I is for Inching closer to release
Tuesday is the launch of the game every Halo fan has been waiting for since they threw their controllers in disgust at the ending of Halo 2; Halo 3. As much as I don’t want to be excited about it, I am. There is something about the Halo series that has a hold of me no matter how much I try to fight it.
The Halo series is a huge part of the current gaming culture. While you may find gamers who haven’t touched it, you would be hard-pressed to find one who hadn’t even heard of it. As the game that single-handedly established Microsoft in the gaming world, Halo was very important in directing current trends and exposing tactics of certain companies. Halo’s past is riddled with cheap (though unsurprising) tactics, disappointment and endless delays. It also harbors monsterous release numbers and one of the strongest fan-followings of any game.
When the first Halo title was announced back in the summer of ‘99, the game was set for release for both Windows and Mac OS. The game was an immediate hit amongst journalists who had had a chance to preview game earlier in the year at E3. Halo was seen as the title to bring gaming to the Mac in a way that it had not seen previously. It was only a year later, though, that the hopes of this killer Mac title were destroyed when Microsoft announced that it had purchased Bungie Studios (developers of the Halo series) and would make the game a Microsoft exclusive. As if this wasn’t enough of a blow, the game would no longer be initially released on PC, but on Microsoft’s new game console, the Xbox. This transfer of platform severly changed the development of Halo and when Bungie rewrote the engine, it changed from a 3rd Person title to a First Person Shooter. While the end product was considered inferior to the game displayed that first year, it still found success and aclaim as a console title. The control scheme and many of the methods of gameplay used in the Xbox version of Halo became mainstay parts of console FPS titles for years to come.
I give the history of the original title for a reason. Halo has one of the more interesting pasts for a game series and it shows in the games themselves. While original title felt almost incomplete on Xbox and the second felt stunted, both titles, for as flawed as they were, hold a special place in many gamers hearts. That place could be one of absolute love or utter hate, but no matter what it is, Halo is known to everyone. It is with this and on the back of the biggest game release in history (Halo 2) that Halo 3 will make its appearance.
MUSIC
ICO was released in 2001 for the PS2 and quickly fell under the radar. Though being critically acclaimed, it found itself in the "cult classic" niche. Directed by Fumito Ueda, who later when on to develop Shadow of the Colossus, ICO is a unique adventure game set in an abandoned castle. Michiru Oshima and Pentagon composed the soundtrack for the game, creating a minimal, atmospheric score.
As the last track of the album, "ICO ~You were there~" features the vocal talents of former Libera member Steven Geraghty. The song is extremely beautiful, using a mixture of synthesized instruments and real ones to create a powerful yet subtle ambiance that is only accented by the high vocals of the young singer.
Yasuhiro Kawasaki - Temple Illusion of Gaia Original Soundtrack
Published by Enix in Japan and Nintendo everywhere else, Illusion of Gaia is an RPG released for the Super Nintendo back in '94. It is part of the so-called "Soul Blazer" series which consists four titles developed by Quintet that share both "plot themes and gameplay elements." Illusion of Gaia ended up being the only major soundtrack developed by composer Yasuhiro Kawasaki who did only minor titles afterwards such as the Japanese version of Sim Tower: The Vertical Empire for PC in '95.
The track "Temple" is about as cliche of a SNES RPG track as you can find. Though showing off the best of the best in the world of VGM is important, the mediocre songs are just as vital. By '94, the major RPG franchises of the day were already in full swing with the fifth iterations of the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest series both already on shelves. Because of the success of their style of music, many other titles turned to mimicry to help them find success in the market, including Illusion of Gaia's soundtrack. The production sounds like early Final Fantasy but less inspired. This is perhaps why Kawasaki found little work after the release of this game.
H is for Holy Crap, more Kingdom Hearts!
Today was the first day of the Tokyo Game Show and Square Enix came out swinging with the announcement of not one, but three new Kingdom Hearts titles. All the games are hand-held, covering the range of major platforms (DS, PSP, Mobile) and the time-line as well. The DS title, Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days (read as 358 over 2 days) takes place during Kingdom Hearts II. It features Roxas and Axel, two major fangirl fodder from the second game and will have a co-op mode similar to Crystal Chronicles (according to Kotaku). It will also be a lot darker in terms of the atmosphere created by the game. That in itself makes me want to play it.
