Well, it began two days ago, and it’s already over. Gamers attending this year’s BlizzCon were not only treated to StarCraft II, Wrath of the Lich King, and Diablo III this year, but a slew of developer panels, in-game events, and merchandise made BlizzCon a complete experience. There was even a retro arcade featuring two of my Blizzard titles, Lost Vikings and Rock ‘n’ Roll Racing.
The closing ceremonies began last night with two comedians, followed by Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain who perfromed a combination of old and new tracks, and finally a special Blizzard edition of Video Games Live with three new segments. Needless to say, there was a lot for music enthusiasts to enjoy at the show.
Hit the jump for a complete account of the closing ceremonies. (more…)
I am really excited about Diablo III. I’ve been looking forward to the game for years, and now that it’s officially on the way, I’ve been dying to get my hands on it. Although many guessed that Diablo III would be playable at BlizzCon, I was pretty skeptical given that the game had previously only been shown by Blizzard staff.
Well, I was wrong, and the game was playable on the show floor at BlizzCon this weekend. Four playable classes, including the newly announced wizard were playable, and gamers had the choice of engaging in a single or multiplayer campaign through Tristram and three layers of the catacombs in the approximately 30-minute long demo. It was a great chance to hear some of the music in the game, which is sounding quite good.
Read about the three tracks featured in the demo after the jump. (more…)
Have I ever mentioned how much I love VGMdb? I was browsing the release calendar as I often do, and happened across this new listing for the Genso Suikoden Tierkreis soundtrack, which we we found out last month will be scored by Norikazu Miura. Well, he’s not the only one on board, as Yoshino Aoki (who we talked about in our Breath of Fire III review) and Basiscape’s Masaharu Iwata are also credited as contributors to the score. I’m particularly curious about Iwata’s involvement.
So, what’s this troubling trend that I mentioned to grab your attention? Well, just like the upcoming Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia soundtrack, this album is apparently being released as a part of a special edition set that comes with the game, an art book, bookmarks, drama albums, and other goodies. While the soundtrack will definitely make an awesome bonus, I’m already hesitant about shelling out over $100 USD for a Japanese copy of the game to get the soundtrack. Can we get some separate soundtrack releases, Konami?
How will this trend impact your ability to secure some of these sure-to-be-awesome soundtracks? What are your thoughts regarding the involvement of Yoshino Aoki and Masaharu Iwata?
This is the story of a warrior with the head of a leopard. Sounds interesting. Apparently the GUIN SAGA story is all the rage all around the world, spanning across 123 volumes and 21 extra volumes over the past 29 years. The year 2009 marks the 30th anniversary for GUIN SAGA, and they’re celebrating by creating an animated series for the first time.
Our friend wappa at Dog Ear Records posted today that Nobuo Uematsu will be handling the music, which I think should be a good project for him given the fantasy setting of GUIN SAGA. While a soundtrack release hasn’t been announced, I’m hoping a release will be on the way courtesy of DER, so watch for the news.
Are you one of the millions of GUIN SAGA readers around the world? Will you be looking forward to what Nobuo Uematsu creates for this feral fantasy?
We’re celebrating a day of Etrian Odyssey with the release of the new Live Music by Piano and Strings: Sekaiju no MeiQ I & II Super Arrange Version today in Japan. Hopefully you’ve read our full review of the album, but we have even more in store for you on this joyous ocassion.
We’ve been able to get some words with Yuzo Koshiro and Norihiko Hibino about their respective roles as composer and arranger/producer of the music in the Etrian Odyssey series. We focus on the latest album, of course, but we also revisit some of the past arrangement albums and discuss the possbility of more collaborations in the future. We then talk about their upcoming performance at EXTRA - HYPER GAME MUSIC EVENT 2008, and talk about what’s next for each of them. Finally, as a treat for the fans, we have more photos and even some sheet music scans from the Piano and Strings recording sessions.
Will you be importing the Piano and Strings Super Arrange Version? Would you buy a music book full of sheet music for the album if it was released?
