Metal Gear Solid

Game Music, Gear

Peace Walk In Style With The Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker Walkman!

May 13, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

Too much use of the word “walk.” Sony and Konami have teamed up to bring you an exclusive Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker themed Walkman to celebrate the release of the game in Japan. The limited edition NWD-W253/Z Walkman sports a camouflage paint job and comes pre-loaded with six tracks from the game, including “Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Main Theme,” “Heavens Divide,” “CHRYSALIS,” “Outer Heaven,” “Zero Allies!,” and “Love Deterrence.”

Sounds like a pretty nifty idea, although it will set you back a hefty 11,800 Yen (about $128 USD). Honestly, the biggest news to me here is that Sony is still using the Walkman brand. When I first saw this, I thought they were releasing a cassette tape player, as the Walkman name kind of outgrew the Sony-specific brand to become a catch-all phrase for any portable tape-playing device. This is, in fact, a 4GB digital audio player, so maybe Sony will actually sell a few.

What do you think of the player? Are you looking forward to Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker next month?

[via Siliconera and GameSetWatch]
Game Music

Boston’s New Resident Game Concert: Video Game Orchestra’s “Awakening”

November 10, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 7 Comments Share this

With two performances under their belt, including one at Anime Boston that Don and Tommy attended last year, it would appear as though the Video Game Orchestra has laid claim to the Boston area when it comes to game music concerts. This is good news, as the passionate and highly talented performers have a lot to offer, which you can easily see from their series of YouTube videos on their YouTube channel.

Turns out they have a new show coming up, titled “Awakening,” which is currently slated for December 5, 2009 at the Berklee Performance Center. It will feature music from Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII, AFRIKA, Super Mario Bros., Silent Hill, and Chrono Cross, and will feature composer Wataru Hokoyama as a special guest. I suppose this list of games doesn’t stray too much from the norms, but my guess is that there will be some surprises in the “and more” that appears on the flyer. I recommend checking out their official website for tickets before they sell out (we missed their debut performance last year for that very reason).

Read the official press release for more details after the jump. (more…)
Game Music

Game Music Mishegoss: An Interview with Destructoid’s Jim Sterling

October 20, 2009 | Gideon Dabi | 7 Comments Share this

Whether he’s convincing you that Bayonetta is hotter than your girlfriend or explaining how Altered Beast is the “Citizen Kane of Gaming“, you can be guaranteed that Destructoid’s Reviews Editor, Jim Sterling, will provide something thoughtful, entertaining, and worth your time. I jumped at the opportunity to discuss game music with him and found his answers surprising and insightful. He is our second entrant into Game Music Mishegoss, the OSV Exclusive Feature where we interview the most prominent voices in video games and the gaming press.

What does Jim Sterling think about the state of gaming music? What are his favorites? Click the jump to find out! (more…)
Game Music

E3 2009: Konami Press Conference Sights and Sounds

June 5, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

Konami is usually pretty on top of their stuff when it comes to audio in their games. There was a lot to see and hear at their press conference a couple days ago, so I thought it’d be fun to tell you about our first impressions of the audio in some of their newly-announced projects.

With three new Metal Gear Solid titles in the works, a new Castlevania, some DDR news, and our first look at Akira Yamaoka’s “Always on my Mind” arrangement for Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, the only thing missing was a new Suikoden title! Maybe we’ll have to wait until Tokyo Game Show for more about my favorite series ever, but I’d saying the spread of titles shown in the press conference are far from disappointing.

Read our first impressions after the jump. (more…)
Anime, Game Music

Anime Boston 2009: Video Game Orchestra and Too Much Cosplay

May 28, 2009 | Tommy Ciulla | 5 Comments Share this

I went to my first anime convention this year. There were lots of things there that I did not want to see, such as a dude in a Lulu costume and about fifteen too many girls in Yuna cosplay. Over the course of about seven hours I saw more people dressed up as Naruto and Cloud Strife than anyone should ever have to bear witness to in their entire lives. There were teenagers screaming loudly over a Super Smash Bros. tournament, there were people dancing in the convention center halls to J-Pop and, in case you missed it the first time, there was a DUDE in a LULU COSTUME.

Why would I put myself through such torture? Find out after the jump. (more…)
Game Music

GDC 2009: Class Is In With Hitoshi Sakimoto and Norihiko Hibino

December 10, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | 7 Comments Share this

GDC is one of the best times of year for people like us. The industry-only event is the premiere gathering of game audio professionals from around the world, and it looks as though the conference’s streak of bringing in speakers from abroad will continue this year with two guests from Japan.

Hitoshi Sakimoto will be discussing his 20 years in the gaming industry, while Norihiko Hibino will be talking up his work on the Metal Gear Solid series. I imagine both will be present at the Video Games Live show that will surely take place during the week of March 23-27, 2009, so even if you’re not an industry professional, you’re likely in for a treat!

Would you attend a VGL concert solely based on Sakimoto’s or Hibino’s appearance in the meet and greet line? Any ideas as to what Sakimoto may focus on while covering his lengthy career?