The second title, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (what the fuck is with these titles?) is going to appear on the PSP. Birth of Sleep will be a prequel to the series, occurring before the events of Kingdom Hearts and will center around earlier Keyblade masters; namely Xehanort. Fans of the series will know Xehanort as the fake Ansem who was the main villain (at least his alternate forms were) in both PS2 games.
The third and final game, Kingdom Hearts: Coded is going to be on the mobile platform. There’s not as much info about this title as there are the first two, but from what is known it seems to take place parallel to the PS2 games. It will feature Sora as the main character and be a basic dungeon crawler.
While I’m a fan of the Kingdom Hearts series, I’m not really too excited two more hand-held titles for the series (don’t expect Coded to ever be released here). Though I’m interested in playing 358/2 Days, I really want to find out the history of Xehanort, but of course it’s on the hand-held I don’t have. The chances of me picking up a PSP in the future, even with some titles I want to play, is very slim. If they did something like the Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix + release with the two titles included in Kingdom Hearts III, that would make me very happy. Of course, there’s no guarentee that the game would come out in America should they do that.
MUSIC
Hitman 2 was released in 2002 and almost immediately found itself mixed up in controversy over the content. Even with the controversy, though, the game was received well amongst gamers and helped establish the Hitman franchise. The soundtrack, composed by Jesper Kyd and performed by the Budapest Symphonic Orchestra, was nominated for multiple awards honoring the best soundtrack including GameSpot's Soundtrack of the Year and multiple Game Audio Network Guild awards.
"Waiting for Action" is the second track of the soundtrack and occurs early on in the game. Featuring a strong orchestral score, the track has an almost Eastern-European feel to it. The brooding feel of the song only intensifies as the drums, though short, make their appearance near the end of the composition.
Kelly Bailey - Black Mesa Inbound Half-Life 2 Original Soundtrack
There isn't much need to detail the pedigree of the Half-Life series. Being the sequel to one of the most influential FPS titles to ever grace a PC, Half-Life 2 was an excellent follow up and the soundtrack was no slouch either. Kelly Bailey returned to score Half-Life 2 which helped maintain a sense of continuity from the first title to the second which was released almost exactly six years later.
The track Black Mesa Inbound is actually a remix of a track from the original Half-Life soundtrack which was entitled "Vague voices." By itself, this extremely atmospheric track is almost forgettable, but in a good way. It does it's job of making your forget you are listening to a piece of music and instead evokes the basic emotions it was set out to. The arrangement is extremely minimal, with a few electronic sounds heard throughout. The sound is almost metallic with a soft organic undertone as the sound pads fluctuate in and out.
Nobuo Uematsu - First Moon Event Hanjuku Hero Original Soundtrack
Originally released in 1988 in Japan, Hanjuku Hero was “[a] real time strategy game, Hanjuku Hero lets you command monsters and troops in a land-based battle for supremacy. Humor and strategy mix in this unique game. The fate of your kingdom is on this battle!” (RPGamer.com) The composer Nobuo Uematsu had just come off his first Final Fantasy composition when he scored this game.
“First Moon Event” falls in line well with Uematsu’s style. The strong melody and solid use of simple harmonics through the old Famicom system shows his ability to make a memorable song from anything. Though the song isn’t as impactful or epic as his Final Fantasy tracks, it’s the light-hearted feel that makes it an enjoyable listen. Even without having played the game, listening to the song makes one imagine the kind of enjoyment young Japanese kids probably felt in the early days of Squaresoft.
E is for Egotistical.
