#1
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Haunted Castle -- Heart of Fire (last level)
Game released in February 1988 according to this wiki and other sources. Journey to Silius -- Dunno where in the game Game released 10 August 1990 according to MobyGames. The beginning is too similar to be a coincidence...? What do you guys think? Maybe it's a well-known fact and I'm just late as usual. |
#3
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Additionally, I believe "Checkered Flag" is spelled "Chequered Flag" on this release and the arcade release. (https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/arcade...chequered-flag). I'm guessing the difference in spelling is a regional difference; spell check is telling me me "Chequered" is an incorrect but I don't think that 100% true and that's a valid spelling elsewhere. |
#4
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Okay, the AoS/DoS soundtrack is clearly the one that's off then. I went ahead and deleted the note.
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#5
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#6
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The obis and backs of these albums confirm the dates we have here. In addition, the flyer for Music from Hydlide 3 includes K30X-7705, with a release date of August 5:
https://vgmdb.net/db/covers.php?do=view&cover=53112 Strangely, Hydlide 3 was released earlier, but had a later catalog number. |
#7
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sounds good, i had a moment of doubt, thanks for that
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#8
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I must have asked before... what does CGM Series mean? Computer Game Music?
https://vgmdb.net/db/covers.php?do=view&cover=44736 |
#9
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#10
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For reference: Mobile Suit Z Gundam: Hot Scramble (their fifth game-related release) seems to be the first released in King Record's Computer Game Music series, with Music from Ys (their seventh game-related release) being the first to use the logo and spell it out, as well as retroactively including the earlier releases in the series (thanks for pointing this out, Aifread! ). Until the 21st entry, Music from Star Trader, they would always release game music under the CGM series.
With Famicom Ganbare Goemon 2, they started using other series names and logos such as MXS (Maxi Single) or Konami. I could see them reserving the CGM series for home computer at first, but then there were the arcade version of Gradius III and Akumajo Dracula Famicom Best as CGM releases and The Vocal from Ys as an MXS release. The CGM series went on for quite a while but the logo was printed only on the obi most of the time. Perfect Selection GRADIUS is the last album I could find that has the logo (checked releases till April 1993). By late 1991, soundtrack manufacturers probably realized game company names and logos such as Konami and Falcom would attract more customers than their own proprietary series names and logos. There's these series, then, as recently posted, Pony Canyon's / Scitron's G.S.M. (Game Sound Music) series. Any other 1980s or 1990s series where a manufacturer or label released music from various game developers? |
#11
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Series like this weren't just in the 80s and 90s; Scitron revived the GSM name in the early 2000s with the new meaning "Game Sound Museum" (previously "Game Sound Music") and there's SuperSweep's "Game Music Discovery" series which has soundtracks from multiple game companies, many of which weren't even by SuperSweep members. |
#12
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Well, konpyûta gêmu and gêmu are now seen as general terms for video game in Japan (the latter mostly in savant circles while it can refer to most any game in general language usage). In Germany, the general term Computerspiel has been largely superseded by Videospiel as a translation of the American video game term. To a lesser degree, it's also used in Japan as bideo gêmu, but it feels like konpyûta gêmu has been around longest when it comes to talking about video games to non-gamers. I'd love to take a deep dive into early sources sometime to see how the terms' usage changed over the years.
