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Grammy-nominated composer Austin Wintory is back, and he’s back with a mission: complete the trilogy. I cannot imagine the kind of pressure that sits on a composer when trying to score music for the epic conclusion of an epic story. Did John Williams wake up in cold sweats when he was composing the score for… Read More »

♫If you’re having preorder problems, I feel bad for you son; I got 99 problems, but getting exclusive preorder content ain’t one♫ For backers of The Banner Saga 3’s Kickstarter, as well as anyone who preordered the game digitally (PC or console), a special recording entitled “The Banner Saga 3 Overture” was released alongside the… Read More »

Editor’s Note: The tracklist displayed on the left reflect how the tracks were ordered on the back cover. This order is wrong and has been corrected in its entry on VGMdb.net Neverwinter Nights’ soundtrack is difficult to review because it is simultaneously enjoyable and frustrating to listen to. Stylistically, it is closest to Morrowind, which… Read More »

At this point, the series needs no introduction. The Legend of Zelda has been around for three decades, well established in the minds of gamers and non-gamers alike. For those who have been long-time fans, the name Koji Kondo is forever linked with the series’ legacy. The composer has worked on the majority of the… Read More »

Editor’s Note: This soundtrack’s retail release is digital-only, but still presented as two “discs” in the liner notes. A physical CD version was offered as a limited edition bonus for higher tier pledges during the game’s Kickstarter campaign. Alright friends, I’m going to keep this one short and sweet. Fatal Twelve is the second major… Read More »

This review is for the Amazon.co.jp exclusive Xenoblade 2 OST [Type B] version. The links above will redirect to the [Type C] version of this soundtrack. Regardless of whether you loved or…didn’t love Xenoblade Chronicles 2, there’s one thing I think we all can agree on: the soundtrack is absolutely phenomenal. I greatly enjoyed the… Read More »

If you want to nearly guarantee I’ll give an album a listen, tell me it’s based on either Final Fantasy IV or VI, or that it has a heavy acoustic guitar presence. Guitar Collections Final Fantasy IV — hopefully the first in a series from Scarlet Moon Records — combines both of these musical loves… Read More »

The more I learn about The Travelers VGM, the more time I spend wondering why traditional folk music and RPG soundtracks don’t go together more often. After all, how much time in RPGs is spent traveling or exploring a new area or culture in a setting that doesn’t afford the heroes many modern conveniences? It’s… Read More »

Last year, I had the pleasure of reviewing the WildStar Original Soundtrack Volume 1, and I thought it was pretty darn good. In retrospect, however, I think I may have undersold that soundtrack, because it has only grown on me since then, to the point where I think Jeff Kurtenacker is one of the best… Read More »

Disclaimer: While I did purchase this soundtrack of my own accord, I hold HyperDuck SoundWorks in high regard and am acquainted with Chris Geehan. I will attempt to remain objective in this review, but if the reader detects a hint of bias, this information may explain the source of said bias. Clocking in at exactly… Read More »

So…this may lose me some credibility right off the bat, but the Ni no Kuni II Original Soundtrack was my first real dive into Joe Hisaishi’s work. Before this album, I was only vaguely familiar with his name, and I ironically assumed that he was a relatively new face in the industry. Turns out I… Read More »

Regardless of whether you loved, hated, or avoided Detroit: Become Human altogether, the soundtrack is fantastic and definitely worth a listen. Not only is the music itself good, but Quantic Dream made an interesting and, in my opinion, brilliant decision with regard to how it is structured. Instead of a single artist or a group… Read More »

I wanted Caligula, known in the US as The Caligula Effect, to be a great game. A cavalcade of ex-Atlus staff, many of whom worked on early Shin Megami Tensei and Persona titles, came together to create a new RPG. We all had high hopes. Unfortunately, potential and reality do not always match. I refer… Read More »

One of my absolute favorite albums of 2015 was Corpse Party: songs of the dead. The North America-exclusive two disc audio set from XSEED Games came as a bonus alongside the physical release of Corpse Party: Blood Drive for PSVita. The soundtrack featured music from all three entries in the original Corpse Party trilogy. It… Read More »

Note: The samples on Disc 8’s tracklist lead to their video counterpart on our YouTube channel. Rrha ki ra tie yor ini en nha Wee ki ra parge yor ar ciel Was yea ra chs mea yor en fwal Ma ki ga ks maya yor syec And with those four lines, sung in Ar tonelico’s… Read More »

Prior to the release of the massive “Kurt hymneth” box set of Ar tonelico vocal/hymmnos albums, Gust took it upon themselves to open a poll on their “Ar Portal” website. The poll would determine which singers, and which in-game characters (represented by each singer), would have special songs written exclusively for the Kurt hymneth box.… Read More »

Hey, Ar tonelico fans! You know your Ar tonelico Hymmnos Concerts, right? We always get Side Red and Side Blue, but have you ever heard of Side Mori (translated: “Protection”)? I can forgive you if you didn’t know about it. It’s been over a decade, and I am only now discovering it. I was aware… Read More »

Never in my life have I dug so deep into a game I will likely never play. I suppose a localization could still take place, but given the span of time, I doubt it. Plus, this game is so thoroughly Japanese, it’d be a hard sell. The game in question, of course, is “Idol Death… Read More »

Developer aiueoKompany released the soundtrack CD for “Sound of Drop -fall into poison-” at Comiket 89 in Japan, right at the end of 2015. However, because Sekai Project came alongside aiueo to release this title in the west, we had a rare occurrence where the North American digital release was released a few weeks prior… Read More »

As much as I enjoy the original soundtracks for the Final Fantasy series, I generally get more enjoyment out of their piano collection counterparts. At their best, the arrangements capture and elaborate upon everything integral to the original compositions whilst stripping away all of the “fluff.” In doing so, they somehow reach a new level… Read More »

Filling the gap between the Ar tonelico trilogy and the recently localized Ar nosurge, GUST developed a hybrid simulator/RPG with social networking elements called Ciel nosurge. As content was released over time, three separate vocal albums (the Genometric Concert series) were released in quick succession. This first album is very short: only 20 minutes in… Read More »

Once the Ar tonelico trilogy came to an end, GUST had options as to where they wanted to take the franchise. Their next stop was an interesting online “life sim” game called Ciel nosurge. Over the span of a few years, this Japan-exclusive PS Vita title received various chapter DLC. Eventually, in October 2014, a… Read More »

Well, it’s what I asked for. Heck, it’s what I predicted (see final paragraph). But did Square Enix and the arrangement team put their all into this NieR offering? Or, finally, did they shrug their shoulders and say “phone it in, this is a money train.” If the latter, I’m not sure I could blame… Read More »

Today’s review is a little interesting, as we are not only graced with another entry to Shenmue’s shallow pool of available music, but we also have the opportunity to pick up the piano book for this particular album. I’m a sucker for piano books (and piano albums in general), so chances are I might pick… Read More »

The music was reborn. Now, what happens if the instruments are…retuned? Originally described months before release as being a more jazz-influenced album than the rock influence of the Re:Birth series, but still focused around battle themes in the Romancing SaGa trilogy, it turns out Re:Tune has a sort of eclectic mix of styles. Most of… Read More »