One thing I want to make perfectly clear is my dislike of “Ego Gamers.” These are people who only play games they are good at, and only play to boost their own ego. You may have run into these types before. Whenever you’re at a party or a friend’s house and people are playing games, they will often loiter around the area, but don’t ever seem to want to play. However, once “their game” is chosen to be played, they are ready to show everyone in the area just how good they are/how much time they’ve wasted on this game. They are usually pretty good at the game, and can beat the average gamer. That’s where the problem starts. Up until now, they haven’t touched the controller, but once they are on a game they are good at, they make sure you know just how amazing they are and how much you suck. Sure, they may suck at every other game out there, but you’d never know. They never give you the chance to because they are too busy avoiding those games. No, instead of playing games whether they suck at them or not, to them games are about winning and showing up your opponent.
Now that I have gotten that off my chest, I can move on to other things. Like stories. More importantly, video game stories.
I’ve always been a big fan of a good storyline. I feel most games can benefit from a well-thought-out storyline (barring certain genres like sports that don’t really require it). It seems, though, that the tales the current games weave are becoming increasingly unoriginal. Sure, they may use different names or settings, but you can only tell the same story so many times before it becomes old.
One series that has been my beacon for good storytelling has been Final Fantasy. Since I started playing the series many years ago, I had always been enthralled with the complex tales that seemed to go on forever. Unfortunately, even Final Fantasy has been slipping in this regard. With the release of X-2 and XII, the story department has been lacking. Whether it be a completely ridiculous sequel or simply the lack of any real overlying plot, Final Fantasy has been losing ground. Instead, it has been the Indie titles that have impressed me. Games like Pyschonauts and Indigo Prophecy show that original and interesting storytelling is still available, you just have to find them. There are more mainstream titles that feature some quality storytelling, such as Bioshock, but those are becoming rare. I’m just hoping that Final Fantasy XIII will be better.
MUSIC
Kenichiro Fukui - Warning Einhänder Original Soundtrack
Norihiko Hibino - hope and courage Elvandia Story Original Soundtrack
Silicon Knights - Black Rose Eternal Darkness ~ Sanity’s Requiem Sound Track
D is for Dead? I don’t think so!
As it’s been a while since my last post and there are many things that have happened, I’m just going to start fresh.
I am a fan of System Shock 2. A very big fan. Since I am a fan, I was more than excited when Bioshock was announced. I waited, almost patiently, for the release of what could be the greatest FPS RPG title released since SS2. Upon release, however, as impressed as I was by the game, I couldn’t help but feel as though I was just playing SS2 with a new theme. It was almost as if they had re-skinned the original game, slapped a new prefix to “Shock” and dumbed down the difficulty. I could go on about it but I feel that Zero Punctuation said it perfectly in the following video:
On another note, I want to talk about RPGs. More specifically, Japanese RPGs. Yes, I know, it’s a touchy subject. JRPGs is like the Euro Metal of the gaming world. Everyone had probably played one or two, but only the nerdiest of the nerdy (myself included) really enjoy them on higher level. So if you are not a fan of them, I would say skip on down the post. Anyway, my issue is with the evolving battle systems in the games. More and more are JRPGs going to a real-time battle system and straying from the turn-based style that it was birthed with. I don’t necessarily dislike this trend, it’s simply that the transition has been very rocky. More often than not, I have found myself playing a real-time system that has been not only exceedingly dull, but also very contrived and not even very well executed. Only a few titles have really stood out as having excellent real-time systems or variations thereof (Star Ocean, Tales of Symphonia, Final Fantasy XII). There has also been a growing pressure on classic turn-based franchises to shed their ways and go to the new style. Series like Dragon Quest, games that have built their popularity on the solid turn-based gameplay, are feeling the pressure from other series who have jumped ship and embraced the new system. This I am not happy with.
I grew up playing turn-based games, and I would rather not see series I have loved change something that drew me into it in the first place. A Dragon Quest title that is not turn-based seems almost blasphemous. I do understand that turn-based systems can be overwhelming or sometimes needlessly convoluted. Games like Magna Carta that featured hybrid systems that were so overly complex that playing the game was no longer fun ruins the image of turn-based titles.
Another nail in the turn-based coffin is the random encounter. So often are old titles associated with this bastardized version of exploration that it becomes synonymous with tedium. Games have been starting to stray from that concept, but it still rears its ugly head every now and then (Rogue Galaxy).
In the end, I feel that Final Fantasy XII has done the best job so far of combining both schools of thought into one extremely coherent and entirely enjoyable game.