But seeing how they got both arcade and Famicom games in the CGM series, you're right, they're probably using it in the general sense. Guess I got carried away by the sheer number of their early Falcom music releases. Thanks for the other series names. Would be nice to have these implemented in the database somehow. |
#13
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Alfa Records' GMO series, which was the first of its kind, and included Namco, Konami, Hudson, Tecmo, and more: https://vgmdb.net/org/124 Apollon's Compusic series, which released a lot of the Enix music, but also had the Wizardry series, Konami, and Falcom releases: https://vgmdb.net/org/20 and https://vgmdb.net/org/69 Datam (Data Music) Polystar, which had some early Final Fantasy, Falcom, and Data East albums: https://vgmdb.net/org/24 Tokuma Japan Corporation's T Game Music series, which has 13 arranged albums from a variety of developers: https://vgmdb.net/org/3436 Nippon Columbia, which has a number of arranged albums from different developers. The classic series is discussed here: https://vgmdb.net/forums/showthread.php?t=19602 Later in the '90s, you had labels like First Smile and Absord Music Japan that published for a variety of developers: https://vgmdb.net/org/56 and https://vgmdb.net/org/51 |
#14
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Things like G.M.O. and T Game Music already have an entry, I see. It'd be great to be able to filter the CGM, G.S.M. and Compusic stuff like this as well. |
#15
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Some notes/questions for Akumajo Dracula/Haunted Castle:
(1) Regarding the PS2 release by Hamster, Castlevania Wiki says that: "This soundtrack contains the OST for Haunted Castle, plus two bonus tracks. It was directly recorded from the arcade game, which explains why the sound is different from Konami Game Music Collection Vol. 1." Hum, OK. That means the music in K30X-7705 is not directly recorded from the arcade game. Do we have any proof of this? The page doesn't provide any source. And the page on K30X-7705 doesn't provide any information on its recording either. (2) I just realised that when the timer reaches 00:30, the music changes to a stressful jingle (whether you're in the level or in a boss fight). Seems like this jingle is not found in any official release. (3) In this release (K30X-7705), what's the deal with track 41? The basement and the Clock Tower are level 4 and 5, so why are they merged together in a single track? The Basement theme seems to transition nicely to the Clock Tower theme (though you can hear a tiny jump/silence edited in), so maybe it was originally planned as a single theme for a single level? I've been puzzled by this for a long time. The boss of the Basement has been very obviously put together in extreme haste with very little testing. It behaves with no logic and you can even get hit by "air" way after a projectile has left the screen to the right. So I'm thinking it might have been added at the last minute, and the level was supposed to be the basement plus the clocktower. Then they realised it was too long? Just a thought. (4) The Hamster release has a bug, where the music of the second level (the cave) starts quiet and then goes louder, then quiet again and louder and so forth. Then, when you beat the boss and Simon walks by himself toward the castle, the music suddenly goes VERY loud and the drawbridge sound effect is all buggy and high-pitched. It does not happen all the time. Not sure what triggers the bug, but I do not recall the bug happening on a real arcade board, at least not the one I played on at a friend's house a long time ago. Sorry if this is of no interest, but I like the game so I might as well share what I notice while wasting time on it. |
#16
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The note on Castlevania Wiki probably refers to the fact that K30X-7705 has reverb while HOGC-0015 does not. K30X-7705 is a genuine arcade recording though not necessarily directly from the game (whichever method they used to get the sound from the arcade board). From the YouTube rips, I can also tell that K30X-7705 is faithful to the original arcade cabinet's sound while HOGC-0015 has a slightly higher pitch (although it's barely noticeable). If anything, I'd say HOGC-0015 could be a recording from the emulated port on PS2 which it came bundled with. Quote:
Quote:
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To cap it all off, here's the liner notes by Ken'ichi Matsubara: Quote:
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#17
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The version included on SDCD-00473~82 is a new recording, along with everything else on those box sets. Scitron doesn't *** around.
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#18
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Thanks for clarifying! Is it also plagued by excessive reverb or a lack thereof? I feel that K30X-7705 went a bit too far with it while HOGC-0015 had none at all and sounded pretty anemic.
Edit: Judging from a rip, it seems like SCDC-00473~82 also doesn't have any reverb. It sounds a bit better than HOGC-0015 but it's not pleasant to hear. K30X-7705 also gives the impression of a stereo or at the very least faux stereo experience while the others sound plain mono. Last edited by zierts; Nov 12, 2022 at 04:26 AM. |
#19
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Hey, I like that 2-note loop lol
SCDC-00360 does include the sped-up version when you're running out of time! They paid more attention at Scitron for sure. So what they say on that Wiki (like many things they say) is not really true. And if they did record the music from an emulator, than that's pretty lame, but I guess it's better than nothing. I do find the Hamster PS2 releases to be a terrible joke in terms of software. It's an emulator with the ROM and nothing else. No sound theater, no artworks, no interviews, no nothing. Can't even save/load (only the options). Unless it's a key combination I haven't found. It's interesting you mention stage 3 on KICA-7506˜7, because it also lacks a boss at the end of the cave and the waterfall, which is most likely why they put all 3 themes together. That's why I'm thinking something else was going on with stage 4 and 5 here. Maybe not. thanks for the liner notes! did you translate them yourself ? This is one of those games where the only good thing is the music... yeah the game's not really good, sorry Konami. I one credited the game once on a real board so i really like it because it's Castlevania, but it's not a good game. |
#20
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I've never played it but it sure seems lesser than the NES original (and even the MSX Vampire Killer). The graphics in particular with their 40-something on-screen colors are abysmal. It's like a NES game that wants to be a SNES game but couldn't quite get there. All the more a testament to Matsubara's achievement with the music. Guess those arduous hours in the office paid off after all? 十字架を胸に can easily take on the NES and GB Castlevania starter tracks (not Super Castlevania IV, though, heh!). It's astounding that that signature Castlevania sound had already been established so soon after the series started. |
#21
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Yes, the harpies' room!
