You can always count on Falcom to re-arrange their classic tunes many times over. They’ve done it more for Ys I and II than for any other game in their library. When you have such a large quantity of music, from varying sources, there comes a new option when it’s time to bundle a new promotional album. Rather than make new arrangements, why not do a “best of” mix tape?
No doubt, Falcom has done it before, and they did it again for this album. This promotional CD came with the PSP version of Ys I and II released in Japan. Its sound sources vary: symphonic albums, PrePrimer, Perfect Collections, and (of course) the new music for the PSP version. It’s easy to do, and well, it’s not a bad idea. Taking some of the absolute best tracks and putting them together on one disc, why not?
Frankly, I think this CD beats the pants off of the “Very Best of Ys” album released a full decade ago. The 21st Century Ys Symphony is a great audio source, and it gets put onto this album. So that alone wins major points for me. And, of course, they included “Endless History,” the vocal version of “The Morning Grow.” In case you hadn’t read any other review I’ve ever written where this track is included on an album (I think there are six or seven now), I will make this point clear one more time: Endless History is the best vocal track to ever come from Falcom. Ever.
There are some new/exclusive arrangements, all of which are very guitar-heavy, for the PSP version of the game. And they’re on this album! The new arrangement of “To Make The End of Battle” is a personal favorite.
The final track gives us a foretaste of the music to Ys SEVEN, which (at the time of this review) has not yet been released. It’s a fantastic, fast-paced, heart-rate-accelerating piece, but it clearly smacks of “new school Falcom.” The original compositions of Yuzo Koshiro and Mieko Ishikawa (for Ys and Ys II) continue to dominate, as this “best-of” album so clearly puts forth. And the new arrangements don’t hurt either!
