Well, I've missed a number of weeks here and I must apologize, but I've just been a tad busy with things other than blogging. However, hopefully, I can start featuring Game Soundtracks somewhat regularly again!

This week, I've decided to do a game that I certainly believe not nearly enough people have played. Awhile ago, I decided to download a few of the Fire Emblem soundtracks, but just never got to listening to them. Finally, a couple days ago, I decided to just start listening, and man did I forget how great of music that series has, especially when it when to the consoles. So this week, I just wanted to share a number of songs from Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance.

EDIT: Just thought I'd put a link to the soundtrack here. Note that this website also has resources for every single Fire Emblem game as well.

First off, this soundtrack is long. It's a whopping 74 tracks, and all of them loop their song twice, making for a huge soundtrack. Second, unlike most game soundtracks that simply go in chronological order, this one is organized by theme. First are all the battle tracks, next are some of the story sequences and dialogue music, and finally some of the extras. Oh, and since, at least to me, not many people have played the Fire Emblem games, I'll just briefly describe them. It's a very challenging turn-based strategy RPG. And when I say challenging, I mean challenging. You definitely need to take your time playing out your strategy in your head and really think, or else you're definitely going to be losing a number of your soldiers, and here, every soldier has a face, a part of the story, and when they're gone, they are gone. Of course, you can always restart a chapter if you lose someone you can't stand to part with, but when battles easily can take over an hour, this can be a tough decision. Second, this game is very character driven. There are a lot of them, and most have incredibly deep back stories, all interwoven with some of the best stories in gaming. Thus, because this is an older series from the SNES era, voice acting is just non-existent so be prepared for reading. As you can probably tell, this series just isn't for everyone, but if you love story and character development, not to mention some intense strategy, this is the best of the best.

Anyway, this blog is about the music though, and it starts off with a bang. As I said, the first part of the soundtrack is all battle music, so these first few tracks are going to be pretty intense. Also to note,  most everything is indeed fully orchestrated so prepare your ears for some awesome orchestral music.These first few are some of my favorite themes from throughout the game.

This next one's arguably the best battle music in the game:

If those tunes don't get you ready for battle, I don't know what will! Next is the battle music that plays during the enemies' attack, and I must admit, most of it is forgettable. I do like this one though.

And since I don't want to inundate you with all the fight music, I'm going to turn to some of the story sequence tunes. This next one is definitely one of the most unique in the game, thanks to the harpsichord and violin. Definitely one of the best in the game.

And now some more depressing music. I don't want to spoil anything since the story of the game is the main attraction, but a lot of bad stuff happens in this game and it's only appropriate to have some more solemn music.

And now for an evil theme. This is the theme of what is basically the ultimate bad guy in the game, the Mad King Ashnard. Note that he indeed is mad and is easily one of the craziest and evilest guys I've met in a game. It's good that gave him some good music to go along.

And now I'm gonna completely reset the mood with this next song. It's completely different from everything else in the game. The beginning is actually from the story itself (basically a song is sung that has power) but from there it takes a very different path. The language is actually reversed Japanese, though the game treats it as a long lost language in its history. Also, this is only heard during the credits.

And of course, there has to be a main theme in here somewhere! Anyway here it is for Path of Radiance.

I know that was a ton of music but this soundtrack is so huge I had to include a lot. Hope you enjoyed this peek into this game's amazing music, and I'll probably be doing some more Fire Emblem soon. Let me know what you thought in the comments below!

Well, it's Friday, so I'm pretty late with this, but I've been busy working on a super secret project. Well, it's not super secret, but it's a big project you'll all hear about in time. For now, on to the rest of the awesome Wind Waker Soundtrack! If you missed the first half, click here. Note, if you haven't played the game, there's definitely spoilers, but I wouldn't worry that much about it. If you haven't played this masterpiece yet, there's just something wrong with you, and you deserve to have it spoiled! Just kidding, but seriously, play the game!

For CD2, there's a ton of really great music, so I'm gonna try and keep the write-ups short and have as much awesome music as possible. We left off with Link's decent into the submerged Hyrule, and so my first track will be the restored Hyrule Castle. It's definitely full of nastalgia and is dripping of Zelda, but has a hint of remorse, reminding you that Hyrule isn't exactly in the best condition anymore.

Next is the track when fighting Phantom Ganon. I'm a huge fan of this fight and naturally had to include the music.

And while we're on boss music, we might as well go to another awesome boss, the Helmaroc King.

Next, in a game filled with jaw dropping moments, next is one of my favorites. I suppose it was to be expected, but really didn't see Ganon entering the picture. He just didn't seem to fit into the toon style of the game. Of course, Nintendo did what it does best, and threw a curve ball, giving us one of the best Ganon's. Here's his intro.

