This bundled CD came with the Japanese version of the Nintendo DS “Endless Frontier” gaiden game in the Super Robot Taisen series. And, surprisingly, it’s a great little CD.
The first three tracks, being Japanese-language drama tracks, aren’t the sort of thing you’d expect a poor “gaijin” like myself to appreciate. But I did. I couldn’t tell by the bits of Japanese I knew whether the scenario presented was a summary of the entire game’s plot, or just a short segment from the game’s plot arc, or even a separate event before or after the game. What I do know is that, as far as drama is concerned, this 37-minute section of the album was very well made. Music is interspersed frequently within the dialogue, and tons of giant mecha sound effects help to set up the scenario. You know if people are in a dock or hangar based on the background noise, and you can fairly easily tell who’s winning a battle based upon the sound effects.
The album’s other half, the music half, is fantastic. These are mostly new, original compositions that have not appeared on previous Super Robot Taisen games (OG or otherwise). They provided a refreshing alternative to the overused character themes of all previous SRT soundtracks. The quality of the sound is excellent, and the compositions are fun and catchy. If only the musical portion of the disc weren’t so short! I’d love to have more of this.
Note that, when Atlus USA brought this game over, they bundled this same soundtrack, but cut the Japanese drama tracks. So if you want to hear this great music, all you need to do is pick up the game itself from Atlus.