Frankly, a testament to those who make albums without knowing the game too well. Have you watched the Hamster's "expert play" video for Haunted Castle? Lol, it stops at level 3 and it's not even played well. The harpies' room is one of the nicest things in the game, you don't expect it at all. The theme is nice too, or jingle, whatever you call it. It's also interesting that the high score theme is way too long and players back then would most likely never hear it fully. Just like the level intro screen of Double Dragon (on NES at least), which can never play to the end. Now I'm back at playing Haunted Castle, trying to clear the 2nd loop withing 4 credits. |
#22
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It looks like Haunted Castle has a sound test (not sure how to activate it or if it's in the Hamster ports). Would be interesting to know if the missing tracks are included there. Quote:
Looks like you'd have to wait out every of the three letters entered on the ranking screen to hear it in full. Yeah, no one ever heard a complete loop in an arcade. It also sounds more like a stage theme than ranking screen music which might have helped it being repurposed to the stage 2 theme in Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth. |
#23
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Yes the high score theme sounds like a stage theme, it's pretty good.
The crappy half playthrough reminds me that there are 2 VHS with Haunted Castle playthroughs, and I haven't watched them yet. One is a VHS with only Haunted Castle, the other is Konami Best Selection. I hope they did better . The probably cut and pasted single levels with the best performance, like they do with speedruns. Apparently, dip switch 3 on the board controls GAME MODE/TEST MODE, and this guy confirms it includes a sound test. |
#24
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Based on this info, it looks like Matsubara did: Cross on the Chest, Bloody Tears (duh), Clock Tower Fear, Basement Melody, Can't Wait Until Night, and A Lullaby Sent to the Devils.
And Ikariko & Terashima did: Revival of the Devil, Lullaby of the Devils (sounds like Terashima's style in particular), Dracula's Room, and The Final Battle. As for the fanfares/jingles, it's anyone's guess. Oh, and the Game Over theme is also reused from Castlevania II, so that's either Matsubara or Terashima (I still can't figure out whether or not she actually composed any of it). |
#25
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Okay, I just checked the Haunted Castle sound test. Both of the unrecorded tracks are there but none of the albums were recorded from the sound test, it seems. It's an automatic sound test where each sound (whether it's SFX or music) is played for 4 seconds, then the next one starts automatically. Nevertheless, here's the sound codes (any unlisted codes are skipped entirely and never show up on the screen):
Code:
00 (silence) 10-47 (SFX) 48 harpy dimension (has no official title) = stage 3' BGM 49 hurry up (has no official title) = every stage, music when counter has only 30 seconds left 4A (silence) 50 悪魔たちに送るララバイ ランキング = highscore screen 51 Never End ゲーム・オーバー = game over/losing a life 52 十字架を胸に 墓場 BGM = stage 1 BGM 53 血の涙 城内(1F)BGM = stage 3 BGM 54 悪魔たちのララバイ 洞窟 BGM = stage 2 BGM 55 悪魔の復活 ボス BGM = boss battle 56 悲劇のWedding March スタート・デモ = opening cutscene 57 地下室のメロディー 城内(地下) BGM = stage 4 BGM 58 (silence) 59 戦いふたたび パターン・クリア = stage clear 5A 時計台の恐怖 時計台 BGM = stage 5 BGM 5B 夜まで待てない 橋のステージ BGM = stage 6 BGM 5C ドラキュラの部屋 最終ボス前半 = first half of final boss battle 5D 最後の戦い 最終ボス後半 = second half of final boss battle 5E エンディング・悪魔城の崩壊 エンディング・デモ = ending cutscene 61 もう戻れない 中間デモ = entering the castle cutscene at the end of stage 2 63 甦りしドラキュラ タイトル・デモ = title screen FF (silence) Last edited by zierts; Nov 10, 2022 at 03:43 AM. |
#26
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woot woot, nice!
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#27
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Out of curiosity, which release of Haunted Castle's OST do you think sounds the best overall? Maybe SCDC-00473~82? I can definitely see what zierts meant by excessive reverb on K30X-7705. Also, it looks like HOGC-0015 is the only release that features the harpy room theme. It's also got a pretty sweet medley remix track which I don't think was featured on any other albums.
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#28
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I'm pretty sure all the Konami releases are just reprints of this King Records recording with the ****ton of reverb, though I haven't heard HOGC-0015. SCDC-00473~82 is what it should sound like.
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