Primal Eyes - Parasite Eve (PS)
I don't mean to sound like one of those old codgers that believes Square and Enix were better back in the day, but I have to admit, Square Enix is not what it used to be. These days it seems like the company does nothing but milk the Final Fantasy brand for all it's worth. There was a time when the company was far more experimental. In 1998 alone we saw the release of Final Fantasy Tactics, SaGa Frontier, Xenogears, Bushido Blade 2, Brave Fencer Musashi, Ehrgeiz and Parasite Eve. Parasire Eve added a dash of Resident Evil to the Action/RPG mix but was thankfully easier to control and was generous with ammo.
Happy Adventure, Delightful Adventure - Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES)
Before Square jumped the Nintendo ship and swam over to Sony shores, they gave the SNES one last RPG hurrah in the form of Super Mario RPG. While having plenty of RPG elements, it still felt like a Mario game and could be enjoyed by RPG enthusiasts or those that have never touched a game in the genre. I believe this is the first game in which Bowerse (begrudgingly) teamed up with Mario. The intro song that shows many of the attacks your party can use is more than three minutes long. It sounds cheerful at first but it turns dark towards the end.
"Metal Gear Solid Main" Theme - Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2, XB)
The Main Theme of the Metal Gear Solid series has been in the series since the first entry in 1998, but I honestly don't think it has sounded better than it does in Metal Gear Solid 2. Originally composed by Tappy Iwase, film music composer Harry Gregson-Williams arranged the famous theme and would be a key music writer for future Metal Gear Solid titles. The pre-game opening cut scene is still astonishing to watch largely do to the arranged piece of music attached to it.
Title - Astro Boy: Omega Factor (GBA)
Osamu Tezuka has created plenty of characters throughout his works, but his most famous one is none other than Astro Boy. He's had a handful of video games but the only one worth playing is the GBA's excellent Astro Boy: Omega Factor. If you've seen the 1980s Astro Boy anime series then the title theme may sound familiar to you. It's an arrangement of that theme, complete with lyrics on the screen for you to sing along to.
Title Theme - Super Mario 64 (N64, DS)
The most recognizable piece of video game music was turned into a title theme for Mario's first 3D adventure. Have you ever wanted to play with Mario's face? Well by messing around with the buttons, you can make the cursor pull Mario's facial features every which way, hold them in place and restore them to normal at the time of your choosing. It's a wonderful diversion that became the mini game known as Face Lift in the first Mario Party.
Title - Animal Crossing: City Folk (Wii)
City Folk is essential a spruced up console version of the DS' Animal Crossing: Wild Wold. The big difference is that City Folk has a city you can go to, which contains an auction house for you to bid on items, and a salon that offers varying hairstyles among other places to visit. But just like real life, the city's stores all close at night, meaning you'll have to do your shopping and such during the daylight hours. Animal Crossing is one of my favorite "chill" games. No mad doctor plots to stop, no princess to save and no level grinding. Somehow, the most mundane of activities are super fun in this series.
Opening - Mega Man 8 (PS, SAT)
Electrical Communications is quite good. But I'm gonna have to be "that guy" and say I like the American version of Mega Man 8's electric guitar ending a lot better. My 16 year old mind was blown because it was the first time I'd seen Mega Man in anime form. I still watch the opening movie every single time I play Mega Man 8.
The Edge of Soul - Soul Blade (PS)
Namco sure knew how to do some solid ports back in the day. All three Tekken titles were given some sweet extras, my favorite being arranged soundtracks. Soul Edge was given the same treatment, allowing you to play with the arcade version's score, the PlayStation arranged music, or an orchestrated version of the arcade soundtrack. That's three different scores to choose from! Somehow, I always ended up gravitating towards the PS music in Namco's ports.
Black Winter Night Sky - Tekken 2 (PS)
Ported to the PlayStation in 1996, Tekken 2 was yet another reason gamers flocked to Sony's shiny gray system. Along with some extra characters and arranged music, a new attract movie was added and you can see some of the character's motivations for entering the tournament, like Heihachi wanting revenge on his son for tossing him off that cliff in the first game and Michelle's kidnapped mother.
Title Theme - WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames! (GBA)
What would you do if you had a ton of mini games and only five seconds to complete each one? You could panic, but thankfully, the mini games in WarioWare, Inc. are extremely easy to play with simple controls. It's the combination of randomness and weirdness that make WarioWare such a hoot. One minute you're sniffing snot up some girl's nose, the next you're jumping over a hot dog that's out to make you roadkill. For me, this first entry in the WarioWare series is still the best.
Favorite Tunes Database
2 comments:
Oh man, MGS2's opening theme...reminds me of those happy days when I'd get detected by guards, and I'd run for my life. Also, giving K.O.ed guards the shake-down for their lunch money -- er, I mean ammo and rations.
Thanks for reminding me of this song. That last minute of it still gives me chills...
MGS2 is actually my favorite MG game. I know it's a black sheep to many but I enjoyed the two different chapters and playing as Raiden. Yeah, taking stuff from knocked out guards was so much fun. It's the only MG game I've beaten on multiple difficulty settings.
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