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majormitch

Playing FF7 Rebirth is giving me the Bad Thought of replaying other FF games.

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Awesome Video Game Music: Finale

So here we are, after 50 entries spanning nearly two years I’ve decided it’s a good time to end this blog series on video game music. As I explained in my “Quickies 1” post, it’s all about time management. I’ve very much enjoyed doing this series, and there are still hundreds of great video game songs out there that I haven’t covered, but writing each entry does take a decent amount of time and effort on my part. It makes me a little bit sad, but I know in my heart of hearts that doing these is no longer the best use of my time. I still love video game music as much as anyone, and may do isolated posts about it here and there if I feel like it. But the organized “Awesome Video Game Music” series now comes to an end.

For this last entry, however, I’ve saved up three songs that are particularly meaningful to me personally, ones that I would easily place among my all time favorites. I hope you enjoy them, and I also hope someone out there has gotten something out of this series on the whole. If not, I had fun doing it anyway :P Feel free to go back and browse the archive, and as always feel free to send any awesome video game music you come across my way. And with that, let’s take one last look at three very special songs!

Civilization IV: Baba Yetu

One of the primary defining features of the Civilization series to me is, for lack of a better word, the worldliness of it. Every time I play a game of Civ I’m reminded of how much history and context exists in all corners of the world, and Baba Yetu feels like the perfect reflection of that. It’s simple, enjoyable rhythms and instrumentation speak to many of our cultural origins, and this particular rendition of the Lord’s Prayer sung in Swahili has a positive tone that’s extremely catchy. I’m not a religious person, but I still find Baba Yetu inspiring in a different way, as a song that embodies the culture and history of us as a collective peoples. That’s a great fit for a game with the kind of scope Civilization has, and listening to this song always gets me in the mood to play just one more turn.

Final Fantasy VII: The Golden Ivories of Gaia (Remix)

I’ve covered more than enough Final Fantasy songs in this series, but if you’ll indulge me one more time I’d like to highlight a Final Fantasy VII remix that’s always stood out to me. Called The Golden Ivories of Gaia, courtesy of OC ReMix, it mashes together many of the game’s best themes via piano. Part of my fascination with this remix is certainly the instrumentation; I’ve always loved piano. But I also think its particular choice of Final Fantasy VII themes and unique arrangement of them is gorgeous. Especially the way it flows from one to the next and builds up to a powerful ending. The immediate stop, followed by the iconic notes from Aeris’ Theme about a minute from the end tugs on my heart every time, and the ensuing send off via the main theme is fantastic. In short, The Golden Ivories of Gaia stands as one of my favorite tributes to Final Fantasy VII and its memorable music.

Wind Waker: Credits

The Wind Waker’s credits theme has always been pretty dear to me. Part of that is certainly due to the fun, catchy nature of the song. It’s jaunty and free flowing, and its tone and instrumentation match the seafaring pirate vibe of the game marvelously. It’s also incredibly bright and cheerful, which alludes not only to the sunny visuals of the game itself, but also to the fact that the game exudes a ton of “boyish charm”, so to speak. Every Zelda game is essentially about a young boy going on a grand adventure to save the kingdom, yet for some reason The Wind Waker is the one that has always felt the most emblematic of that ideal to me. Combine that with the way the song seamlessly includes other Zelda classics, such as the series’ Main Theme and Zelda’s Lullaby, and this credits theme becomes a poignant reflection on not just the entire Zelda franchise, but my own boyhood as well. As such it’s a fairly nostalgic piece for me, which I also think makes it a solid choice to end this blog series on. I hope you’ve enjoyed listening and thanks for reading!

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