And this is another Zelda classic, remixed: Hyrule King Appears.

Like all recent Zelda's, playing music is a fairly integral part of the game. Wind Waker is no exception, and the music of the two sages you encounter (and awaken) and the songs you learn from them are some of my favorite of the game. They're really short, but definitely sweet.

They're essentially the same song, but with completely different styles and feelings. Music majesty right there.

And personally, I don't like the music from the Wind and Earth Temples; they're mostly just ambiance, so I'm gonna skip them, but I certainly can't leave out Molgera's theme.

And this one's here just because it's so epic!

Of course, no Zelda game is complete without Ganon's castle and here is the ominous track.

And while we're on the subject of Ganon, I'll give you both of the awesome Ganondorf battle music. I think we can all agree and the pure epicness of this battle and the music certainly is no exception.

And this next track is easily my favorite from both CDs. It's really the ending to a fantastic journey, but also a sorrowful one. To see the grand Hyrule we saved in Ocarina of Time drowned for all eternity is truly a sad thing, and the music doesn't make it any less so, but it's truly a beautiful peace.

And to cap off our journey through the wonderful music of this wonderful game, I'll send you off with the Staff Credits. It's a nice long one and basically sums up the entire journey quite well.

So there you have it. I hope you've enjoyed this trip through the Wind Waker Soundtrack. Sorry for the lack of writing for CD2. I just didn't have time to really write much. You're lucky you got anything at all . And hopefully I'll have next week's soundtrack up tomorrow.

Well, I've just finished my Fall semester and am back home. Thus, my time on My IGN will probably a bit limited, but I'll do my best to comment and produce some blogs. And hey, I just got Super Metroid, Fluidity, and Donkey Kong Country Returns; can you really blame me for being busy ?

While last week I brought you one of the greatest soundtracks of all time, this week may be a bit underwhelming. The game isn't all that universally accepted by today's crowd (at least for those over 12 years old); however, it's definitely one of my favorite games of all time and I love it's soundtrack. What game is this? Halo. Sure, all everyone talks about is the top tier shooting gameplay, and multi-player, but it has one of my favorite soundtracks of all time. I suppose you're probably a bit distracted trying to survive waves of Covenant, but unlike most shooters these days, this game has some of the most gripping pieces both during gameplay as well as in cut-scenes. So let's look at some music!

First thing to note, is that the entire soundtrack is composed of string orchestra (mostly synthesized, though there are a few appearances from a professional orchestra), percussion of all types, some Gregorian singers, and other various computerized effects. That's it, and I can say the strings take up the majority of the songs, which is probably why I like it so much . Also another thing, some of the tracks really are composed of several shorter pieces (suites), so you may hear a few strange transitions, especially if you haven't played the game before. We might as well start at the beginning with the Opening Suite.

This is more or less the beginning theme for Halo, with the now famous monk chant. However, it's the strings that I really love. It's nothing fancy, but it's just so beautiful. The long, sweeping notes, with just a bit of dissonance really fits the space setting and you can just feel like this is the start to something epic. It builds tension beautifully.

However, it's the next track that brings in the gameplay. This is one of the suite's I was talking about; there quite a few different songs, as well as some ambiance.

The beginning few minutes are simply amazing. I suppose there's a bit of nostalgia for me, so if you haven't played the games it might not seem that great. But when that main theme by the cellos comes in, you just can't help but feel ready for battle. Definitely some of my favorite game songs here. Once it gets to about 5:00 it's mostly ambiance so you might want to just stop it there though. Not much "music" per se after that. But suit yourself.

This next one is short, and kind of more of the same: epic, sweeping string orchestra, but I simply can't get enough of that stuff so here you go.

And this isn't one of my favorites, but I thought I'd just add it to give you more stuff to listen to. And it's track 4 even though the video says track 3 again.

If you haven't been able to tell yet, there is a wide variety of percussion. The next couple pieces more or less feature various computerized percussion instruments along with other synthesized effects. It actually turns out very good, especially during upbeat gunfights. I'm not that big of a drum fan but they're handled extremely well in this game and definitely make some great tracks.

The title is probably more famous than the piece itself of this next one but I like the beat.

This next one is actually one of my favorite pieces in the whole soundtrack. There's just something about it that gets me pumped.

Tell me if you can't agree that the percussion is great in this soundtrack

And I'm not exactly sure how to categorize this next one. What can I say, I just like the track. Very synthetic for sure, but it's a nice change of pace from some of the other pieces.

