by Adol The Red » Sat Mar 24, 2012 1:33 pm
Video Game music thread. Well, a lot of good stuff was covered already. Roll took care of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue. However, I am one of five outspoken Ar Tonelico fans in existence, so we'll start there.
This is Spheria, of course various translations will also spell it Sphilia. Japanese l and r thing. Anyway, this is the best example of Hymnos I can think of. For those of you unfamiliar, and I'll try to be quick, Ar Tonelico has beings called Reyveteils, artificial life forms (orignally) that can cast powerful spells by linking to these giant towers. The spells come in the form of song magic, which in the game is in an aritificial language called Hymnos (sometimes made up words and sometimes just Japanese). Regular song magic is just for battle, but there are special songs that interact with the towers to carry out very specific tasks. Whereas the normal songs are developed by diving into the Reyveteil's mind and working out problems, the Hymns, as they are called, are pre-made, existing as a crystal that can be downloaded into the Reyveteil. In the game, these songs are always epic, and are some of the best music I have ever heard. Spheria is my favorite, and is my current favorite song, with vocals by Noriko Mitose. The opening to this song is actually supposed to be a conversation in Hymnos between two Reyveteils, so if it sounds a little odd, that's why.
Despedia. Hymnos comes in various forms. The sound of the song depends on the personality of the singer. This is a song used to control a fortress that can constanly produce enemies. The description in the game details their attempt to combine Bulgarian Chorus with Industrial, to some pretty great results. Again, Noriko Mitose.
Alphage. Song magic works by translating emotional energy into physical energy. Hymn Crystals are programmed with a certain emotion, but each Reyveteil will express that differently. Alphage is a great example because halfway through singing this song the character has a major revelation about her own past and her own identity, and the song itself changes as a result, going from something somewhat tepid to a more confident and forceful song. This song is done by Akiko Shikata, the post prominent singer in the series.
/ Purger is another example. In the first game you can choose which Reyveteil to download Purger into. These are both from the exact same Hymn Crystal, but are drastically different. The first one is Misha's, which is far more dramatic and confident, mirroring her personality. The second is Aurica's version. She is not very confident, and so the song starts with more trepidation. The first is done by Haruka Shimotsuki, and the second by Akiko Shikata.
I'll round out this Hymnos assault with Chronical Key. It's another Misha song, and hence very dramatic. It's also a very pretty song, though with a noticable melancholy. This is not without reason, as this song represents a life of servitude for Misha. Also done by Haruka Shimotsuki.
I'll stop with the Hymnos now. The Youtube pages should have plenty more options on the side if you find these interesting. Now time to wrap up with some Ys goodness. All from Ys 2 on the PSP.
Protectors The normal boss song. Gets you very pumped. A remix of this boss song from Ys 1
Battleground My favorite song from this game. When this song starts some things have gone down that make you want to tear apart every monster in sight. Hard to think of a song more apt.
Termination The final battle song of Ys 2 (of 1 and 2, since they are more like 2 halves of the same game). At first I didn't like how it wasn't quite as in your face as the other music, but I've grown to love it. I feel like this song is more like taking a step back and watching from afar. Everything else was an endless fight to a point. This is that point. This is the all or nothing.
And with that, I'll stop talking now.
Epic , brah!
