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  #1  
Old Nov 18, 2019, 12:07 AM
Petter Petter is offline
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Default What are your thoughts on video game music? Are there any OSTs in particular that you

Hello everyone,,
Do you think the video game music (VGM) has the ability to have the same artistic merit as other genres of music, be it rock music or classical? Do you any of you like VGM, and if so, do you listen to it outside of playing games? Are there any OSTs that you constantly find yourself listening to? If so, then what makes those OSTs great? Any and all thoughts related to VGM are welcome in responses.

Last edited by Illidan; Apr 1, 2020 at 11:43 AM.
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Old Nov 18, 2019, 10:17 AM
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Jazz Paladin Jazz Paladin is offline
 
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Um, yes , if I didn't think it had merit of its own, I personally would never advocate for creating VG covers. Even much older VG music, comprised of simply chip bleeps and bloops had great musical ideas, but sadly many people to this day cannot see beyond the the issues inherent with old VG tunes (quality, etc...) . Great musical structures and such always had the capacity to be mainstream, but didn't really receive proper attention and accreditation until relatively recently, with the advent of all these wonderful new stremaing and synth technologies.

But more to the point, listening the VGM is the best way to re-experience the passion and nostalgia of playing an old video game for those who lack the proper time to play through the whole games again.

My personal favorites have a lot of diversity of styles within them.

Wild Arms
Final Fantasy IV (I am currently working on 20 songs in tribute to this)
Chrono Trigger
Anything Castlevania
Streets of Rage
Baldur's Gate
Age of Empires
Diablo
Starcraft
Soul Blazer
Act Raiser
Metal Gear Solid
Metroid

And this is just to name a few...too many to list , to tell the truth.
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Old Nov 18, 2019, 10:14 PM
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LuxKiller65 LuxKiller65 is offline
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This has got to be my favourite game track ever: click to warp back to 1989
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Old Nov 18, 2019, 11:48 PM
112B2018 112B2018 is offline
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I don't usually think of VGM as it's own genre, I listen to certain soundtracks because they are good even outside the context of being from a game, some VGM is better suited to be listened to within the game and those don't interest me as much.
As for artistic merits I think VGM does have it, as I mentioned before if the music works in it's own context and is composed skillfully and creatively I think it does have artistic merit, even if some of the sound hardware used gives it a specific sound.

I'd say I listen to VGM on it's own about half of the time, the soundtrack CDs I own get a lot of use, I listen to a mix of Soundtracks from Super Nes/Genesis, Arcade games, and orchestra/arranged cover albums.
Some of my favorites:

Terranigma
Bomberman Hero
Ristar
Grandia 1 and 2
Iridion II
Journey to Silius
Verytex
Mr gimmick
Thunder force series
Xenoblade
Ikaruga
Plok
Lords of thunder
Treasure hunter G
Baten Kaitos 2

Some arranged albums I listen to:
Eschatos arranged
Symphony Ys
Actraiser symphonic suite
Metal Black -the first-
Game Music Concert series
Chrono trigger to far away times
Sega tunes series
Dracula Battle
Energy breaker

Last edited by 112B2018; Nov 19, 2019 at 02:42 PM.
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  #5  
Old Nov 19, 2019, 03:06 AM
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Datschge Datschge is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Petter View Post
Hello everyone,,
Do you think the video game music (VGM) has the ability to have the same artistic merit as other genres of music, be it rock music or classical? Do you any of you like VGM, and if so, do you listen to it outside of playing games? Are there any OSTs that you constantly find yourself listening to? If so, then what makes those OSTs great? Any and all thoughts related to VGM are welcome in responses.
Games are just another media carrying music just like TV, movies, LPs, CDs, streaming services and so on and so forth are. The distinction you try to make there is an artificial one.
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Old Nov 19, 2019, 05:10 AM
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TerraEpon TerraEpon is offline
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Or to put it a different way, VGM as said above isn't really a genre, it's a medium (this is of coruse true of music for movies, TV, etc)

The question in the OP just isn't the right one to ask.

Also asking on a forum dedicated to cataloging soundtracks if the people there like it and listen to it outside of games is like asking people in a movie theater if they watch movies.
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  #7  
Old Nov 19, 2019, 06:32 AM
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dma dma is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LuxKiller65 View Post
This has got to be my favourite game track ever: click to warp back to 1989
A fine choice man, fine choice!

--------

There are many reasons which make me enjoy game music:

- It's instrumental music, for the most part
- It's melodic music
- It features many different styles of music and composition

- for non streamed music:
. - The different types of synthesis or sampling, there's charm in any of those, from plain square wave and noise, to high quality samples sets
. - The sequenced aspect of the music, and for many systems the noticeably limited number of audio channels, what the composer achieved with it
. - The sound of the various sound-chips and systems, as for an old guitar or amplifier (mixing, digital to analog conversion)
An example on this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-Z9c7gQMPA

- The arranged aspect of arrange tracks on game music soundtracks, this can go in so many directions! Also comparing it the original track, what it adds, what it keeps, what it changes.

And of course, for the soundtracks of games i've played, there's how it fits to the game moment and the memory of the game it gives you.

Last edited by dma; Nov 20, 2019 at 01:45 AM.
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