MUSIC
As the title implies, today is the day of the D. No, I am not talking about Tenacious D, I am talking about tracks from games who’s name begins with that lovely letter D. Below you will find music from Dragon Quest, Devil May Cry, and Dead Rising. Enjoy.
Koichi Sugiyama - Overture Dragon Quest VIII Sorato Umito Daichito Norowareshi Himegimi Symphonic Suite
Shawn McPherson - Cerberus Battle Devil May Cry 3 Original Soundtrack
Hostile Groove - On a Mission Dead Rising Original Soundtrack
C is for Carpal Tunnel.
I’ve decided to make my next post on the very next day, since I need to make up for all that time I lost. Aside from that, I’ve added something new to the blog which I think will be a nice, welcomed addition. Now, below the mp3 link, will be a flash media player which will allow you to “sample” the track before downloading it. The tracks will play in their entirety, so there is no need to worry about getting only a 30 second teaser. You will hear the full thing. However, due to the nature of the player, there is a chance it may not work with some of the files, as most (if not all the files) I post are VBR. If you have any troubles with the audio playback, please let me know and I’ll see what I can do. The developer of the media player, Jeroen Wijering, warned that VBR would cause issues in playback, but from my testing, I have yet to encounter it, so hopefully everything works as it should. Anyway, on to today’s list.
Update: Since you can now hear the song live, there is no real need to put the genre.
Guido - Outskirts of Time Chrono Trigger The Brink of Time
Satoshi Ise - Theme of GOUKI remix Capcom vs. SNK 2 Millionaire Fighting 2001 Original Soundtrack
Michiru Yamane - Prologue Castlevania Original Soundtrack
B is for back, which is what I am.
After a long delay between posts, I’m back behind the wheel again, and ready to start posting some new songs. A couple changes before I begin though. First off, the layout is new, thanks to WPDesigner and their wonderful themes. Obviously I changed the top banner to make it a bit more VG related. Secondly, I’m going to stop posting the short descriptions of each song for now, as it gets harder and harder to try to describe a song that isn’t that much different from many others I post in a new way, so instead I’ll just post the songs and you can be the judge. I will, however, post the genre that it best fits in below the link. Finally, though I won’t be describing the songs anymore, feel free to post your own descriptions/interpretations/feelings about the songs in the comments.
Now that that is over, on to the music.
Yoshino Aoki - Endings and Beginnings Breath of Fire IV Original Soundtrack
Classical
Misao Senbongi, Shusaku Uchiyama - Final Battle biohazard 4 Original Soundtrack
Classical
Noriko Matsueda & Takahito Eguchi - Volt Krueger The Bouncer Original Video Game Soundtrack
Metal/Electronic
A is for apathy.
Since I’m lazy, I decided to do a series a posts themed around the alphabet. Each post will have songs from games that begin with a certain letter, and will continue until I’ve completed all 26 letters. We’ll start with A, as any good alphabetical list does.
Tetsukazu Nakanishi - EXCALIBUR Ace Combat Zero The Belkan War Original Soundtrack Though the soundtrack may not be the first thought to enter your mind when you think of the Ace Combat series, it is not a thought that should be lost. The soundtrack has a Metal sound to it, which is exemplified in the names of the songs. What is more Metal than a mythical sword? The song itself is great. It’s very powerful, and joystick or no, makes you ready for battle.
Junya Nakano - Dream Cat Another Mind Original Soundtrack While the game itself may have never found its way past the Japanese shores, the soundtrack has. The music is different than a lot of soundtracks, which can be a good or bad thing, based on your own personal tastes. One track, “Dream Cat”, exemplifies the odd nature of the soundtrack. The underlying melody is there, though obscured by the almost random compositions for some of the instruments in the track. I do enjoy the song, but can see very well how it may not work for others.
Tetsuya Shibata - Feasible… Auto Modellista Original Soundtrack What can I call this other than “driving music?” The music doesn’t try to be inventive, it just tries to stir the feeling of speed and excitement out of you as you fly around turns and past other cars in this racing game. In the same way Initial D relies on the quick beats of Euro-Dance, Auto Modellista turns to the fast nature of Guitar Metal.
