I was going to listen to the theme without looking at the title first, but I haven't ever heard of this game. But why would you consider this 'real old'?... It's from the 21st century. xD
More of something "real old" for me , this was the game I first got really into on pc. Loved it! I could play it day out and day in.
Wario Land 3 is the sequel to Wario Land II. It was released in 2000. The main differences between it and Wario Land II are that getting hit doesn't even make you lose coins anymore, Wario has to regain all his abilities, starting with the most basic and having to unlock the rest throughout the game, and there's a world map that is affected by getting specific treasures, as are the levels themselves. But what stayed the same is that Kozue Ishikawa composed the soundtrack! The transformation themes were reused from Wario Land II, but all others are original. And they've got their own feel, too! I think Wario Land 3 tunes actually sound more sophisticated to me than Wario Land II tunes. And it fits, because there's more to the game itself (although there's less levels than in Wario Land II). To start us off, here's the title theme to the game! Once again, somewhat simple. Although there is actually quite a bit to this theme! It's a very good start, for sure. There are many level themes in the game. I encourage you to check them all out, but for now I'll just showcase the theme for the first level of the game. Isn't it great? I love the sound of the two lead instruments, as well. But what you do hear returning from Wario Land II is repeating the same melody at different octaves! As said, this game's got a world map... and it's got day and night to it! So most themes have got a night version as well (some simply use the same). Here's the night version for the first level: it really does sound quite different! And yet it's clearly got the same melodies. Just in a very quiet manner. In this level, even most of the enemies are sleeping before you wake them up! ^.^ When you defeat the final boss, all enemies are turned back into humans. During the ending sequence, this theme plays. I've always like this theme, but when I learnt to play it on piano I got to appreciate it even more. I'm honestly not sure how to describe the feel this song gives off... It's peaceful, yet maybe also melancholy. It's quite serene. Following that, however, there's a short but very sweet credits theme!! There's something I should explain: throughout this game you are looking for 5 music boxes. Each music box has its own tune, which is sounded when you collect it. When you've got all 5, you can beat the game. Then, when you hear this theme, it turns out to be using all 5 music box melodies! So I suppose that maybe Ishikawa-san first composed this tune, and then decided what 5 distinct separate melodies she could take out of it for the music boxes. Or perhaps she did write the lines for the music boxes first, and then made a full theme out of it. Possibly even a combination of the two! In any case, this is a great theme. There are many more great themes in this soundtrack that I won't discuss here, so please do listen to the entire soundtrack if you enjoyed some of this! Or, even better: get the game.
The Lemmings 2 soundtrack was composed by Brian Johnston. He had also initially composed the soundtrack for the original Lemmings game, but most of his tunes had to be rewritten by Tim Wright closely before release, because they turned out to be plagiarising copyrighted content. I might talk about the original Lemmings soundtrack later! On Lemmings 2, Brian Johnston also took big inspiration from existing pieces on certain tracks, but made sure they were uncopyrighted tunes. However, there are also many completely original tunes! Let us start with the intro theme. That makes sense, doesn't it? What a great tune to get you excited for the game! I really like its progression. But I won't talk too much about this track: just enjoy. The game of Lemmings 2 is divided into 12 themed tribes. All of the tribes have got great themed music. Here's the Egyptian tribe: You'll almost certainly recognise the classic melody, made popular by Streets of Cairo and later interpretations. But Johnston added a lot of things unto it, and really made this into quite a neat track! Very catchy, and yet very true to the theme. I once made a tune inspired by Streets of Cairo myself, for someone's video game. I couldn't get close to this, though! I was talking about another tune here, but on further consideration, it doesn't particularly fit this review. For one, it isn't entirely as great as I thought it was, and moreover, it only makes sense if you know the original soundtrack: it's a remix/medley of two of the best tunes from the original soundtrack. So let me instead feature another tune incorporating existing music: the Highland tribe. Two classic themes into one sweet tune! I do feel like it's a bit strange that the flute is so soft, compared to the other instruments. But anyway: this is a really fun theme! Now, to end it off: here's my favourite theme from the game by far. I really like the intro also, but I can easily place this theme on place 1. Let me introduce the Cavelem tribe. The