Just a quick question if anyone knows. Is Order of Ecclesia going to have a proper soundtrack release? I missed the preorder boat for the Japanese version, but then again I really can't afford $100 bucks for this OST, I also don't feel like having the Japanese version either. I would hope that it does get its own soundtrack release seeing that Portrait of Ruin and Dracula X Chronicles got one.

Packaging full soundtracks into limited edition games seems to be a new trend Konami is trying. Suikoden Tierkreis is getting the same treatment. Nothing else has been announced yet but maybe it won't be financially viable to release a separate soundtrack as well.

That really is a shame. Now that you mention it they did do the same thing to Contra 4. Well I hope they reconsider for the case of CastleVania.

Just hope this the exception and not an ongoing trend. I'd hate to see some of the better vgm releases dry up because we'd have to buy limited edition game bundles from Japan just to get them. That said I couldn't afford to drop $100+ on it either so you're not alone.

Let's add Zwei!! 2 and Gurumin to the list, as well as the this upcoming arranged Zwei!! 1 remake. It's actually kinda bad when Falcom, of all companies, packages the soundtracks instead of releasing them.

Too bad that this limited edition is so expensive and will problably become rare. I agree that it should have been sold alone or at least with just the game. In the case that it stays this way then it will become hard to get for sure.

That soundtrack sample that comes with some american copies sounds nice. I am sure it will problably not come with the European version whenever it actualy arrives... sometime next year.

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I'm wondering about that. Konami has started releasing some soundtracks as bundled-with-the-game only deals, but still, they're releasing really obscure stand-alone soundtracks like Quiz Magic Academy V Original Soundtrack and Tongari Boushi no Mahou no 365 Nichi Original Soundtrack. WTF? Maybe those games are really popular in Japan or something, but I've certainly never heard of them. Dissing classics like Castlevania, Contra, and Suikoden doesn't bode well for future releases. IMO, the big test will come up this January - if they choose the pack-in route for Silent Hill: Homecoming, I think we can begin to talk about a real trend.

It seems the new Devil Summoner soundtrack by Shoji Meguro is getting the only-bundled-with-the-limited-edition-of-the-game treatment as well. 10479 yen, Jesus...

That really is a scary prospect. The fact that they are doing it to Devil Summoner really peeves me off. To Contra I could kind of understand why we didnt get a soundtrack release for it but this is turning out to be a travesty. Ever since I have learned that I could buy soundtracks I have loved to do so at almost any price. The fact that they are doing this to people is stunning. Maybe its the result of a waning soundtrack industry or something bur I can't help feeling so alienated at their decision to do this. I resigned myself to the fact that if I wanted the complete soundtrack from Tenpei Sato I'd have to get a first print game but c'mon. Doing this to CastleVania and all of these other games is just a crying shame.

Yeah, it really is, especially since Castlevania is such a popular franchise. And not to mention Meguro's newest OST - isn't he pretty popular over in Japan?

Quiz Magic Academy is pretty popular from what I hear and the music is great. If you happen across a rip of any of them give it a try. Not looking forward to tracking down the new Devil Summoner soundtrack.

I think these soundtracks all would be profitable on their own even though not as much as five years ago. As Daniel said, Konami releases some pretty obscure things (but no Boktai damn it!). More their theory goes that they'd generate even more profit when sold in expensive game bundles.

Really. Those soundtracks that I can't find to download but am still really interested in, I usually end up buying. No way its gonna happen with this Devil Summoner bundle, though. The days when I would even imagine shelling out $100 to get a CD are long gone. It just irks me that this happens just as Meguro has rekindled my interest in him by hitting us with his best work in a loooong time (Persona 4, IMO).

So, any rich soul out there willing to take one for the team and get that Devil Summoner bundle and share the music? Just kidding, and if its anything like Meguro's last Kuzunoha Raidou score, I can manage without (at least that's what I'm gonna tell myself).

As for Konami's releases in general, I've been sensing this trend for some time... Ever since they decided to skip on Neo Contra back in 2004. It seems the trend is speeding up now.

Despite the alleged popularity of Castlevania, IGA has told how difficult to release a soundtrack of handhelds games.

