Wow, I still love this site, but unfortunately this board has slowed down quite a bit over the years.  My other favorite game music hangout, Gamingforce, also seems to be on the throes of extinction.

So my question is, where did everyone go?  Is there some great video game music forum that I'm missing?  If so, I haven't found it.  It all seems pretty strange to me, because game music has increased in popularity over the years. 

I'm aware of ffshrine, but it's pretty lame.  It doesn't even have a dedicated VG music only forum, and there's more posts in the download threads rather than discussion threads.  Surely there must be others.

I'm looking forward to hearing some input on this.  Thanks!

VGMDb isn't bad, though a lot of stuff is technical and clerical stuff, rather than about music.

Regular discussions about game music is more than welcome in there, even mixed with the technical stuff.

I tried getting into some other forums but I rather like this one the most. Just the feel of STC along with the personalities make it really comfortable to visit all the time. In addition I've gotten a lot of my collection from the kind people on this forum.

Admittedly I lurk a lot more than I post due to laziness. Long live STC.

Of course, but that doesn't mean it actually happens all that much.

I like it too, but man, things have slowed to a crawl.  I came here expecting discussion about the Zelda Symphony Tour and some thoughts on the new Final Fantasy Piano Opera CDs, but left disappointed.  Nothing on the Final Fantasy arrangements (pretty exciting development IMO!) and the last post in the Zelda thread was from February. 

I tend to lurk too, but I'm gonna bump the Z thread.

Me too. Except more complacency than laziness.

I find it interesting that people want a discussion on the one hand, but on the other hand they say from themself that they prefer to lurk the place. That's obviously not going to work.

I'm going to be picking up the new FF piano albums soon, so once I've heard those I'll probably post about them (also the Nier piano album - cannot WAIT to hear that thing).  I really only come to this place because it generally contains the least irritating collection of people who post about games and game music on the whole of the internet.

Also there's that whole force of habit thing, since I've been coming here for most of my adult life.  I do wonder sometimes if most game music fans are changing in their tastes - I feel sometimes like I'm the only one around who still gets excited about some of the new releases like I did when I was younger.

i still get excited for new VGM releases just not as much.  i'm normally a quieter lurking kind of person tho.  I'm excited about the upcoming SQ stuff in July - SQ Chips2, BattleSQ and BeerSQ.

Yes I see the humor, but part of my point is that it always DID used to work in the past.  But now that the discussion is drying up, I suppose many of us lurkers need to crawl out of our holes and contribute.

Well thats the thing. I find that many people here have excellent things to contribute with opinions that either mirror mine or are way more astute than mine. When I do put something up I kinda feel like what I say doesn't really get observed and so my opinion kind of feels worthless. I always liked clicking around seeing the latest Angela or Daniel K opinion but it seems like a bunch of regulars are just a bit more scarce nowadays.

i haven't seen Angela post here in quite some time... has she left this forum?

No, I emailed her and she's just really busy with stuff. Hopefully she'll be back soon.

This is a question I think many of us "old-timers" have had for a while. Why are things slowing down...age? Actually, it may be age. As VGM is becoming more popular, it's much more mainstream and people are talking about it in many places ranging from amazon, to IGN, to places such as this forum. So, I believe that in the past this forum was much busier because there were few places to discuss VGM. Now that it's much easier to discuss it, and acquire it in fact, or just look up info (VGMdb), I think this place has seen a decrease in activity. Still is the best place for it as far as I can tell.

I would say STC, if things picked up more. Although I'm active in the Gamingforce Song Contest for like the first time in 4 years and it's a fun environment right now, but that VGM forum overall has been dead, song of the fortnight/week aside.

I like what VGMDB has going, but I see so few actual opinions on the music, I feel it's not the best place to discuss it currently. I'm one of those people that doesn't think about who composed what most of the time within a soundtrack, I'm more interested in whether or not I like the end result.

This is a very expensive and often frustrating hobby, so it's possible some people just don't want anything to do with it anymore.

Some people start a family, so that leaves little time for posting on forums.

I occasionally post at FFshrine, vgmdb, and OC Remix. Many years ago, I may have posted at gamingforce. I also used to post at slightlydark. Somehow, I have been able to get the same name at each site. I probably wouldn't be able to get "Jodo Kast" at any gaming site or Star Wars site, for sure.

This website was the first site where I made a "post". It was because of this website that I found I needed to use ebay, which required an email address. So I had to make an email.

Some things I really like about this forum are the lack of ads and large signatures with pictures. FFshrine, OC Remix, and vgmdb can sometimes be incredibly irritating due to the signatures. The presentation of the forums here is superior to the rest. It's easier on the eyes.

