /applaud
We need a like button for this

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 02:35

#21

Zorbez

Suggestions

@Breaker-xd Since the last line should be an reiteration of the consequences of doing dumb stuff around elevators, then maybe disconnecting at the loading screen would not be suitable. Maybe change it to those people who keep doing WRH dashes and flourish charges to glitch out of the elevators, or the people who join the party at the moment the escalator is going down.

The rest of it I must say is quite good, I can see you have put in much effort into it.

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 07:57

#22

Doctorspacebar

Node 53120 is credit to team!

Definitely include that first line. It's educational. PEOPLE SHOULD NOT SET OILER SLICKS ON FIRE.

EVER.

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 08:28

#23

Xenonguard

How about these two?

Get Sucked into a black hole: Spin around while in a Graviton Vortex radius. In the chorus be still spinning aroung.

Drop a statue on your head: Be lying on floor dead and a teammate places a statue on you. In the chorus lie dead on floor.

Do a strange dark ritual: Have the curse mark above your head (Gran Faust charge) while standing on the Konjuring Kat's runes. In Chorus still have a curse mark.

My idea for this is for the chorus to be set in the Advanced Training Hall, giving access to status effects and weapons. People doing status involved things should be wearing the Chaos set underneath the costume to prolong the effect. Self curses would be done by charging a Gran Faust beforehand.

For the little dance thing, here's a bit of choreography.

Tap right, right, left, left, right, then spin around in a circle. For the Jumping up bit, a /wave command would suffice.

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 11:41

#24

Latisan-Sklay

Good ideas are good.

Breaker-Xd, I love that!
I can say that for sure, I don't think I'm going to change that first stanza at all - it's perfect. :D
I like a lot of the couplets there too. Thanks!!! :D

Unstable-O, I like those ideas too – and they're doable. :)
And yes! That choreography is great!
Obviously, we'd rather first get an animator to make the video for us, but if that doesn't work, I think we should use that. :D

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 11:55

#25

Artistbma

Eat a lot of blast powder.

Eat a lot of blast powder. (Mouth goes KABOOM hahahhahaha >_<)
Become quite a lot stouter. (Vanaduke becoming Undead yo heheh)
Forget your armor at home. (Knight in Proto Set in Danger Room with monsters swarming him)
Get blown up by a Nitronome. (Knight getting KABOOMED by a Nitronome)

Eh, eh eh?

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 12:22

#26

Latisan-Sklay

Oh hai Artist. Long time no C.

I really like the second set there.

"Get blown up by a Nitronome" sounds fun. :D

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 13:04

#27

Softhead

sips chocolate with cinnamon.

pff.

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 13:43

#28

Dragonuity

Hammmer booooosting into some

Hammmer booooosting into some spikes
sooo many dumb ways to die!

Sat, 03/09/2013 - 06:04

#29

Dragonuity

Walk on to some fireUse

Walk on to some fire
Use proto in Vana's lair
A F K from your Lockdown base
Go after some recons in fruitless chase.

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die

Did you bring the wrong loadout
Your fang of vog's charge burned you out
Left with vana alone
Slags just flew my way, was it your friend's nitronome

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die

Did you trash your guild from the inside
Step away from a striker's stride
Ask for every single thing you see
Book of dark ritual to a N P C

Dumb ways to die, so many ways to die

Oops you hit an explosion block
Did that jelly come straight out of a block
Kicked while fighting a legion
"Trapped in a corner by a Trojan!"

Dumb ways to die, so many dumb ways to die

Trapped in a vortex and tried to get away
You just got scammed and it isn't your day
In a shadow lair SNAP! the power went out
At the boss and lagbite makes you lose the fight
Halfyway through lockdown, uh oh your screen just freezed
They may not ryhme but they’re quite possibly

Dumbest ways to die ie
Dumbest ways to die
Dumbest ways to die
So many dumb
So many dumb ways to die

Be sure to get better internet: A message for all Knights

Fri, 03/08/2013 - 21:48

#30

Breaker-Xd

My 2 crowns

So thanks for the comments on the lyrics! :D Glad y'all liked em.

If I were to suggest video making for this, I would say stay away from flash animations and the like. While they look awesome, it's hard to find someone good at using flash, and on top of that even harder to find someone willing to make this video come true

If anything, a spiral knights game-clips montage could be easily filmed and strung together to get all these things, though they may not be quite as funny as flash animations. Of course we can make them like 90% cooler using spiral spy (which I am capable of using, and might be willing to do), but they still won't be the same as flash animations.