Welcome back. Here’s your sword.
Sorry for the long delay. I know I said I would have a post up last Wednesday, but things happened that kept me from it. However, I’m back and ready to continue where I left off.
Previously I said I was going to post 6 songs to make up for the delay. However, this won’t happen. Instead, I’m going to post 100 tracks. That’s right. “How?” you may ask. It’s simple. In honor of the newest Final Fantasy and the game that has stolen my soul, I’m going to post the entire FFXII soundtrack. So I hope you all enjoy.
Hitoshi Sakimoto - Final Fantasy XII Original Soundtrack (475MB) This is the first numbered Final Fantasy Soundtrack that Nobuo Uematsu has nothing to do with (X-2 excluded as it’s not a real game). However, it’s an amazing accomplishment and stands as one of the best soundtracks in the series, in my opinion. Sakimoto had a lot to live up to when he took the reigns of this beast, but he pulled it off, and in the process produced some tracks that quickly have joined the ranks of my favorite songs of all time.
All about the piano
Since the Final Fantasy albums are a major area in the world of VGM, it only makes sense to give them some space on the blog, and today is going to be about the Piano Collections.
Shiro Hamaguchi/Shinko Ogata - Fisherman’s Horizon Final Fantasy VIII: Piano Collections Already a beautiful track from the original soundtrack, the piano rendition is wonderful. The soft, whimsical tone puts you at ease quickly. It captures of feeling of relaxing on a dock with a fishing pole and the warmth of the sun very well.
Masashi Hamauzu/Aki Kuroda - Traveling Company Final Fantasy X: Piano Collections Like Fisherman’s Horizon, this song is a soft, atmospheric track. However, instead of intending to capture of feel of fishing, its purpose is to create a peaceful enviornment inside a shop. A simple task, but Traveling Company exceeds in all categories.
Reiko Nomura - Tina Final Fantasy VI: Piano Collections This piece is nothing short of a classic. From the last Nintendo Final Fantasy until Crystal Chronicles, the music in VI was phenomenal, and this theme was no exception. It has a very epic feel to it. Though some of it is lost in the translation to solo piano, it still holds up as a wonderfully performed and composed piece.
Shiro Hamaguchi/Seiji Honda - One Winged Angel FINAL FANTASY VII: Piano Collections Another classic Final Fantasy track, this piano rendition does a great job of keeping the dark tone. The piece never lets up, and unfolds like any great epic song would. For those of you who have heard the original, you can almost hear the choir chanting “Se-phi-roth” in the background as the hammers of the piano slam against the strings with a great intensity.
All tracks originally composed by Nobuo Uematsu except “Traveling Company”, which was composed by Masashi Hamauzu.
Just a meager flame will do
COIL - Soft Machine (Opening Theme) Gitarooman As the opening track to this unique rhythm game, it does a good job of setting you up for what’s to come without giving too much away. It’s a fun song, with a catchy melody even though the vocals can sound a bit nasally at times. COIL performs most of the tracks on the album, and does an excellent job. It’s definately a diverse soundtrack, though not quite on par with the ecclectic nature of some others (Katamary Damacy for example).
Hirokazu Tanaka - Title BGM (Metroid) Famicom 20th Anniversary Original Sound Tracks Vol. 1 Featuring many different classic NES titles on this album, this is one track that I’m sure many older gamers will recognize and are sure to love. Being the first gimpse into the world of Metroid, the track quickly sets the mood with a dark tone and a rather minimal approach. Instead of trying to push the NES’ musical capabilities, Hirokazu, instead, made something that was more atmospheric than melodic.
Sixto Sounds - Made in the USA (Ken Stage) Blood on the Asphalt: Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo As a tribute album to the music of Street Fighter 2 Turbo, the people of OCRemix put this album together with some of the best versions of the tracks ever created. Sixto Sounds’ version of Ken’s Theme is one of the greatest, though, as it completely captures the feel of the character by combining the solid melody of the original with an almost Survivor-esque sound, making the track what that fine line between cheesy and great.