track already starts out amazing. I really 'dig' that beginning. Then it repeats at three different notes, to smoothly go back to the beginning. But wait, it's not exactly the same: some extra transitions are in now, building on the existing notes. When the track goes back to the beginning again, the main melody starts coming in. It starts out soft, and smoothly increases in volume. The melody continues... and then the moment comes where the flute starts playing in higher octaves, and the percussion kicks in! What a great build-up that was! And the rest of the track is amazing as well. But you can analyse that for yourself, I don't need to tell you everything that's happening. Oh, and something I realised while listening and looking at this track in a tracker: all Tribe themes only use 3 tracks! The main theme does use all 4, but in the actual levels the fourth channel had to be reserved for the sound effects. That makes it even more impressive that the tracks are so rich! Edit: Ah, forgot to say: here's a link to the entire soundtrack! (well, it seems like the ending's missing, actually; you might be able to find that elsewhere)
While doing the dishes and listening to music, I considered that I should want to redo the Super Mario Bros. 3 soundtrack on my phone, as I downloaded it onto it over 7 years ago, and there are several things I don't like about the way it is currently. However, I looked forward to writing about a soundtrack here more than putting a soundtrack on my phone. But then, as the last theme before I was done with the dishes, a theme from Super Mario Bros. 3 played... so I could combine both! This game's soundtrack, like that of Super Mario Bros. and many other early Mario and Zelda titles, was composed by Koji Kondo. The game was released in 1988, for the Famicom/NES. Let us start off with the theme for the first level: A very laid-back tune. I like how the main melody has got two voices! In contrast with the previous theme, this one is a lot more exciting. It's usually used for levels where you might die if you stand around doing nothing. Besides these two, there are four other level themes. That's only two more themes than the original game, even though this game's got a lot more levels! But there's another place where more tunes come in, albeit very short ones. This game has got 8 worlds, like the original game, but this time each with its own map. Each map's got its own theme as well! This one, for example, plays in world 5. As you can hear, these are very short and repetitive, but that's fine, because there's not much to do on the world map, beyond walking to the next level! Here's another one: Simple and sweet. To end off this short recommendation, here's the ending theme from this game. It starts with a simple rearrangement of the theme from the original game, building on it a little extra part that's in some other versions of the original Super Mario Bros. as well. But then the music suddenly transitions to something else: a simple and sweet ending theme that reminds of going home. It doesn't end, but rather loop to the start. While the second part of the music plays, there aren't actually any developer credits as one might expect, but rather a slideshow of all of the eight worlds included in the game. If you want to have a quick listen to some other tracks: here's the playlist I used.
This whole thing still gives me chills. And inspiration. But lest us not forget the entire Fallout 3 soundtrack!
The soundtrack I'm writing about today is a very unique one... This game was developed by Ubisoft and published by Disney Interactive (at least on pc it was, but a minute ago the Wikipedia page didn't even mention the pc version existing). The release of the game I've got says that it's a 'completely new game concept', but the concept is identical to the game Dance Dance Revolution released two years prior. Anyway, it's certainly a very good game! The songs in particular are very memorable. I'll share with you 3 songs, out of 9 total. Let's start with a version of a theme that's in the The Jungle Book movie as well. (All of these videos include an "Okay guys, let's dance!" in Dutch at the beginning; as far as I know, nobody has been able to get the songs without this. But it's fine.) This is a great remake of the classic tune! It was nicely adapted to make work for the game, and still feels largely the same. The tempo changes were taken out because it'd make the gameplay awkward, the dialogue between Mowgli and Baloo was taken out and some parts were stretched out, to make the song of the right length. King Louie's song was also remade for the game; I'll leave that for you to check out! Next, the first song in the game. I feature this one because in my opinion it's got the best lyrics in the game, while they're also all original. Pay close attention, as they're full of amazing English! British English, of course. The theme is also rather catchy, and Bagheera's singing is great! I'll stop writing now, so you can listen. This is nowadays my favourite song in the game (my previous favourite was We are the vultures). To start off, there's a great build-up, letting you know right away that this is going to get serious. Just before