Regarding instrumentation and lyrics, there's a good Karaoke version of the song here , which we could have the singers sing over, OR we could reinstrumentize it, maybe even using a mashup of ingame sounds (brandish charge, sword swings, these are all really easy to access if you use spiral spy correctly...)

And of course, I'm male and I suck at singing, so count me out on that one. :P

Sat, 03/09/2013 - 01:17

#31

Cobalterian

Wow

Aweosme guys! Or girls :P

Anyway,I could help with the dancing in-game, but me male, so no singing for me pls.

Sat, 03/09/2013 - 13:16

#32

Latisan-Sklay

@Breaker-Xd

In response to...

Videya - Yeah... I strongly doubt we'll find anyone, but that's why I put the request out there. I fully intend to do in-game filming of nothing else comes up. Also, I was thinking about Spiral Spy, but I wasn't sure how easy it is to make pictures/stop-motion/whatever with it. Can you enlighten me a bit?

Audiya - I've got the original instrumental version already (legally). :P
If you've got ideas/technology/etc. to make a remix yourself or with anyone else on the interwebs, feel free.

Sat, 03/09/2013 - 19:38

#33

Xxpapaya

The papaya has a vocalist

Ok, I can't hit a high note either >.>, Latisan
But I know someone who can ^^ She probably won't be interested, but, meh, its worth a try ^^

Oh, and I'm willing to die ^^ No, really, I am :P In case you can't get an animation up :P

Sat, 03/09/2013 - 21:15

#34

Breaker-Xd

I spy with my little eye...

Spiral Spy basically lets you view SK models from more camera angles than in the real game, doing weirder things than in the real game, with retextured weapons that aren't in the real game...

So for example I can get nice worm's eye views of a trojan smashing a knight to a pulp.

The problem with spiral spy is that it is hard to get camera motion to move cleanly, and you can't really make knights walk around or anything; everything stays on its own tile. It might dance or swing a sword, but it stays on that tile.

I was thinking of using spiral spy only for fancy camera angles, and not for much more.

I'll probably try some audio if I get the chance; I'm decent at mixing beats :P

Fri, 03/15/2013 - 05:27

#35

Latisan-Sklay

Update!

Music: Check.
Female Vocalist: Check (Tevokkia).
Male Vocalist: Open (I will fill if no one else cares to).
Lyrics:
Set an oiler slick aflame
Think that fiends just want to play a game
Use a Remedy that's out of date
Bring a Nova to a Gremlin gate.
Chorus
Hit a big, red explosive block
Did that jelly come out of rock
Be left with Vanaduke alone
Get blown up by a Nitronome.
Chorus
Challenge a GM to a duel
Call a Skolver clone a repulsive fool
Smack a Trojan across the face
Use a gate for minerals as a hiding place
Chorus
Keep a Phantom as a pet
Too much lag on your crappy internet / Sell all your armor on the internet (You decide!)
Go Proto gear in C42
I wonder what does this group button do?
Chorus
Make a meal out of Misery and Ironwood
Feed your Battle Sprite only Forbidden Fruit
Eat a lot of Blast Powder and walk close to a flame
Think that Jelly Gems and Jelly Glue are quite the same
Picnic in a Treasure Vault and die from a Kelpto/get owned from Kelptos (You decide!)
They may not rhyme but they’re quite possibly
Altered Chorus

Be careful what you eat. A message from The Arsenal Podcast.

Mon, 03/11/2013 - 17:39

#36

Latisan-Sklay

Note on the lyrics

Of course, the lyrics are still changeable. There's some stuff I wanted to include but couldn't:
• Gran Faust charges
• Falling off the edge of a level
• Trying to hug the Snarbolax
• Using a sword as a toothpick

If you can find any way to cleverly rearrange the lines and include these or one of your own ideas, be sure to let me know what and where.

Also note that some lines obviously cannot be changed, i.e. Use a gate for minerals as a hiding place.

Also also note that I am not in a location right now to listen to the music as I compile the lyrics. The last bridge part may not be up to rhythm – I will fix it as soon as I can unless you beat me to it.

Mon, 03/11/2013 - 19:29

#37

Cobalterian

Cool

When are we doing this again?

