The Console Slayer 2/4/14

   Music. We all have our own tastes with music. Today I'm covering a topic I've been meaning to write about since before I even started this column. Music from the classic era, say 16-bit era (SNES/Genesis/Mega Drive) and before.

   During these periods, the audio hardware's capability was limited. For those that cared enough to make a game with a great soundtrack, before game soundtracks were even referred to as such, it was quite the creative challenge. A few companies that immediately come to mind with a lot of games with great music are Capcom and Konami.

   To really understand and appreciate the music from these early eras, one must experience it. (Coincidentally, it's one reason I always include a favorite game tune of mine with every column). As an aside, some of my favorite game music composers to name a few are first and foremost, Yuzo Koshiro, famous for the music from one of my favorite beat-em-up series of all time: Streets of Rage. Another favorite of mine is Michiru Yamane, famous in part for the immortal Castlevania: Symphony of the Night soundtrack. Some others are Manami Matsumae and Yasuaki Fujita both famous for the early, excellent Mega Man trilogy and Kinuyo Yamashita famous for the soundtrack to the original Castlevania.
The work these masters created is indelible. To understand what they were able to achieve with the limited hardware of the time (Castlevania: SotN being an a more modern exception) one must understand the limitations. I don't want to bore anyone with the technical limitations so suffice it to say they were many. To hear some of the music of the composers I mentioned and to realize those limitations to make music more memorable than a lot of modern music, I think does a service to the composers and gives appreciation they deserve. So in order to achieve that appreciation, I'm going to include some playlists from some of my favorite game music ever. I hope their greatness shines through. They are some of my “must hear” soundtracks for game fans.

   Streets of Rage 2 composed by Yuzo Koshiro. I can't recommend this one highly enough. Possibly my favorite game soundtrack of all time. I'm sure I'm a bit more partial to it because the second system I ever got/owned was a Sega Genesis and the first game I got with it was Streets of Rage 2. If you like electronic music or dubstep, I HIGHLY recommend this soundtrack. It's amazing.

   Mega Man 2. I don't think I need to say much about this one. A classic soundtrack.

   Mega Man 3. A lot of people debate over whether MM2 or 3 was better as well as the soundtracks. I'll let you decide.

   One of the series that IMO has the some of the greatest music ever composed for it. This franchise was so blessed to have a lot of really talented composers work on it. Castlevania on NES. I cannot explain the greatness of this soundtrack. It must be experienced.

   Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest. Kind of the black sheep of the Castlevania series but IMO it had a solid soundtrack.

   Castlevania 3: Dracula's Curse. Another awesome soundtrack from the 8-bit era.

   (Super) Castlevania: IV. One of the best soundtracks on SNES (16-bit). A masterpiece.

   Super Metroid. A great soundtrack that really enhanced the isolated nature of the game. Many compared the sense of isolation to original Alien film. There are some inspirations from that film in the Metroid series. This game consistently places in the top five SNES games in lists. I think the music is some of the reason why.

   What is some of your favorite game music?

The Console Slayer for 1/7/2014

We're going to talk about the games we've played the most today. The games you've poured the most amount of time into.

Some times we play particular games so much because we simply enjoy them. Other times because we crave a sense of accomplishment. Still other times we need to feel a sense of completion. Some times it's because we have to grind in order to progress or finish a game. Whatever the reason, some games or game series just suck us in.

In my case, the game (series) I've spent the most time with is the Castlevania series. This game series is a favorite of mine, maybe my favorite ever. I have virtually all of the games released in North America and have beaten nearly all of them. For me this game series had a formula that equaled fun. Exploration, simple but fun combat, collectibles that constantly give you a sense of reward, challenging bosses, typically great soundtracks and addicting gameplay.

The game in the series I spent the most time with is one that a lot of people probably spent the most time with as well: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. This game has everything I mentioned before and one of the best soundtracks of the entire series. It's a game I return to every year and play over again.
Being a game collector, this game also happens to be the best deal I've ever gotten on a game. I work at a retail store that buys back games among other things. We currently only buy back games up to a generation old. Well, February 18th of last year someone had brought in a stack of PS1 games to sell. I didn't do the buyback so I had no idea. I went up later to get stuff to put away and I saw the stack of already processed PS1 games. I was surprised and looked through them. I couldn't believe my eyes when sitting in the pile was one of the most sought after PS1 games, the original black label SotN complete! I immediately tucked it under my arm, clocked out for my break and bought it. This game typically runs about $70 online. I got it for $3.74 with my employee discount! That really made my day. Literally about a week or two later we stopped buying back games more than a generation old.

Which games or game series have all of you played the most? Also, why? What made you keep coming back to it/them?

In homage to Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, here is one my favorite tracks from this amazing game, “The Tragic Prince”, a kickass tune! Give it a listen!