Read the full interview and enjoy the photos and sheet music scans after the jump. (more…)
It’s great to see the music in a game getting as much love as the music in Etrian Odyssey has. Not only do the official soundtracks contain both DS and PC-88 versions of the music, but there have been Super Arrange Version albums for each title, a Piano sketch version, and even a drama album in Japan. I hope this sets a precedent for Yuzo Koshiro, and hopefully we’ll see that Actraiser album that Hibino mentioned he’s interested in pursuing last month.
Aside from having a long title, Live Music by Piano and Strings: Sekaiju no MeiQ I & II Super Arrange Version is the first Etrian Odyssey arrange album to feature music from both titles in the series, and hopefully it’s not the last. Arranged entirely be Norihiko Hibino and performed by a small group of talented session artists, this album visits many of Koshiro’s memorable melodies in a soothing instrumental style with a bit of bossa nova.
Hit the jump to find out of this approach does justice to the music in the series, and for pictures of the recording session. (more…)
Are you looking forward to Dead Space next week? We definitely are, as we’ve been excited about the title ever since the demo at Comic Con 2008. The demo area was hidden away in the corner of the EA booth, and the dim lighting and stereo headphones definitely drove home the game’s unreal sense of fear.
The sound design in this game is absolutely astounding, featuring an otherworldly blend of grotesque sound effects and expertly implemented musical moments to heighten the game’s ambiance. We’ve been able to speak with Don Veca, the audio director for Dead Space, about the massive undertaking of Dead Space’s audio. We touch on their general approach, the use of music in the game, and some of the unique tools the team created, including “Fear Emmitters” and “Deadscript” which make Dead Space one of the most impressive audio experiences we’ve had the pleasure of hearing.
Buckle up and hit the jump for our comprehensive interview regarding all topics audio in Dead Space. (more…)
I guess this shows how far behind I am with the constant barrage of news coming out about LittleBigPlanet. I didn’t even know there was a music creation component to the game, but it appears as though people are already paying tribute to their favorite VGM tunes as seen in the “To Zanarkand” performance in the above video.
I would have never thought to do something like this, but I admit it’s pretty damn cool. I guess we’re just going to have to wait and see if the war against music piracy carries over into LittleBigPlanet as gamers fail to obtain the proper permissions and licenses to perform these musical masterpieces.
Are you looking forward to making some music stages in LittleBigPlanet? Any ideas as to which songs you’d start with?
In our very own interview with Akira Yamaoka, eternal composer for the Silent Hill series of survival horror games, Mr. Yamaoka mentioned that a soundtrack release would be available from Konami USA by the time the game hit shelves in North America. Well, we think he meant the game, so there goes that right? Maybe not.
As a HUGE fan of Silent Hill (I own 8 copies of Silent Hill 2), I am eagerly anticipating news of an official soundtrack release, and at this point, I don’t care where it comes from. A daily search revealed a small sampler of tracks from Amazon MP3 labeled, Silent Hill Homecoming Bonus Tracks. Contained within are three tracks, “Cold Blood,” “Witchcraft,” and a Mary Elizabeth McGlynn vocal track, “The Sacred Line.” Is this a hint that a full Amazon MP3 release is on the way?
Hit the jump for more speculation and ranting. (more…)
I can’t tell you how many years I’ve wanted to sing “The Touch” by Stan Bush at karaoke bars across the United States. As it turns out, there is some ballad with the same name that has left my brother and I scrambling to sing when we were hoping time and again for our favorite 80s rock track from the Transformers: The Movie soundtrack.
Well, apparently the guys over at Kotaku love this song nearly as much as I do, and took it upon themselves to contact Stan Bush about getting “The Touch” into Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Unfortunately he’s had no luck, and Kotaku has put out the call to bug Activision and Harmonix until they listen to reason and put this amazing song in the game.
Have you ever had the desire to rock out to “The Touch” or even “Dare” from the Transformers soundtrack? Would you download them if there they were to suddenly become available?