However, I think anything is not so frustrating as the Persona 4 arranged album which is exclusively distributed by the lottery and only 1000 copies are printed, even though it turns out to be more a 'sampler' than a full-album which will be released later.

I bought it. The $100+ price was obnoxious, but I didn't have much of a choice. Yamane is the composer so I had to buy it.

To be honest, as much as some dislike the soundtracks for console CV games like LoI or CoD (I like LoI minus the cut scene music - yuck - and CoD is pretty consistent even if it's nothing special) IMHO Yamane is much more hit and miss on portable consoles; each portable score only containing a handful of tracks I think are good. It doesn't help some of those are reprises either.

Yamane is definitely hit or miss. Tell you the truth after Symphony from her I haven't really heard very much from her that invokes a feeling of "Hey this could turn into a CastleVania classic" I think she needs to take a break for a while. Don from SEMO suggested having Yuzo Koshiro do the next CastleVania which would be an awesome idea. I personally would love to see Yuki Kajiura do the next one. Hehe

Alas, I really wish that these game companies would get themselves together. I could see the point that it could be more feasible to release them as a bundle like that but I really believe that forcing people to get the album at the same time is wrong. Packing it in with the game for me really makes it seem like an afterthought for people instead of what they usually are which is a dignified real soundtrack release. It kills me that now I get to do this with Devil Summoner too. I wonder if this is also an issue to snub the fans outside the country...

Well hopefully this trend doesn't continue and that continued patience on my end will come to fruition.

I think some of her tunes from Lament of Innocence are incredible - "Dark Palace of Waterfalls" comes to mind - but for the most part I totally agree with you. It seems like she's just on autopilot with most of her post-LOI material.

You do realize Koshiro wrote part of the soundtrack for  Portrait of Ruin, right? Just to be sure...

And I hate the forced bundle thing too. It seems as if they are starting to get annoyed that people might actually dare to like the music without wanting to play the game...

Well, I'm Don from SEMO. I suggested the way I did because I really thought that Koshiro's contributions to PoR were a homage to the classic soundtracks. "Invitation to a Crazed Moon" is by far one of the best compositions to come out of the Castlevania series since Symphony of the Night.

That's true about the homage. Koshiro is a big Castlevania fan so wanted to combine retro and new influences in the score. I've got translated liner notes from the album thanks to Cedille and am just waiting to put them up.

Yep I realize that. I was very careful to only mention Yamane when I posted that. I do agree about Lament. It didn't really sound like Symphony but it still was pretty good. Most of the really battle heavy songs do suck but some songs really have some shine to them. Anti-Soul Mysteries Lab, House Of Sacred Remains, Dark Palace Of Waterfalls, Ghostly Theatre, and Lament of Innocence ~ Leon's Theme ~ are points where that one really shines. There is also good work in the CV's to come but many of them while enjoyable lack the staying power of some the earlier efforts. I do think there have been some tracks that have been turned into classics since Symphony but not many.

I'm among the people that feels the series hasn't spawned a particularly great soundtrack since Dracula X (including the remake). SotN was merely "okay" by my books, but it didn't come close to matching anything before it, the rockers on the OST included. The lone possible exception is Circle of the Moon, but to be fair, one of the things I loved about it was the remakes. The other GBA and DS soundtracks, I've certainly listened to and hoped for the best. I didn't seem to find much (nothing immediately comes to mind, anyway). Oh, and I found Lament of Innocence completely abysmal. The other PS2 one was slightly better, but didn't warrant shelf or HD space (maybe if I felt the game might have been worth playing, it would have garnered nostalgia points, but alas...)

So I've more or less learned not to pay new CV soundtracks much attention. Oddly enough, the past year or so, I've probably paid CV4's OST more attention than I ever have previously. It's brilliant.

And it must be said...Yamane has been on my shitlist since she took the realms of Suikoden III and (albeit, with some help) ruined the reputation of that entire series' music.

That's not odd at all, man. I've been listening to that a lot over the past several months as well. It's the epitome of CV music for me.

