Editor’s Note: We are breaking up our “Castlevania Week” coverage with this one weekend post, because we know you readers can only handle so much Castlevania in a given time period. We’ll be back with even more from that series on Monday. Until then … check out the review and giveaway below!
The Lord of the Rings Online (abbreviated “LOTRO”) has proven itself a successful MMORPG, surviving for many years and with many expansions even as its peers have their servers shut down or languish in inactivity from the developer’s side.
Certainly, a part of this is that the power of the franchise is helping to carry it. Of course, franchise power alone won’t carry an MMO (see Star Wars: The Old Republic, which is facing financial difficulties, or The Matrix Online which shut down years ago). The rest is that the game is apparently very strong, and the variable pricing has been solid, and regular expansion content keeps coming.
The latest, the Riders of Rohan expansion, featured over 20 new songs from series composer Chance Thomas. The soundtrack was released digitally on such services as iTunes, Amazon, and even free to stream on Spotify.
After the jump, our review of this adventurous new soundtrack. And, stick around ’til the end for a chance to win a special promotional CD copy of this otherwise digital-only OST! (more…)
In the early-to-mid ’90s, Konami was having a good ol’ time with the Castlevania franchise. The likes of Super Castlevania IV, Rondo of Blood and Bloodlines ensured that the series stayed firmly within the limelight. The result of this was a slew of off-shoot arranged albums meant to celebrate one of the most iconic details of the series – its music.
Naoto Shibata and his merry band, Naoto Shibata PROJECT, hit the ball out of the park with the rock/metal-infused Dracula Battle: Perfect Selection album in 1994. Who could go wrong with doing a rock album using music from a series originally based on cheesy classic B-horror movies and a Conan-clone walking around bare-legged with a whip?
Evidently the answer to that was “Who the hell cares, we’re doing a Castlevania rock album, so piss off.”, because not only was there a market for Dracula Battle, it ended up spawning a another album: Dracula Battle: Perfect Selection II. (The producers hadn’t gotten to the point of elaborate naming schemes yet, thought “Dracula Battle: The Serenade of Melodious Metal Part 2″ might not have been the way to go either)
And thus, in the year of our lord 1995, a sequel was born. (more…)
Continuing in our “Castlevania Week” adventures, and simultaneously resurrecting our “Soundtrack of the Month” feature (something we haven’t run in a whole year!), today we bring you a special review for a very special album.
You can actually pick up multiple versions of the album. Its original CD print, one of Konami’s first albums with King Records, is catalog number KICA-1005, released in March 1990. Retro nerds might also be interested the cassette tape version released at the same time (KITA-1005). At the time, the album was named Akumajo Dracula Famicom Best. But when it was widely reprinted in 1998 (most people I know who have this album, have this reprint), they dropped “Famicom” from the album title (even though all the music is still from the Famicom). That album’s catalog number is KICA-7901, and wouldn’t you know it, CDJapan still has it in stock.
What this album contains, and what it doesn’t contain, is worth discussing at length. So, after the jump, I’ll give you the details. (more…)
Back in the early to mid-1990′s, re-compositions or different renditions of game-based music was still a relatively new concept. Composing remixes of game music through the use of live instruments or orchestras and not through the limitations of sound cards and board synths was a whole new idea that was gaining steam and was considered a rare treat for any fans of the particular series that were being given the honor. These were the days before game music was considered it’s own genre, and therefore wasn’t given the symphonic treatments we’d begin seeing a decade later with things like Video Games Live or Play!, and thus it was up to independent musicians with a dedicated enough love of game music to shower the fandoms with their own renditions of popular game tunes in a grandiose fashion.
Enter Naoto Shibata and his posse, Naoto Shibata PROJECT in 1994.
By 1994, many of what can be considered the “Classic” game series by today’s standard were enjoying their glory days, not the least of which was Konami’s whip-toting action sidescroller – Castlevania. (more…)
First of all, an apology that the site has been inactive for the past few days. We needed a time of rest to prepare for the big week ahead.
Timed intentionally with that wonderful, “spooky” autumnal holiday in mind, we are going to dedicate the next week (and spilling over some into next week) covering the music of the Castlevania series.
Castlevania, known as Akumajo Dracula (Demon Castle Dracula) in Japan, is arguably Konami’s biggest and most successful franchise. It started as a simple, stage-based 2D platformer and eventually grew to encompass a variety of genres, including one that it essentially made up with the help of another franchise (the “Metroidvania” genre: a form of 2D platforming with save points, map exploration, non-linear or semi-linear paths, and power-ups allowing access to new areas).
