Top Ten Songs From:
Join the Top Ten Songs user group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/Top-Ten-Songs] to receive notifications when a new list is released, discuss my choices, your opinions, or game soundtracks in general, and have quick access to all of my released lists.
Note 1: Take caution, this thread is extremely opinion heavy. conflicting opinionsmay will occur.
Note 2: This includes the entire series, in case you were wondering, and recurring themes will be represented by their original iteration.
Hello everyone who happened to click on the link to this, I'm proud to announce a series of countdowns that may last for a while and I'll probably forget about after a couple days. I will be, as you could probably (okay, obviously) tell, counting down the top ten songs from certain video game franchises.
If you don't agree with one of my choices, feel free to be respectful and not flame. Also, if you guys want to, you can suggest franchises for me to do in the future. So. Without further ado, I'll stop making you read and start letting you listen.
Wait, one more thing. If there's a certain remix I find that I think is good enough, I'll put it in a spoiler box under the explanation for the original song, so keep an eye out for those.
Number Ten (10):
"Prelude/Crystal Theme" from multiple, Final Fantasy originally
Yes, it's one of the songs that started it all. This simple piece, along with the other classic, the series' main theme, sets the mood for the epic adventure, and has been featured in nearly every Roman numeral sequel so far. But not XIII. I chose the original one just because it's the original, but if you want to hear the others, here are two videos that put them all together-
Number Nine (9):
"Eternity: Memory of Lightwaves" from Final Fantasy X-2
Let me put this out here real quick. The beginning of this list is a good place for me to get it out-
And although the soundtrack wasn't all orchestral and classical, it was still great. The modern, jazzy feel fit the more lighthearted and campy style, but it still brought the emotional piano that fans of the series know well. And out of all the emotional piano pieces, this one just barely beats out Aeris' theme and "To Zanarkand" because it's still emotional without being to calm, if you get what I'm saying.
Number Eight (8):
"Terra's Theme" from Final Fantasy VI
This one is just one of those ones where it sounds great and it fits, but it's just missing that little bit extra to put it higher on the list. After all, I'm really just judging by my opinions, not artistic merit or anything like that.
Number Seven (7):
"Final Fantasy" (Prologue, Opening Theme) from multiple, Final Fantasy originally
This is the other classic that's been there from the beginning. This is the one that made you excited for whatever game you were playing (except XIII, which didn't have it) and made you ready for what you knew would be another epic adventure. With each installment, it kept getting bigger and better, until one day, the world was graced with this absolute beauty-
Number Six (6):
Sigh, "One Winged Angel" from Final Fantasy VII?
I don't know if I actually like this or if I'm just being influenced by the fanboys, but here it is. Only at number six though, because it's not a very powerful piece, but it sounds good enough and, as far as I can remember, it fits well with the battle. The ominous Latin chanting definitely upped the awesome level. And here's my favorite remix of them all-
Number Five (5):
"Battle Theme 1" from Final Fantasy II
With this one, it's really just here because I like the tune. It has some good changes in its tone and definitely makes you want to fight, but there's not really much else to say about it. Obviously, though, I'm giving a remix, the Origins version-
Number Four (4):
"Blinded by Light" (Battle Theme) from Final Fantasy XIII
Yep, I've probably put your two least favorite FF games already. I think this is a great battle theme. I like that it started out with the traditional classical orchestra with those heavy horns, then brought in the guitar, then changed the bass line to a more faster paced, modern feel and put in that great solo violin. Basically, I just love the way it sounds. Everything about it. There's not much more to say.
Number Three (3):
"Yuna's Theme" from Final Fantasy X-2
Bring it. Bring on the hate. I'm ready. I've got my flame shield reinforced in every way possible, you wouldn't believe how much it cost.
Anyway, as I've said twice before, I'm listing these songs in order of how much I enjoy them. I could put another pretentious classical piece and say how it's symbolic and how its deep themes and references make it one of the most enjoyable, but I'd be lying. The reason I put this song so high is because IT'S CHORUS IS F**KING CATCHY. I hummed it in the car for a week straight after hearing it, and a song that can do that deserves a high spot on the list. That's right. That's two songs from X-2 that well deserve to be on this list.
Number Two (2):
"Don?t Be Afraid" (Battle Theme) from Final Fantasy VIII
In my opinion, this is exactly what a Final Fantasy battle theme should be. It has the orchestra that was introduced in VII, but it still has some very classic sounding parts with the brass. Sometimes developers hold back on the regular battle theme to emphasize boss battle music, but not in this game. There's a good orchestrated remix that I've seen, which doesn't do anything except improve it-
Plus, this song features a subtle remix of my favorite song from the entire series-
Number One (1):
"Cid's Theme" from Final Fantasy VII
I'll bet you didn't see this coming. Out of every song from every game, out of all the epic themes and classic melodies that accompanied some of the most definitive moments in gaming history, why did I choose a simple theme for a single character? I'll tell you why. Because I really like it. The heavy percussion and the brass orchestra make this exploration-themed piece fit Cid and his story perfectly. It also sounds really nice, which is what music is supposed to do (and I mean music here, not ambience like you hear in most modern games). Instead of a slow piano piece like Aeris' theme that makes you a bit depressed, or fast paced electronic boss music, this song gives you the feeling of accomplishment and that you have a massive world and an epic adventure ahead of you, so SIT DOWN ANDDRINK YOUR ENJOY THE GODDAMN TEA RIDE!