This is definitely my favorite game music forum in regards to presentation. The visual design of this site is remarkable, really.

I think VGMdb's my preferred hang-out at the moment. Activity's starting to pick up more and more, though I'm not sure where any actual game music discussion is going to peak in the future. But this is definitely the classic game music forum, as far as I'm aware.

After collecting soundtracks for almost 2 decades, this post is making me wonder why I had a 2 year gap of really not collecting anything (between 2008-2010) until picking the hobby back up thanks to SQ Chips. While I'm moving on to bigger and better things in life, I truly believe that the lack of quality content has hindered my collecting a bit. Some of it's come from not playing games like I used to and not identifying to what's trendy in this day and age. I've given some a chance and a lot of what's out there doesn't really do much for me, so I've secluded myself from posting as much (which is more that what I did at FFShrine, OC Remix, etc) because I don't have much to contribute. So I guess it's a domino effect from there that started the hiatus despite having the income to basically get whatever I want. 80% of my purchases now are remixes and other renditions that made me start collecting in the first place, which doesn't say a lot for 2012.

I think the industry is doing decent, and I think each forum has their advantages and disadvantages. But my take is the quality isn't as good across the board as it used to be in regards to originality.

The quality is definitely there, it's just harder to find these days with the increasing amount of releases each year. You also have to look beyond the "mainstream" stuff, which can make this very time consuming.

Back in the day, 'looking beyond' is what really got me to jump start my collection, and then I was more proactive. A part of that involved me playing games on a regular basis as I exited my teenage years into adulthood, and wondering what 'else' was out there since I liked the music so much. I knew what Final Fantasy 3 (6) was and played it to no end, but I bought soundtracks from conventions like Romancing SaGa 3 off a hunch...with literally no knowledge of the game other than knowing that SquareSoft did good musical work at the time. Import CDs were MUCH harder to get in the mid 90s, as I relied on comic conventions and shops like San Francisco LaserDisc and The Place to satisfy my love for VGM.

I'll definitely take your word for it, as the Game Music Community isn't like the other "look at me, I'm the smartest guy in the room" boards for the most part. I do believe there's some really good, original music out there. But as I slowly steer away from gaming bit by bit, all video game music becomes foreign to me, and I can't relate as much as I used to. As a result, unless someone comes out with a remix, making a purchase or even a YouTube listen to warrant a purchase doesn't draw as much interest. Whether the music isn't good enough to bring me back 100%, or if it's just me losing my faith in the genre to pick it back up is debatable. Hard to say...I don't think I'll ever stop, but I definitely don't buy and express my opinions compared to say...1995 or even 2005.

Fun fact about Judgment Day: I haven't played Suikoden 2 even though I own it. Still in mint condition in its original manufacturer's wrapper.

One would think exactly this setup is what makes communities thrive on, watching out for quality stuff and reporting on these in their circles. But in my experience the exact opposite happens, and I don't really understand why.

That's interesting. I really never had this kind of problem. If would guess that around 90% of my collection (around 450 albums) is from games which I've never played at all. For me the game context itself isn't important at all. I'm more basing my buying decisions on composer and performer info.

It's not playing the game (like say...Secret of Mana) that resorts to me buying the music for it - it's more like because I played games at the time, I explored the music genre of video games which in itself became a hobby alongside playing. I also have a ton of CDs without ever seeing a "Game Start" on my television screen, but I still purchased them either due to a composer, company, group (SNK Shin-Sekai Gakkyoku Zatsugidan), or whatever.

Up until recently, the opposite has happened...where between 2008-2010, I wasn't playing at all or wasn't keeping up with the times to warrant any video game related purchase, including games and CDs. I can't vouch for others, but it just seemed that I couldn't relate in both fields, and playing games at the comfort of my own home was definitely brought down to a minimum. Doing so 'should' have nothing to do with any Game Music CD purchases at that point since I was well into the hobby to separate listening from gaming. But somehow it has. I'm a bit back into it now though, but I still don't play video games as much as I used to.

Context is as important to me as individual musical style, I think. One of the best examples I use to describe the way I think about game music albums is Pokemon music. Though a well-trained ear can detect the stylistic quirks of each different game musician working on a soundtrack, context itself is still very important to the overall framework and progression of a soundtrack. I've found a lot of specific tracks and parts of albums that get this concept across very well, and they all come from the same franchise.

I disagree. A good soundtrack can tell the story on its own. It doesn't need the game/film/series to convey its message.

