Just listened to Soul Sacrifice, a joint effort with Mitsuda and some guy I've never heard of. On one hand, I appreciate that budgets have gotten so high that live musicians are being used more and more. It keeps them employed and the difference in quality between synth and live is substantial. On the other hand, Soul Sacrifice is yet another example of how VGM is traipsing further into cinematic territory, without the depth or content to really stick out. Aside from little glimpses here and there, you'd be hard pressed to tell that Mitsuda even wrote the music he's credited for. It's all loud, bombastic, orchestrated to the hilt (shrieking woodwinds, blaring brass, etc.) and completely anonymous.

So...similar to Xenosaga? (a score I've read much about but have had no desire to listen to, mostly for the above).

In some ways but Xenosaga is more half and half, Xenogears-ish pieces mixed in with the cinematic stuff. And even the bombast still sounds recognizably like Mitsuda, something which Soul Sacrifice really can't claim. I haven't heard a thing in the latter that I'd want to come back to.

(There are some great pieces in Xenosaga, though. The final boss music is worth hearing, off the top of my head.)

Xenosaga is around the point where I felt Mitsuda started losing a bit of steam.  I do kind of like a lot of stuff he's done since then, but I feel more than any other SNES-era composer he shifted to less interesting melodies, just masking it under higher-than-others' sound sampling and now live musicians.  Meh.

I agree, with the exception of Tsugunai (a score that has grown on me a lot) and Soma Bringer (although I have difficulty recalling anything from this 3 disc set, I remember it being enjoyable). Back in the day, it seemed like people were swooning over Mitsuda anytime the guy wrote a single note. Still, in my eyes, it's always been about the "big 3" (CT, XG, CC, with some Creid on the side). I never gave Xenosaga any chance because I didn't care for the style change from Xenogears. I still don't plan to.

On that note, yet entirely unrelated, I think the main reason Chrono Cross will never touch Trigger's score to me is because of the Disc 3's. Both scores are equal through Disc 1 and 2, Cross MAYBE slightly ahead and I hardly cut out anything (mostly the ambient/mood-based tracks). Disc 3 of CT is just one awesome, classic track after another -Chrono Corridor, Schala, Wings of Time, Undersea Palace, Black Omen, World Revolution, the 3 amazing ending themes, plus Tyran Castle (personal favorite). It's one of the best singular music CD's I can just put on. Cross's Disc 3 only has about 4 tracks (Fate, Girls Who Stole the Stars, Dream that Time Dreams, Dragon God) that registered on my pleasure meter. Stuff like Frozen Flame and the ending vocal, I just can't get enthusiastic about. I think that is why, for the longest time, I always regarded CC's music as being a disappointment.

I've never been a gigantic fan of CC's score, but I'll admit that I'm biased because I HATED the game and it's clouding my judgement.

Soma Bringer is my favorite Mitsuda of the last ten or so years. I think it would have gotten a lot more acknowledgement if the game were released outside of Japan.

i've been playing the Soul Sacrifice demo. it's like somebody ordered an epic fantasy soundtrack and got it delivered to his table. maybe it's too early to judge for me, but this doesn't sound like mitsuda music. try to show some soul again once in a while.

Been listening to the Rockman EXE Transmission OST. Lives up to the hype.

I absolutely adore that track and that whole disc on FSB'92. I think I mention the Voice of God quote in my old review on RPGFan. It's actually the verses in I Corinthians 13, right after the famous "Love is..." section that always gets quoted at weddings.

The fact that you can hear him say "But the greatest of these is love" is the tip-off ... for me anyway.

Not sure which translation they used when reading it, but here it is in NIV:

~~
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
~~

Among the things Paul wrote for the New Testament, this is some of his best.

http://niv.scripturetext.com/1_corinthians/13.htm

for me its the opposite. i love the OST, and it's one of the game i WANT to play someday if i ever get time (next time phoenix gets dumped a foot of snow, i'm on it)
that & terranigma & seiken 3

Here's something for you:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS34sdbxk7k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uz-E59Mj_og

Rockman Holic. Excellent mostly rock vocal arranges of classic Mega Man music. Really liking it.

Castlevania: Harmony Of Despair, XBOX
Gradius 2, MSX
Heroes Of Might & Magic 3, PC
Golden Sun 3, DS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVu5mlsddvM

I've been meaning to post in this thread for some time now. I've read the posts and decisively purchased FSB '92. I was listening to Senko no Ronde DESIRES ROULETTE Soundtrack x Novel quite a bit when I kept stopping myself from posting here. Good driving album. Listened to Ibara's soundtrack on the highway. Starts off great, ends poorly -- The guitar work on 'Show Time' at 0:13 to 0:25 is so damn good that Hosoe should redo the track without synth; he should develop entire albums around it. I did not hear that great distressful frequency on 'Robot no. 28' while speeding away at 70 mph; I guess it got masked since I had the windows down. I don't care for the later unused and arranged tracks.

Been on a bit of a Yack kick lately. I drove to Border Down's soundtrack on the highway, and while not as accomplished as the Senko No Ronde series, it is still pretty lovely at parts. It does get annoying to hear the section in 'Girl of Power' at 0:24 to 0:42 and realize that it's a tasty bit wasted in a bland piece. Yuck.

I've put together a couple of Famicom soundtrack compilation CDs I've been listening to lately.  The first disc has Blaster Master, Batman, Ninja Gaiden, Kid Niki, Bubble Bobble, Booby Kids, and Legacy of the Wizard, while the second disc has Super Mario Bros. 3, Kid Icarus, The Legend of Zelda, Castlevania, Contra, Gradius, and Salamander.

I have been listening to a lot of Sakimoto/Iwata lately. I just got Grim Grimoire and it is a nice album, subtle, a little moody overall but enjoyable.

It's funny, the first album of theirs I picked up, Final Fantasy Tactics I really didn't get into on my first few listens (I need to go back to that one), maybe it was a little too much straight symphonic instrumentation for my taste, but I kept hearing about other stuff they did which seemed cool and everything else I picked up has been great: Opoona, Magical Chase, Treasure Hunter G, now Grim Grimoire, and I think Iwata pops up on some CAVE albums. I guess I gotta check out Oboromuramasa I have heard so much about.

Haven't got anything new in quite awhile, but I have enough to re-listen to for awhile...

Let me see, recently I was listening to Espgaluda 2 black label, really love this album, esp. stage 4. Then I was listening to Dodonpachi Daifukkatsu Black Label Original Sound Track, nice and heavy technoish, very cool album, though I think the first 3 tracks are repeated on it, yet good enough to listen to twice.

The last new things I got was Tekken 3 playstation and arcade soundtracks and they are both pretty good. I played that game so much back in the day. I like the Bruce and Jin psx track and the Hwoarang arcade track, and then both King tracks are amazing.

I didn't know there was thread like this that covered VGM music like the non-VGM thread.... Had I known that I would have just posted here when I wanted to chat about the Rockman X arrange.

Anyways thanks for bumping this.

I would much prefer it if you (and everyone else) would just post new topics. I don't want the whole soundtrack forum to become one long hundred-page thread.