Mon, 03/11/2013 - 20:21

#38

Son-Of-Gunz

@ Breaker-Xd

I suggest the final should be : Be safe around clockwork/Cradle

caz 'Trains' only got 1 syllable and 'elevators' got 3... make it to 2 will be better

Nice job, I will try those ways to die... yay for danger!

Mon, 03/11/2013 - 22:25

#39

Snowdusk

I like the lyrics so far

I like the lyrics so far :D
And I agree with Son-Of-Gunz, we should refer to Cradle in general. You can say it's from the Arsenal Podcast itself, it just sounds more relevant that way xD
On the sidenote, I have a few questions here:

1. The second line in the first stanza "Think that fiends just want you to play a game" might be too long to fit in a proper rhythm. Perhaps we can shorten it to "Think that fiends just want a game", or something similar (go ahead and change it, mine is way off)

2. First line in second stanza "You just hit an explosive block" could be changed to "Hit a big, red explosive block", so as to keep the consistency of placing the verb at the start of each line.

3. Probably a few grammar tweaks?
Bridge, first line: "Make a meal out of Misery and Ironwood"
Bridge, fifth line: "Picnic in a Treasure Vault and die from a Kelpto" (singular) or "Kleptos" (plural)

4. What's a white button? xD

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 06:05

#40

Latisan-Sklay

Moar updates!

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

When are we doing this?
It will be over a course of time. Not right away, but I'll start posting times that I'm available and where to find me, and you can just show up and we can do it.

Lyric changes?
The lyrics in the primary update post have been edited to your suggestions.

What about that last line?
Here's the thing. The original Dumb Ways to Die was a song that Metro sponsored to warn people about the danger of trains. That's why the most of the bridge has references to trains, and then calls them the dumbest ways to die.
When I was compiling our version, I tried to find a lot of things in common and put them in the bridge - the common denominator ended up being food.
As a result, I set the ending to be "Be careful what you eat".
Honestly, I'm not too thrilled about generalizing the warning at the end, since a general warning about the Clockworks isn't 'technically-for-the-point-of-the-parody' the main point of the song.
If you can oust my logic, I am open to changing the ending; however, if there's no good reason to generalize the warning, I'd rather just leave it how it is.

What's the white button?
I imagined that it's a party button for a danger room. However, if you can find a way to make the "button" more explosive, let me know... I honestly couldn't think of anything good, so there you go.

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 12:37

#41

Artistbma

Be left with Vanaduke

Be left with Vanaduke alone
Get blown up by a Nitronome.

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 16:55

#42

Immortous

Ant-loaf

^ Good call Art.

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 20:36

#43

Tevokkia

Oh, I'm official?

Time to start rehearsing then. *hugs her mic*

I think that leaving "just" out of the devilite line improves the meter. This being said after singing the first stanza six times through. XD

That last bridge could use some cleaning up, I think, but I'll have to listen to the song a few more times to get a better idea of how they're sung first.

Thu, 03/14/2013 - 18:43

#44

Flamearc

Every time on FSC...

On Firestorm Citadel, a boulder jelly always spawn at least once, and kills me.

Thu, 03/14/2013 - 18:58

#45

Dragonuity

@Latisan-sklay

Whot about:
What does this group button do?

Fri, 03/15/2013 - 03:36

#46

Cobalterian

Nice idea

Fri, 03/15/2013 - 05:28

#47

Latisan-Sklay

Edits made!

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

The song looks very shiny and polished now. Let me know if I missed a spot. :3

Fri, 03/15/2013 - 08:28

#48

Immortous

Ant-loaf

That part about the group button...

Original: "I wonder what does this group button do?"

Fix: "I wonder what's this group button do?"

For the sake of rhyming, rhythm, and whatnot.

Whattya think?

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 17:02

#49

Latisan-Sklay

Yup!

I like it, I like it!

Granted, I kind of assumed that that's how it would go; I typed the lines explicitly to make it clear what's trying to be said.

Thanks for the feedback!

Wed, 03/20/2013 - 20:16

#50

Lizzi

Hey, this looks like something fun to animate. Might put forth some of my own work as an animator. ^^

However, I doubt I'll have the motivation to do an entire video of the song, so what I propose is that we make the music video half-recorded from ingame and half animated (or preferably, mostly filmed and partially animated).

Also, if you don't have an instrumental version of the song yet, here's a nice link.

Edit: whoops, didn't see that you already had the instrumental xD

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♫ Dumb Ways to Die ♫, Spiral Knights version - Update of progress @ comment #35