There are a whole lot of remixes that are about the same level of quality, so I'll just put one and you can get to the others through its related videos.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for reading my first installment, and please give feedback, as this is the first time I've done something like this.
Join the Top Ten Songs user group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/Top-Ten-Songs] to receive notifications when a new list is released, discuss my choices, your opinions, or game soundtracks in general, and have quick access to all of my released lists.
Note 1: Take caution, this thread is extremely opinion heavy. conflicting opinions
Note 2: This includes the entire series, in case you were wondering, and recurring themes will be represented by their original iteration.
Hello everyone who happened to click on the link to this, I'm proud to announce a series of countdowns that may last for a while and I'll probably forget about after a couple days. I will be, as you could probably (okay, obviously) tell, counting down the top ten songs from certain video game franchises.
If you don't agree with one of my choices, feel free to be respectful and not flame. Also, if you guys want to, you can suggest franchises for me to do in the future. So. Without further ado, I'll stop making you read and start letting you listen.
Wait, one more thing. If there's a certain remix I find that I think is good enough, I'll put it in a spoiler box under the explanation for the original song, so keep an eye out for those.
Number Ten (10):
"Prelude/Crystal Theme" from multiple, Final Fantasy originally
Yes, it's one of the songs that started it all. This simple piece, along with the other classic, the series' main theme, sets the mood for the epic adventure, and has been featured in nearly every Roman numeral sequel so far. But not XIII. I chose the original one just because it's the original, but if you want to hear the others, here are two videos that put them all together-
"Eternity: Memory of Lightwaves" from Final Fantasy X-2
Let me put this out here real quick. The beginning of this list is a good place for me to get it out-
I ENJOYED X-2. It isn't even close to being the best FF game, but it was fun in its own right.
Number Eight (8):
"Terra's Theme" from Final Fantasy VI
This one is just one of those ones where it sounds great and it fits, but it's just missing that little bit extra to put it higher on the list. After all, I'm really just judging by my opinions, not artistic merit or anything like that.
Number Seven (7):
"Final Fantasy" (Prologue, Opening Theme) from multiple, Final Fantasy originally
This is the other classic that's been there from the beginning. This is the one that made you excited for whatever game you were playing (except XIII, which didn't have it) and made you ready for what you knew would be another epic adventure. With each installment, it kept getting bigger and better, until one day, the world was graced with this absolute beauty-
Sigh, "One Winged Angel" from Final Fantasy VII?
I don't know if I actually like this or if I'm just being influenced by the fanboys, but here it is. Only at number six though, because it's not a very powerful piece, but it sounds good enough and, as far as I can remember, it fits well with the battle. The ominous Latin chanting definitely upped the awesome level. And here's my favorite remix of them all-
"Battle Theme 1" from Final Fantasy II
With this one, it's really just here because I like the tune. It has some good changes in its tone and definitely makes you want to fight, but there's not really much else to say about it. Obviously, though, I'm giving a remix, the Origins version-
"Blinded by Light" (Battle Theme) from Final Fantasy XIII
Yep, I've probably put your two least favorite FF games already. I think this is a great battle theme. I like that it started out with the traditional classical orchestra with those heavy horns, then brought in the guitar, then changed the bass line to a more faster paced, modern feel and put in that great solo violin. Basically, I just love the way it sounds. Everything about it. There's not much more to say.
Number Three (3):
"Yuna's Theme" from Final Fantasy X-2
Bring it. Bring on the hate. I'm ready. I've got my flame shield reinforced in every way possible, you wouldn't believe how much it cost.
Anyway, as I've said twice before, I'm listing these songs in order of how much I enjoy them. I could put another pretentious classical piece and say how it's symbolic and how its deep themes and references make it one of the most enjoyable, but I'd be lying. The reason I put this song so high is because IT'S CHORUS IS F**KING CATCHY. I hummed it in the car for a week straight after hearing it, and a song that can do that deserves a high spot on the list. That's right. That's two songs from X-2 that well deserve to be on this list.
Number Two (2):
"Don?t Be Afraid" (Battle Theme) from Final Fantasy VIII
In my opinion, this is exactly what a Final Fantasy battle theme should be. It has the orchestra that was introduced in VII, but it still has some very classic sounding parts with the brass. Sometimes developers hold back on the regular battle theme to emphasize boss battle music, but not in this game. There's a good orchestrated remix that I've seen, which doesn't do anything except improve it-
Number One (1):
"Cid's Theme" from Final Fantasy VII
I'll bet you didn't see this coming. Out of every song from every game, out of all the epic themes and classic melodies that accompanied some of the most definitive moments in gaming history, why did I choose a simple theme for a single character? I'll tell you why. Because I really like it. The heavy percussion and the brass orchestra make this exploration-themed piece fit Cid and his story perfectly. It also sounds really nice, which is what music is supposed to do (and I mean music here, not ambience like you hear in most modern games). Instead of a slow piano piece like Aeris' theme that makes you a bit depressed, or fast paced electronic boss music, this song gives you the feeling of accomplishment and that you have a massive world and an epic adventure ahead of you, so SIT DOWN AND
There are a whole lot of remixes that are about the same level of quality, so I'll just put one and you can get to the others through its related videos.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for reading my first installment, and please give feedback, as this is the first time I've done something like this.