I've been a bit dick with regards to newer VGM, but I basically echo everything Judgement Day has said. I remember playing many games with great music on my NES and SNES, so when discovering VGM came about, I wasn't afraid to really branch out and try new things because I felt like most VGM was good. If anything, I felt cheated when I discovered how many games had never been translated to English and I figured I could at least salvage the music from them by getting the soundtracks. I did good...I discovered SNK, Falcom and the large bodies of work by Square/Konami that were largely left in Japan. I mean, an SNES Final Fantasy that we didn't get here in the US? And I get to listen to music? Awesome! You had the soundteams at Konami/Square/Capcom/Taito/Falcom that were just pumping out awesome stuff. Not so much nowadays.

My thing is, I like game music that sounds gamey. I like chiptunes, melodies, synth rock, Super Nintendo-style orchestrations/rockfests, as well as arranges that are faithful while adding flair or even just grading up the sound effectively. The output of Konami and Falcom during the early to mid 90's more than justified the large amount of time and money I put into acquiring them, know the odds were in my favor of getting something I liked. I don't feel that way in regards to much new VGM. If anything, whenever I see something that might interest me (lets use the new Rockman Arranges as examples), I feel a sense of dread more than anything. Seeing new Final Fantasy soundtracks nowadays basically means what project did they give Ishimoto and/or Mizuta to dump on us THIS time (imagine Dissidia done by the "classic" Square sound team...what could have been). There really aren't any composers I'm outright admiring right now...Souleye and probably Koshiro are the ones that immediately come to mind, and virt somewhat. So it makes me feel like blind purchasing is far less likely to yield ripe fruit.

The one thing that has piqued my interest nowadays has been the influx of chiptunes (or even pseudo-chiptunes) and people recognizing it more as art and not outdated crap. I've just heard so many great "gamey" tunes that actually try to emulate the sound/style of classic chiptunes, that it hits that rare mark of fresh and familiar.

Also add into the fact that production has gone south horribly, with regards to compression, warmth and volume. I've done the rant in another thread, but to summarize: I don't know why VGM albums are being produced like pop records, where they are squashing everything into the midrange and making everything downright harsh to listen to. VGM albums from early to mid 90's are quiet with good dynamics and it's normal to turn them up. They sound amazing and detailed.

I remember looking at the volume level for Xenoblade and I couldn't believe, for that type of music, they would make it that loud. Virt's recent Mighty Switch Force OST is downright sad...every track is up near 99-100db. It should not be anywhere near that (his prior works were just right, as far as listening volume went) and it a huge reason I don't enjoy the music more (the actual music is amazing, I'd gladly pop for a well-mastered version of it). New-school Falcom has zero idea what they're doing, with regards to volume levels and dynamics and it kills 95% of the music outright for me. Just go listen to Mighty Obstacle from Ys VI for the ultimate example. Amazing tune, horrible, horrible production. And has anyone ever noticed, oh say, the Black Mages or Guilty Gear XX and why they sound off? Yup, whoever mastered those albums cranked them and the layers are distorted as hell (although ironically, the Korean GGXX is one of the best mastered albums I own...It sounds amazing and detailed on higher-end equipment) This weighs heavily on any buying decisions I make, because I have to be sure I'm not buying something I don't want to listen to, even if I like the music. I mean, when they say they are going to "master" the classic Megaman music, I am absolutely dreading the results.

The above is something I don't see mentioned in a lot of reviews nowadays. If I had been more aware of the loudness wars when I was actively writing reviews, I would have made certain to state how the album fared in that regard. But it turns out most of my longtime favorites are mastered extremely well and many of the albums that I "should" like more and I can't get into are...well, not. Funny how that worked out.

Well, I tend to listen to mostly Western game music, but I do have a lot of Japanese music too (hello, Atlus
In my opinion, game music today is just as good as anything "back in the day". It all depends on your taste. So, I would not tell someone to concentrate on the early to mid 90's. I would actually say VGM today is better than it has ever been (or at least as good, with a larger selection). Of course, it again depends on your taste.

All of the above, but I bolded the first quote because that's how I view the current state of VGM. It can be the end of almost any sentence starting with how I feel about things, such as:

- Uematsu used to write some of the most gripping VGM I ever heard, but...
- A new Silent Hill soundtrack used to be something I would immediately preorder, but...
- It was easy to go on VGMWorld and stock a cart with some new, random albums that would turn out to be awesome, but...
- A new Final Fantasy soundtrack meant something great, but...

Of course these are just generalizations, but you get the idea. The way the scene is, how readily available the music is, and how expensive it is have all completely changed since back in 2000 when I first started learning about physical game music releases. It's easier for me to listen to something for a few minutes and decide if it's worth a deeper look or not based on all of the albums I've heard over the past twelve years. Back then I may have coughed up $20 to check something out based on a composer/series/recommendation, or decided to preorder the Breath of Fire box just because, but now things just aren't that way. GX's last quote above pretty much sums that up perfectly... it's more like, blind purchasing is far more likely to yield rotten, stinky, fly-infested fruit.