Of course, I can't leave out the rock theme. While this one isn't all that much (only a minute) it definitely would be revisited in Halo 2.

And since that one was so short, I decided to put this string-heavy piece in here as well.

That just about covers most of the music throughout the game. I certainly hope you enjoyed most of that as much as I did. However, it's the end that I find the most gripping. You just don't get music like this next piece in games that much. It's absolutely beautiful, especially the end, and feels like a great resolution to a fantastic and emotional journey. Definitely one of those pieces that bring a chill up your spine...you know a song is good when it does that to you.

And of course, here's the official main theme of the game. Can't leave that out (note there is a nice piano ending after the fade out if you keep listening).

Certainly hope you enjoyed this trip through Halo's music as much as I did. While the game certainly isn't for everyone, the music is just so well done; shooters usually don't have gripping music, but Halo certainly achieved that. And all I'll say is that the sequel steps the bar even higher.

As always, please leave your thoughts below and maybe I'll have some initial impressions of the games I just got during the week.

See what I did thar?? Sorry just had to do the wiik thing since the game is on the Wii; this'll be the only time.

Anyway, thanks to those of you who checked out my first entry last week. If you didn't well that sucks for you . Check it out here!

As I was going through my music, trying to decide which game to do next, I thought surely I would hold off on Super Mario Galaxy. It's such a great soundtrack that I should save it for later. However, I simply couldn't resist and now present to you the Super Mario Galaxy Soundtrack! This is actually an interesting one. It's made of 2 CDs; the first with most of the main music, and the second with ambiance, fanfares, sound effects, etc. I'll just be covering the first CD since that's got the real music, and I'll only be posting a few of the songs like last week. Hey, there's 28 of them; I'm not gonna put 28 Youtube links in this blog! If you want to download them yourself, it's free here. Unfortunately, you'll have to download each song individually, so have fun with that.

NOTE: I'm not sure why, but the videos are longer than the music. Don't worry about it! Also, this is a lot of music so you may not want to listen to it all in one sitting. Go ahead, come back tomorrow! I'm only posting one of these a week so take your time!

Now on to the music! As you probably know, this game has been highly praised for its use of fully orchestrated music, especially since that's usually not Nintendo's style. However, it's incredibly difficult to tell the difference in game, with sound effects going on and you concentrating on playing. So when I played the songs for the first time, I was immediately taken aback by just how beautiful the recordings are. I remember simply grinning like a happy dog when I heard this tune for the first time:

It's just so crisp and clear. Hearing a real flute along with an incredibly high quality synthesizer just works so well, and you can't help but feel like running and jumping like Mario. Well, maybe not, but it's still an incredible piece of music. And when the strings come in....oh man it's just amazing. Being someone who has played in an orchestra for years, I can say this would simply be awesome to play. I love the pizzicato part especially; so crisp and clean.  This next one is from the first level, so it brings back great memories of playing this game for the first time. Not my favorite piece, but the nostalgia gets it onto the blog. Once again the strings and flutes are spectacular. Also note the beautiful harp.

If you can't tell already, I absolutely love this game's soundtrack. The orchestral music is simply brilliant and proves that classical music still reigns supreme. However, it's not all just symphonic pieces. Mahito Yokota, the primary composer (with a few tracks by Koji Kondo), certainly adds a good amount of variety, such as the following piece.

It's definitely a different style of music, but the real instruments once again provide an awesome song. For those that like their computerized instruments, however, you weren't completely left out, such as in this soothing song. The piano still takes center stage though.

However, if there's one piece that really defines this soundtrack, it's definitely Wind Garden (from Gusty Garden Galaxy). Not only is it another musical masterpiece, I believe it really shows what the Mario Galaxy Orchestra is capable of (yep, that's their official name). Every section plays a part (even a bit of guitar in there), and it all just fits together. The brass especially do an excellent job, and I do love me some epic brass!

If you don't like that, something's wrong with you! This is music at its finest and proves video games are definitely an exceptional medium for music.

However, if there was one time where I was taken aback, musically, while playing the game it was during the Bowser fight. It was just so...epic...and this was a Mario game! I thought I was playing some big RPG or something the music was so intense. The official song actually starts a bit slow, but about a minute in, everything just takes off.

Nothing like a choir that doesn't sing a single word to make an awesome piece . Definitely one of my favorites of the soundtrack, simply because it doesn't seem like a song for a Mario game. And to go along with it, I decided to provide the music from the final Bowser stages. It's not quite amazing, but still great, especially the strings once again.

And for whatever reason, I just had to add this one in here as well. Definitely one of my favorite tunes from a fire level. The drums just add so much. It also doesn't hurt that the level in the game is one of my favorites.

