13 March 2013

Episode 124: Role-Playing Games 2 (Part 2)

Brent and Rob continue their quest, that is, focus on RPGs, this time only playing tracks from games that have made previous appearances on the Legacy Music Hour.  In the last episode, there was sorrow, in this episode, there is darkness, but in the end, the boys, who are now men, find safety and triumphant victory -and so will you!  Full track listing below.
 


Game - Composer - Song - Company - Console - Year (North American release unless otherwise indicated)

Phantasy Star II - Tokuhiko Uwabo - Mystery - Sega - Genesis - 1990

Dark Law: Meaning of Death - Satoshi Nagano, Michihico Shichi - A Death Occurs - SAS Sakata/ASCII - Super Famicom - 1997

Neutopia - Tomotsune Maeno - Overworld - Hudson Soft - TurboGrafx-16 - 1990

Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen - Hitoshi Sakimoto - Thunder - Quest/Enix - SNES - 1995

Phantasy Star IV - Masaki Nakagaki - Terrible Sight - Sega - Genesis - 1995

Hourai Gakuen no Bouken! The Adventure of Hourai High School: Tenkousei Scramble - Hitoshi Sakimoto - Opening and Ending - J-Wing/Dynamite - Super Famicom - 1996

Shining in the Darkness - Masahiko Yoshimura - God's Baptism - Climax Entertainment - Genesis - 1991

Mouryou Senki Madara 2 - Aki Hata - Enfant Terrible Rabbit - Konami - Super Famicom - 1993

Tenchi Souzou - Miyoko Kobayashi - Dark Side Field - Quintet/Enix - Super Famicom - 1995

Dragon Quest VI - Koichi Sugiyama - Through the Fields - Enix/Heartbeat - Super Famicom - 1995

Live A Live - Yoko Shimomura - Sound of Shinobi - Square - Super Famicom - 1994

Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together - Hitoshi Sakimoto - Reminiscence - Quest - Super Famicom - 1995

Ys III: Wanderers from Ys - Mieko Ishikawa - Winged Boy - Riot - Genesis - 1991

Last Bible III - Hiroyuki Yanada - Val Ship - Atlus - Super Famicom - 1995

Great Greed - Miguel Llobet (arr.), Gaspar Sanz, Katsuro Tajima (Chopin) (arr.) - Canço del Lladre/Canarios (Staff Roll) - Namco - Game Boy - 1993

Tenchi Souzou - Miyoko Kobayashi, Masanori Hikichi - Sanctuary - Quintet/Enix - Super Famicom - 1995

Shining Force Gaiden: Final Conflict - Motoaki Takenouchi - Victory Road - Camelot Software Planning - Game Gear (Japan) - 1995

17 comments:

  1. I wouldn't classify legend of zelda as an rpg. it's nothing like the rpgs that existed at the of its release. its similarities to rpgs end at being a big game with small quests and an rpg like storyline. zelda is totally its own thing. since then there have been several zelda clones with rpg elements but if you look at the role playing games of zelda's generation it is in no way similar to any of those. zelda 2 is even less of an rpg. i dont know how the post 16 bit zelda games developed though.

    if you back to back compare legend of zelda to ultima games, dragon quest, or even wizardry, you can see how clearly unlike those games the legend of zelda really is.

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    1. I like "Action RPG" for games like Zelda/Secret of Mana/Illusion of Gaia etc.

      It's more than an action adventure and less than an RPG

      Delete
  2. Actually, now that I think about it, I would probably label legend of zelda as a fantasy maze/puzzle game. i also have decided that zelda 2 might even be closer to an rpg, simply because of the random battles you encounter on the main overworld screen.

    I totally hear the Babooshka.

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  3. I think of Zelda as more "action-adventure" than RPG. There's a lot of exploration and some talking to villagers, etc, but not in the way that most RPGs use those elements. Story isn't as up-front or involved in the Zelda games as it is in traditional RPGs. It's less about story, stats, and turn-based strategy, and more about exploration, puzzle solving, and real-time fighting. Modern-era Zelda has more involved storylines, but the gameplay is largely unchanged from A Link to the Past or Ocarina of Time -- just with uninspired level designs and boring, unnecessary, tedious over-world gimmicks (for instance: Look, Link's on a Boat! Link's on a Train, now! This time Link rides a weird... um, bird... ish... thing!). Regardless, the Neutopia track was really, really good.

    Whatever the case, I think we can all agree Zelda is NOT a beat 'em up! =P

    Oh, and I have to mention the Ys III Track is amazing and my top vote for this episode, by far! That whole OST is gold -- of course, all the Ys games have excellent music. Oddly enough, there's an SNES version... Do your ears a favor and DON'T listen to it -- stick with the Genesis, PC-88, or PC Engine CD-rom redbook versions. I'd say you guys should do an Ys focus, but I'm not sure where you guys stand on redbook audio for the show.

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    1. i TOTALLY agree about the SNES version of Ys III. Does not even qualify to hold the Genesis version's jockstrap.

      Delete
  4. i fuggin' love rpg musics. and i need to get into ys

    how many of these games do the two dudes actually play? just curious

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  5. Hey Brent,

    Have you ever read the Secret of Mana official strategy guide?

    It's here if you haven't:
    http://www.emuparadise.me/magazine-comic-guide-scans/guides

    The book makes the plot into a story and has convos between the characters that aren't in the game (it warns you about it and stuff) it's really cool

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  6. Rob F,

    I love your shirt in the picture for this episode. It gives you an even more grizzled appearance. +1 manliness rating

    -Benson

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  7. Wow, that God's baptism song was a messed up file that sounded pretty cool anyway. How it actually sounds: https://youtu.be/lZ-mZas3hLQ?t=14m44s

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    1. That Last Bible track sounded a bit like Chrono Trigger for a bit, then that SAX KICKED IN. oof. So good.

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    2. Ah yes, sorry about the messed up file.

      Delete
  8. I used to consider Zelda type games Action Rpgs, but after delving further into the issue I now consider them to be Action Adventures. That said, I think you can still make a case for them to be classified as Action Rpgs. If any of you love the original top down Zelda games you have to play Neutopia 1 and 2 if you haven't tried them out. -Greg

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  9. The track from Great Greed is actually two pieces very well known to classical guitar: the first half is a Catalunyan folk song titled "Canço del Lladre". It follows closely the arrangement written by Miguel Llobet. The second half is a spanish popular piece called "Canario/Canarios", and it seems to follow the version written by Gaspar Sanz.

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  10. Loved the Tenchi Souzo track here! Was always a favourite of mine growing up playing probably one of my favourite games Terranigma. Know exactly what you guys meant about the bassline - its played on what sounds like an organ voice but gives off an electric bass impression too. Can I ask Brent did you ever manage to finish this game? I heard you talk about playing it on a previous episode but couldn't have been easy in Japanese when you don't speak it!

    Great episode as always boys.

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