I also feel like VGM is also a lot harder to sell these days, but maybe that's just my experience. I vividly remember a more active trading and selling scene years ago, but now the big sales are few and far between (although Isabela's recent one totally owns all other sales in sheer quality and quantity). You could go online and find a Digicube copy of Tobal No.1 for fairly cheap, or you'd be able to order the PSCN version of Brink of Time for about $20, but now that is completely backward. Either people aren't selling (or have already sold everything like me, hah) or are selling at really high prices. Anyway, now I'm rambling, but the principles I'm most in touch with are the three quoted above. I extensively listen to samples or Youtube videos of music before purchasing anything just because so many things just aren't worth the money these days as they were years ago in my eyes.

Gradius Gaiden was floating around the net the past couple years for like $200-$250. Money's not an issue, but unless you have personalized composed songs, I refuse to pay auto insurance type money for any SINGLE CD.

While old v new can be debated for another day, if I was still as proactive as I used to be with the game music genre, I wonder if I'd be buying the same amount of soundtracks today as I did 10 years ago. I can't answer that question with confidence, since I don't know what's out there, but my initial answer would be no. I do believe there are some diamonds in the rough, but if I have to search for a winner...well, therein lies the problem. I can't believe I'm about to quote the old adage but "back in my day", the only search involved for a video game soundtrack was the accessibility and not the quality, because you knew it was a given that the soundtrack met or exceeded expectations. It was just a matter if you could get it (through the back of those GameFan mags, comic conventions...you guys know what I'm talking about) and if you had the budget based on the numerous discs that were out there.

Again, I could be wrong...as I stated, I don't buy soundtracks as much, and I believe that's hampered my judgment to contribute an honest opinion of the industry. But I do know that there are a LOT of remixes out there. SQ Chips, which I've coveted as an outstanding CD and made me start collecting again, is essentially a collection of remixes. Could the industry be to the point where it's too dependent on its past and is either:

A) overshadowing the new original quality production that's being sold
B) masking the fact that really good, original BGMs in this day and age are few and far between

This is probably where some help is needed, because I think it's a little of both but can't confirm. Also, is there anyone who started collecting video game music as of 2007 (5 years ago) based on something you heard around that time frame? For me, my first love was ThunderCross 1 and 2, but Final Fantasy got me to start collecting which was essentially between 1989-1994.

Man I wish my insurance was that low

Seriously... that's 2 months auto insurance in NJ... with no accidents, no major penalties or major tickets for 8 years and paying on time for the last 10.  The only thing that would get me a cheaper policy would be a sex change.

That is is kind of my line of thinking as well...Many of my successful "blind purchases" started from random STC forum discussions. The fact that I've seen so few actual discussions on recent soundtracks leads me to believe I'm not the only one that is lacking in enthusiasm for the current scene. Normal behavior to me is if you discover a gem, it's not uncommon to be hype and post about it. Maybe that line of thinking is outdated?

It's ironic you talk about being stuck in the past...I was at the Metallica Orion festival this past weekend and I really didn't care for any of the newer bands I saw. Most were outright horrible (Modest Mouse...these guys went on before Metallica on the main stage and stunk the joint up.  Another band did a 10 minute long guitar solo that was just alt-picking two notes! I walked to front center stage and flipped them off in the middle of it.) I saw some stuff that was nice: A song here, a song there, Jim Bruer's comedy act (complete with Ozzy/Halford/Lars/James impressions), a couple artists caught my attention for a bit (death metal is pretty cool when seen live, especially when seeing Landmine Marathon's vocalist was a chick that did some nasty death growls.) but when Metallica came on to play their classics...Nothing Else Matters. Reminds me of the current discussion at hand. Nice irony.

BTW, I sampled some of SQ Chips and it is pretty good so far. Going to check the rest out. I'll return the favor and say check out Chiptuned Rockman if you haven't already. I could make a valid argument for that one on my top 30 list. It's gold.

...then he did the craptacular Last Story. Honestly, seriously, most disappointing soundtrack experience I've had in a long time. Even knowing that new-school Uematsu has been lackluster at best, this was just flat out awful. Made Blue Dragon sound like a masterpiece.

And yeah, the second-hand market is ass right now. If people are serious about moving those CD's, most need to lower their prices. The exchange rate isn't helping matters. I prefer a 3000 yen disc to be $23-$25, not $35-$37. Not much Japanese sellers can do about that markup.