VGM Saturdays Vol. 2. No. 008

Keeping it even this week, we have three songs from games and three arrangements of game tracks that are not in games. 

The Conflict - Romancing SaGa (SFC)

Another week of VGM Saturdays, another track by Kenji Ito. This time we have the standard battle theme from Romancing SaGa. The Romancing SaGa games alone have all kinds of stellar battle themes but even when compared to greats like Beat Them Up!, The Conflict is still a big favorite of mine.

PLAYER SELECT - Art of Fighting 3: Path of the Warrior (ARC)

I haven't touched any of the games in SNK's Art of Fighting series but the soundtracks are not something that is lost on me. Personally, I think Art of Fighting 3 has the best music of the lot. More laid back character select themes, please.

We Ain't Came to Loose - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge (Multi)

The soundtrack to Shredder's Revenge is GODLIKE. Of course they just had to have one of the most baller vocal tracks play when you fight Shredder. Even if rap isn't your thing, you cannot deny that this song is so hot. 

Stickerbrush Symphony - Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES) - Neon X

Donkey Kong Country 2's soundtrack needs no introduction. It is brimming with a plethora of amazing tracks from start to finish. A huge fan favorite is undoubtedly Stickerbrush Symphony, the track that plays during some of the more tense brambled filled levels of the game. I think David Wise would be proud of Neon X's synth fused cover of his classic track.

Sunshine Airport - Mario Kart 8 (Wii U) - Neon X

And here we have another remix from the very talented, synth lover, Neon X. I love Sunshine Airport, both the race track and the song that accompanies it. When I saw this pop up in my recommendations, I had to give it a listen. The addition of a boarding call is a nice touch.

Column Drive - Columns III: Revenge of the Columns (GEN) - amphobius

The first time I heard this song was in Sonic Megamix, a ROM hack of the original Sonic the Hedgehog. I never expected to come across a remix of this one, but once again, I have to thank YouTube's recommended side bar. 

VGM Saturdays Vol. 2 Database

VGM Saturdays Vol. 2. No. 003

Here's a little behind the scenes info. These VGM Saturday posts? I have the songs picked out in advance. In the past I wouldn't have the songs picked until the very day I post. Now? I have songs picked out weeks and weeks ahead. It makes things a lot easier on me since I'm working on multiple different blog posts at a time.

Ahem.

Anyhoo, enjoy this week's tunes! 

Johnny's - Eastward (Multi)

I almost bought Eastward on the Switch digitally last year, but that physical version kept me from double dipping. And it is yet another game I have not gotten around to playing. Johnny's quickly earned a spot on my Relaxing playlist on both Spotify and YouTube Music. Lofi artists, where is the cover of this banger already?

Spark Man - Mega Man 3 - Neon X

Synth wave is something I've really fallen in love with over the past few years. YouTube ended up recommending videos by Neon X. I've been subscribed to him for about two months now. This is the first of many tracks I'll be posting from the arranger. He's on Spotify as well. If you love his take on Spark Man's theme, you should definitely check out the rest of his Mega Man 3 covers.

Jaw Breaking News - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge (Multi)

The wait for this game seemed so long. I've done multiple plays of this beat 'em up (Mikey and April are my faves) and the soundtrack never fails to impress. Tee Lopes got wide recognition for his work on Sonic Mania back in 2017 and since then, he's popped up or now projects, even doing arrangements with Sonic music composer Jun Senoue. The music from Shredder's Revenge carries a lot of that super high energy from Sonic Mania. If not for the jingle from the Channel 6 News theme and the bit of the 1987 opening theme tune included, this could easily be mistaken for an unused Sonic Mania piece.

Cyber Space 2-6: Transparent Highway - Sonic Frontiers (Multi)

Just so you know, I could easily go each week with of VGM Saturdays tossing in a track or two from Sonic Frontiers. I choose not to because it is an easy route to take and I don't want to have tracks from that game every single week, as it would take away from other  That said... Maaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyynnnnnn, THIS SOUNDTRACK IS SO GOOD!!! I've been jamming out to tracks from this game daily. Transparent Highway plays on, from what I've read, Sky Rail, a level from Sonic Adventure 2. This is one of the longer Cyber Space levels with lots of rail grinding. I've never played much of Sonic Adventure 2 beyond City Escape (where are our Sonic Advneure 1 and 2 remakes, SEGA?) so a lot of those levels are unknown to me. As someone who has never played the level 2-6 is based on, I really got a kick out of this one, both design and music wise.

Chill-pede - Atari Recharged (Original Video Game Soundtrack)

The Recharged line of Atari games offer fresh takes on classic arcade titles like Asteroids, Break Out, and my personal favorite, Black Widow. Each game has smooth vector graphics, is easy to play but difficult to master and comes with music from Megan McDuffee. If you've played the River City Girls games, you're familiar with some of her excellent work.

LAST WAVE - Out Run (AC)

Most arcade games of the day didn't let you pick your levels or your music. Not only did Out Run let you choose your next destination via a fork in the road before each new stage begins, you also had a selection of three music tracks to choose from before you began each run. The music is of exceptional quality, composed by SEGA music legend Hiroshi Kawaguchi, or as he is often referred to, HIRO.

VGM Saturdays Vol. 2 Database