reaching the climax, the music shrinks back to make room for Shere Kahn's magnificent voice. And once again, take note of the lyrics! There is much less said in this particular song, but whatever Shere Kahn utters, is very well written. After two verses of low, speech-like singing an epic opera-like part follows. Here Shere Kahn's voice actor really shines. This is hard to do! After he is done, a choir of men urges Mowgli to run. Their worried voices make a great contrast against Shere Kahn's voice, low and steady. I'm really tempted to write the lyrics to these last verses out here, but it wouldn't be too useful, as you can hear them yourself and they are also in the description of the video. After another opera-like part and another suggestion from Shere Kahn himself to run, the music echoes into silence for a couple of seconds, before picking up. Honestly, this part is a bit too intricate for me to sufficiently analyse, but it's great!! Then the Run phrase we heard earlier is repeated, but this time another one of the lines is said by Shere Kahn instead of the choir, which adds interest. Finally, a lead melody starts playing, 'picturing' the dire situation. However, after ending, it turns out it's not quite the end for Mowgli! Suddenly the music turns around into a triumphant fanfare. This will probably seem a bit strange and very unexpected on its own, but that's because it's intended to accompany an animation. During the tense melody, Shere Kahn prepares to jump at Mowgli, and near the end of it, does. However, his tail catches on fire from a branch that got hit by lightning, and he runs away. When watching that the sudden change in the music makes a lot more sense, and is actually very effective. So yeah... I clearly love this song. Before ending of this review, here's one more thing: this game's got menu music as well! Hold on, it's not just environmental sounds... after a bit under 20 seconds the melody accompaniment starts coming in. And then the melody doesn't wait for long! The melody itself is a very laid-back and catchy one, partly doubled by a different instrument in another voice. The theme has got some other interesting surprises in store as well, and yet it's very easy to listen to. Enjoy! It's not very long, and at some point it loops back to the start - of the accompaniment. You won't hear the birds on their own again unless you reënter the menu from somewhere else. I hope you liked these, and will check out the other songs! Here's the playlist. And when you've got to know them a little, here's another playlist, which the karaoke versions of each song! Yup, the game's got those included as well! It was cool to write about this: a very special video game soundtrack.
This is the first game in the Mario & Luigi series, released for Game Boy Advance in 2003. The music was composed by Yoko Shimomura, who also rearranged the music for the 2017 remake of the game. The remade music is very well-done, but I will be linking to uploads of the original soundtrack here. The game's got a lot of very nice music, but most people's favourite seems to be Teehee Valley. This is clearly a desert theme, because of the instrumentation alone. But it's not cliché, it features new melodic ideas! It's certainly a very nice theme. The second theme I'll mention here is the regular Battle theme. This is heard a lot during the game, but it stays fun! It's not extremely intense, but it keeps you on your toes! This is one of my favourite themes. It helps that it's the theme of own of my favourite characters. It's very stylish! And saved for last, here's my favourite piece in the game. I love the organ, and this is such a great theme! I love how the main melody plays throughout the entire theme, shifting from the first manual to the second manual, then to the pedalboard, back to the first manual, and then playing the start repeatedly, to end on a rather nice chord. Everything accompanying the main melody is also great. It's such a dream of mine to be able to play this well!! Here's a playlist of the game's soundtrack, but unfortunately both Cackletta's theme and Teehee Valley have problem in this upload (and almost all others). Do listen to it anyway, as there are way more great themes in this soundtrack!
I just started playing Civ 4 and the menu theme is probably the best game soundtrack I've heard in a while. It's called "Baba Yetu" which is the Lord's Prayer translated into Swahili.
Idk if anyone posted here,yet, but Conan exiles has some pretty nice music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lq_y2KFjHic&index=1&list=PLJaKbPlXXQomIolJO4Xkdxb1cxag2M7RX
Variety in games, yes... variety in posters not so much, I guess. But actually, I am surprised by how many other people have posted! I encourage you to start a thread about movie soundtracks instead. I've got some stuff to share there as well. (although I'll try to not make the reviews as extensive, so it will take less time to write them, as otherwise I'll make even less posts here )
Is it wrong if I say that I like instrumental music? Especially FM synthesis/chiptune music the most?
Not at all - instrumental is one of my favorite genres of music! Some of my favorite songs have no lyrics