I gotta agree. CV4 is the tops for me too. I was delighted when The Trick Manor reprised in CotM.

What I meant by odd was that I've had it close to 8 years and only recently, I've listened to it on a real, regular basis. Much more than when I was playing through the game. Better late than never though, heh. I don't think it eclipses 3 (the US NES version), but it's a pretty strong second right now for me.

Agreed. LoI has an incredibly uneven soundtrack. I'd say about 80% of the score is either complete crap or mind-numbingly bland, but there are some stage themes (for example the one you mention) that are just awesome, among the best themes in the series. Curse of Darkness had a somewhat more balanced score, but it was way more mediocre (the only stand-out track being "Baljhet Mountains", IMO).

I'd also like to see Koshiro do a Castlevania score, I'd bet he'd be much better at it than Yamane. His tracks on PoR and his Actraiser stuff shows he can do it. Have to disgree on "Invitation to a Crazed Moon", though, I thought it was his weakest piece in PoR. My favourite was that clock tower theme, what was it called, "The Gears Go Awry"? Brilliant, pure old-school Akumajou.

Come on, you're exaggerating. While its true that the quality of the series' music has declined noticeably in the latter half of it's life, I still think it holds up pretty good when compared to the vast majority of VGM. What cripples the CV-soundtracks of late is Yamane's hold on the series. Its not that she's a bad composer (Bloodlines and Symphony of the Night are masterpieces), its just that she's way too stuck in a rut. When I think of the incredible diversity she showcased on Symphony of the Night's OST (still her best work, IMO), it just strikes me as so odd that most of her latter CV-music (especially the handheld soundtracks) sounds so same-y. She's become too much of a one-trick pony, with many tracks on her newer soundtracks you only need to listen 15 seconds and you basically can tell how the entire piece is going to sound. The series needs new blood, both the music and the games.

I haven't heard Order of Ecclesia's soundtrack yet, though, so I can't comment on that.

Like Zane pointed out, there's nothing odd about that whatsoever. Castlevania 4 has one of the best damn soundtracks ever composed. Definitely the pinnacle of the series, IMO.

We'll agree to disagree on SOTN...I was never impressed with it, even when the game was new and the idea of CD-quality sound was new to me. More "diverse" than prior scores, yes, but overall not even close to topping 3 (I hadn't heard much of IV and none of X when I first heard SOTN) We'll also have to agree to disagree on post-Drac X CV music, none of which exists on my HD or shelf anymore (but to be fair, the only scores I honestly hated were CV64 and LoI...The rest -like the DS scores- was mostly indifference and got cleaned during a HD clean-up. No big loss.). At this point, nothing short of a Dracula Battle-style OST will rekindle my interest. We'll agree to agree on Yamane though. Personally, I think she's bad when she's doing anything other than melodic rock and even then, she's dreadfully average, save for a track here and there. She definitely can't do even generic RPG music worth crap, so...I dunno.

The series needs to be taken away from Iga and company. They need to have a serious look at CV3's mechanics, level design, gameplay, bosses, multiple characters, layout, etc and maybe work in some of CV4's tricks, not beat the Metroid formula to death. And no, making it into a fighting game is NOT helping matters.

My turn to use "we'll agree to disagree". I know a lot of people hate CV64's soundtrack, but I love it, quite frankly. I love the deep atmospherics of that soundtrack.

It definitely needs to be taken away from Iga and company. Not sure if CV3 (as awesome as that game is) is the only thing they should look at for inspiration though, there are plenty of other good entries in the series (like Dracula X). And while Castlevania 4 is definitely the strongest CV music-wise, I wouldn't consider it among the absolutely best CVs game-wise (although its still a very good game).

On this I think just about anyone can agree. That one looks set to be totally horrendous.

For Yamane, you really can't do better than her work on the OZ soundtrack.  Really fantastic stuff.

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man, these topics and what people post in them are way too easy to predict

Far be it from you to defy prediction, no?

Pretty much. About as predictable as your average Yamane soundtrack.

Although most predictable of all are Dais' sour, non-constructive hit-and-run one-liners.

Dais, how about joining the discussion and expressing your own view instead of just dissing?