I'm new here (although I've checked out reviews from here before), and also new to video game soundtracks in general.  However, there are some that I think I'd like to own.

I found some good deals on ebay...too good, in my opinion.  I wrote the seller about their CDs (Final Fantasy VI OST, Final Fantasy VI Piano Collections, Chrono Trigger OST, Chrono Cross OST), asking to please verify that they were the real versions, not bootlegs, because I've had trouble with that before.  I got this perplexing answer:

"We spoke with our distributor and he says these are legit that are from
Taiwan. These are not the Japanese versions."

Hmm.  Every time I've dealt with a product from Taiwan on ebay, it's not been legit.

But when I checked out Play-Asia, I found that my wallet can't support buying video game soundtracks if that's the only option.

Now, I'm totally new to this.  There have to be other sites out there besides Play-Asia, but I just don't know what they are.  I don't understand a single symbol of Japanese, so although I've heard of Yahoo! Japan, I can't really use it.  Could anyone give me some advice?  Are there some reliable sites out there where I could find some game soundtracks for reasonable prices?  I just can't afford the prices I've seen for things like Gyakuten Saiban and Super Mario Galaxy...not to mention soundtracks that should be more common, like Final Fantasy VI.  Are game soundtracks just a pricey thing to collect?

Thanks,
Markishness

Yes.

If you want new, you're not going to find them cheaper than around $30 on average for Japanese originals.  You could try to pick up used originals from sellers on boards like this one and Chudah's Corner, but there's still some risk of boots.

download them first and then buy the originals of the ones you really like (pending availability of course)

im kinda glad i dont play any new games, so im not tempted to buy a lot of cds anymore. mid to late 90's was my time for vgm..

That would be called ignorant double-talk.

Taiwanese version of a soundtrack is NEVER legit. Never in the history of Japanese VGM have they given the go-ahead to a Taiwanese company to print their version of the soundtrack. As far as international copyright is concerned, they're illegal. 80% of what's on eBay is a bootleg. And you can normally (not always, but normally) tell by the price.

Ramza

If you're open to the idea of buying soundtracks in MP3 form, then iTunes has sundry Final Fantasy and Konami soundtracks.  The Amazon MP3 store also has some video game soundtracks.  These MP3 versions are priced at about $10.

Some Japanese game soundtracks have been released in the U.S. in CD format, such as Blue Dragon.  See this post for more examples.  The U.S. version of a soundtrack is typically much cheaper than the Japanese version.  Compare http://vgmdb.net/album/525 and http://vgmdb.net/album/6907 .

But buying soundtracks used, as XLord007 suggested, would give you the widest range of choices.

Edit: I meant to write "digital form" and not "MP3 form" above.  iTunes does not sell MP3s.

Prices are getting better, as game soundtracks are becoming more popular. Many older soundtracks are now collector's items. Sure, back in the day $20 or $30 seemed a lot for Super Metroid Sound in Action, but now a used copy will fetch around $200! Point is, don't expect these soundtracks to become readily available, and if you wait you might regret it. That being said, most imports are still around $30 or more. Unfortunately can't be helped. A good resource for looking for soundtracks is:

www.chudahs-corner.com

lots of links to reliable, 100% legit places. Also, they have a FAQ on bootlegs. People around here sell periodically, so you just need to check the boards. Also you can always list a for trade/want list. Lastly, many good games now seem to come with a reasonably priced soundtrack. For instance:

Gears of War, Halo, Medal of Honor, Mass Effect, etc

all came out with soundtracks that are round $10-15. Of course, these are Western games and not Japanese So, if you're only interested in Japanese soundtracks then 1) you're missing out on great soundtracks by Western composers, and 2)you will have to fork out some moolah.

cheers,

-avatar!

There are exceptions, of course. An example being the Taiwanese printing of the Tristia soundtrack by T-Time (link).

More exceptions: Most Supersweep CDs with the CA# of SRIN- are printed in Taiwan. The first time I saw that I was like, wait, are THESE bootlegs?! They weren't, but it was very interesting seeing the "Made in Taiwan" print on the CD and having that knee-jerk reaction that they were bootlegs!

Anyway, back to the main post - yep, VGM collecting is expensive. Sometimes you'll luck out on eBay with legit items or sites such as Yahoo Japan (http://auctions.yahoo.co.jp) or Otokichi (http://www.otokichi.com/cgi-bin/en/orig … OB001&all=), but for the most part you're looking at around $20 per CD at the least if you purchase new.

There's a difference, in that the discs are only Manufactured at a Taiwanese Manufacturing Facility for the purpose of being Published in Japan.

(outsourcing the labor, not being published in a different market)

Exactly.

I was refering to the act of a Taiwanese publisher making CDs that *already exist in Japan* and then claiming "these are the legit TAIWANESE versions!" Of course there are a few, obscure VGM releases that are printed in Taiwan (usually for the sake of cost efficiency), but then there is no *other* version in Japan. That's usually your sign.

Ramza

Thanks, guys!  I had guessed that the Taiwanese CDs weren't legit, but I had to make sure.

Well, I'm not against paying more money if that's what it takes, but I'll keep my eye out for used soundtracks as well.  I also had figured that American soundtracks would be cheaper, so I'll look for the localized versions of the appropriate soundtracks.  Thanks again for the advice.