In the coming days, expect reviews and impressions of a variety of albums released in the franchise’s lifetime, from the very beginning all the way to some of the most recent OSTs and arranged albums. We’ll also be posting an interview with Kinuyo Yamashita (composer for the very first Castlevani), alongside the three other composers who attended the VGO Boston concert on October 7, 2012.
Until then, feel free to check out all of OSV’s previous Castlevania coverage, listed below!
Though a somewhat lesser “controversial” album than Secret of Mana Genesis, this summer SQ release saw both high praise and heavy criticism thrown upon it.
What’s the deal? What expectations weren’t met? And to what extent is the encroaching fad of modulated bass (dubstep) dominating this album?
For answers to those questions and more, I humbly give you my take on the July 2012 release “Battle SQ” from Square Enix. (more…)
Like sci-fi? Like westerns? (No, this won’t become a discussion about Cowboys vs. Aliens – lower your torches) If you said yes to any of that, then chances are you played Borderlands. If you didn’t, get off your duff, go buy it, and play through. Go on, I’ll wait.
No I won’t.
Created in 2009, Borderlands was most commonly known as “Futuristic Spaghetti Western meets first-person shooter meets Diablo” for its aforementioned setting, game style and leveling system. Its soundtrack was placed in the responsible hands of Cris Velasco (Clive Barker’s Jericho, Prototype) along with his recently-established partner in melodic mischief Sascha Dikiciyan, along with the established Danish composer Jesper Kyd (Assassin’s Creed, Unreal Tournament 3) and sound designer Raison Varner. This rag-tag team created an atmospheric musical accompaniment to the underground hit that helped shape the soul of the game.
So yeah, guess who’s back for another romp on Pandora? (more…)
We’ve been ceaselesslypromotingthe VGO in the past month. Full disclosure: VGO founder Shota Nakama is technically an OSV member, as he has provided many translation services for us over the years. But he is much more than a translator. He’s a guitarist, an arranger, an organizer and producer.
So when the Video Game Orchestra put on their first no-strings-attached show (no Distant Worlds, no association with a convention, no “film and game music in the same concert”), we at OSV were all on board to see it succeed.
And this past weekend, that’s exactly what I saw.
Next week, we’ll have our interview with the four guest composers at the show (Noriyuki Iwadare, Hitoshi Sakimoto, Yoko Shimomura, Kinuyo Yamashita). But for now, after the jump, I’d like to give you my detailed report of the concert, as well as some strange and wonderful encounters I had with industry veterans and fans alike. (more…)
UPDATE: The giveaway is now over. Congratulations to those of you who won the OST! As a bonus, you now have @OSVGameMusic following you too.
Okay, I know, it’s been a full week with no updates.
The VGO Boston trip absolutely wiped me out. Pathetic excuse, I realize, but those are the facts. SOLID coverage of the event, as well as interviews with the guest composers, are on the way.
But before that, I want y’all to know that we’re giving away *five* copies of the digital-only OST for Dust: An Elysian Tail. Want one? Here’s how you get one:
Step 1 – follow us on Twitter.
Step 2 – tweet us with a message about Dust! Use hashtag #DustOff for great justice!
Step 3 – if you win, we’ll follow you back and DM you the info to get your free OST!
Simple. Awesome. Now get tweeting. We’ll update this post when they’re all given away.
And check back tomorrow for our VGO concert report!
This is not a confession of brony-ism. Though I may someday be sucked in, that day is not yet. I’m sure many of you think I’ve lost it just for posting this video, but I can assure you the exact opposite is true. This is about FINDING something wonderful.
I absolutely love “The Smile Song” (video above).
I’d love to own this one, in fact, but no soundtrack (digital, CD or otherwise) has been released for Hasbro’s instant cult TV series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. There is an online petition demanding a retail soundtrack release that currently has over 6000 signatures. If you’re a brony, or if you can just appreciate this kind of sugar-pop goodness, maybe you should add your name to it as well.
There’s a part of me that’s angry about HyperDuck SoundWorks’ newest release. It has to do with timing.
You see, there have been boatloads of wonderful indie game soundtracks released in 2012. It has been truly overwhelming. But, at the end of the year, I thought I had my winner for the indie game OST category picked out already. And how would anything sneak up and knock my new favorite off its pedestal within the last few months of the year?
Well, they did it. Chris and the rest of the HyperDuck team, alongside some special assistance from VGM veteran Alexander Brandon (Deus Ex, Bejeweled 3), have thrown in a surprise contender in the form of the soundtrack for Dust: An Elysian Tail (an Action RPG for XBLA). This thing is amazing and surprising and well outside the style(s) I expected to find on the soundtrack.
After the jump, our detailed review and (of course) the bandcamp embed! (more…)
