Sakura Taisen 2 (or Sakura Wars 2) is the second installment of Red Company/Overworks’ popular dating simulation-strategy hybrid. The actual game already is a truly outstanding example of distinctly Japanese games, and its soundtrack managed to impress me in a similar way as the game.
While being wonderfully lighthearted and romantic at some points, it also contains gloomy, threatening themes. I find it hard to compare its unique style to the epic works of Yasunori Mitsuda, Nobuo Uematsu or Yoko Shimomura, however. This OST is fundamentally different from the great RPG scores of Square’s composers, but nonetheless “au-pair” to them in terms of quality and variety.
Among the outstanding themes, this two-disc set offers the interested listener three vocal versions of the game’s main theme, each performed by a different voice actor. On the instrumental side, “All Right for Love to Depart!,” “The Miracle Bell – During the Play Version” and “Decisive Battle – Imperial Floral Assault Group! (Movie)” are my absolute favorites.
This item can be a very hard item to acquire since it is now out of print, and you will find very few retailers that still have a copy or two in stock. Regardless, the amount of time and money you may have to spend in order to find this soundtrack is definitely worth the effort. Trust me.