So that's the Super Mario Galaxy Soundtrack in a nutshell. Of course, I've been missing something haven't I? The main theme of course! Here's the official theme of the game, and I don't think this version actually ever appears in the game, except maybe in the credits. It's an absolute masterpiece though, and I just had to save it for last. Enjoy!

Ok, I lied, I'll stick one more classic in here. Can't have a blog about Mario music without the original theme, remixed for the 21st century of course!

So there you have it! Definitely one of the best game soundtracks in the entire history of gaming. No joke. Everything is just so amazingly orchestrated. Whether it's the epic pieces or the more lighthearted ones, everything is just beautiful. I highly, highly encourage you to download it as there are 18 more amazing pieces in the soundtrack! You may also want to look up the second CD as there's some great music there as well; just less substantial stuff (like menu music). Or, of course, just go on Youtube . The guy I got my videos from has the entire thing.

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And that's week 2! Thanks again for taking time to listen to this amazing music. Comments are appreciated as always, especially if you have some criticism of format, or maybe have a request. Next week will probably be very different. The game has a few more explosions here and there, and is loved and hated by many. However, I love the Soundtrack and so am featuring it anyway. What's the game? Well, tune in next Saturday to find out!

Well, now it seems everyone has some type of regular blogging schedule, and admittedly it's a good way to keep them involved and writing. Unfortunately, I know I'm just not dedicated enough or have the time to do something every day; even every week is pretty tough. Another popular trend is video game music, whether it's an RPG theme, a daily theme for a weekly system, or a type of theme, vg music is all the blogging rage these days and for good reason. Video games have spawned some truly awesome tunes, from the good old 8-bit themes, to modern, orchestrated epics, music in video games is more than just an extra. Good music definitely enhances a game, making the experience that much better. And so, I shall be attempting to do a somewhat regular vg music blog thang. However, in an attempt to be somewhat different, I shall be going over..... SOUNDTRACKS!! Yep, entire game soundtracks. Some games have a great tune or two; a character's theme, or an epic intro track. However, many games have some fantastic soundtracks as a whole. Even better, most can easily be found for free, thanks to fan sites, or developers willingly distributing them (SMG2's soundtrack was even posted on youtube by a Nintendo representative, though later taken down, probably cause they realized just how good the music was and they could make money off of it XD).

So for my first one, I shall be starting off with a bang. One of my favorite games of all time (number 30 in fact): World of Goo! For those of you who haven't played, I demand you do right now!! 15 bucks on Wiiware (and I think 20 on pc). Fantastic Indy game that's got better music than most full retail ones. And the composer himself has a download right here. He even has some brief notes about some of the tracks on the site.

If you haven't played the game, all you really need to know is that it's a physics puzzler with a very unique art style. Everything is very cartoony and exaggerated, and the music fits this aesthetic very well. Here's the title screen track (short, I know):

There's a sense of mystic and an epic feeling to it. It may sound a tad weird by itself, but it is fantastic with the game. And this really continues throughout the game, getting better and better. Even the menus have some very moody music. However, unlike many games these days, it maintains the theme but also manages to be varied. Here's a tune from one of the earlier levels:

It's like carnival music, but still very atmospheric. Really, this is a theme of the game itself; taking a variety of different motifs and just making theme moody and atmospheric, all while you try and solve goo-based puzzles. It sounds bizarre on paper, but the execution is fantastic. Here's another few great tracks:

That last one is one of my favorites in the entire soundtrack. It's kinda weird at first (there's kids screaming in the background!) but I guess it grows on you, as I love the song now. It's one of the longest songs in the track as well, giving it some meat to it. However, as I said before, the game always finds a way to keep things varied, in game and in music, and the final world is definitely a manifestation of that. For those who haven't played the game, I won't ruin the amazing twist (even if the game has little to no story, this twist is absolutely mind blowing), but I'll give a sample of the totally different music:

Weren't expecting that were you XD? Anyway, I shall send you off with one of the weirdest, and probably the best track in the game. It's kind of a mashing of all the different themes into one epic song, I feel, but you can be the judge.

Well there you have it. This is definitely one of my favorite game soundtracks of all time and I highly encourage you to download the entire thing and give it a listen. Hey, it's free so why not. Even better, get the amazing game. It's definitely worth it. Hope you enjoyed this first entry in my Game Soundtrack series (though I suppose it's not a series yet ). It'd be great to get some feedback on my format and if you want changes or anything. May even take requests (though it'll wait until I run out of my own ideas). Never fear though, as I shall post up my next entry regardless of comment count . Once again, hope you enjoyed it, and see you next week (hopefully).