Memorable Bosses #4

Big Core MK I
Game: Gradius & some sequels

Big Core's first appearance on the PC Engine...

Of all the bosses found in the many shmups we've seen over the years, this fairly unremarkable craft is not one that leaps into your mind when thinking of memorable examples, I suspect. But there are two reasons why it does leap into mine. First of all, it was, to my knowledge, the first ever proper boss in the genre that soon came to be known as shoot 'em ups, so it has historical relevance. Secondly, its imminent arrival is heralded by one of my favourite game choons of all time! One might argue it's not really an appropriate composition for a boss battle of any kind, never mind such an important one. It's a short and simple track, as you might well expect from the era, and it sounds rather too jolly and upbeat to really suit the on-screen confrontation. You hear it almost every stage too, since the mighty Big Core is the boss on most of the stages (chortle!), but I don't care about any of that. It holds nostalgic value for me, particularly the excellent PC Engine version which is by far the one I've spent most time playing, but it is also genuinely a memorable boss regardless. The fact that it has reappeared in later Gradius games is testament to that. There have been far more impressive bosses over the years but Big Core Mk I still holds a special place in my gaming affections.

Splendid PlayStation Music #3

I've been collecting game music for a good few years now. It started thanks to a combination of emulators and their splendid 'sound test' features along with recording programs such as Audacity, and I also used to download some examples using P2P file sharing thingies like Kazaa. For many moons I had a song called Moon Over the Castle which I acquired using the P2P method. It was excellent but I didn't know which game it was from. Admittedly, I didn't put too much effort into finding out and instead just assumed it was from a Castlevania game owing to its name and style.

I can't remember how, but I found out many years later where this great song came from, and it wasn't a Castlevania game at all - it was (and still is) actually the main theme to the Gran Turismo series! Judging by the musical style, a racing game would have been the last type I would've guessed, even one so mighty as Gran Turismo! It was written by Masahiro Andoh of T-Square and was, as far as I can tell, only used in the Japanese versions of the games until the fourth instalment which goes some way to explaining how I didn't know it was the theme to a game I'd played extensively! Anyway, however I might've encountered it, and wherever I thought it was from, it's a fantastic piece of music and I encourage you to embrace it accordingly!



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid Arcade Music #3

Slap Fight (1986)

It has been many moons since I reviewed Slap Fight here but, despite liking it, I have failed to play it since. That is until last week when I got a sudden, unexplained desire to give it another playthrough, and whilst doing so I ultra-remembered just how catchy the first in-game theme is! Not sure how I forgot to be honest, but now I keep playing the game just to hear it and, if anything, I like it even more than I did! It doesn't have a proper name as far as I'm aware - it's merely listed as BGM#1 on the soundtrack - and accordingly it's the first in-game music you'll hear. Enjoy it while it lasts though, which is little more than a minute (unless you keep dying).

(full Slap Fight review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

They Might Be Giants - Chiptuned!

Most things I post here at Red Parsley will only be of interest to a small number of people, but even with that in mind the subject of this particular post really will be of limited appeal. For the tiny core of people with the right combination of interests, however, it will be a truly wondrous post worthy of wine, women and song!

Before we get to that, let me just say, I've been a fan of They Might Be Giants for many years now - nearly 30 years in fact, ever since an old friend made me a tape of their first two albums back in our school days (don't worry - I bought the originals soon afterwards) - and they've pretty much been my favourite band ever since.

Yes, I know in more recent years they've made several educational albums for the kiddies, but their 'proper' albums are still among the few music albums I actually look forward to the release of these days (for yes indeed, they are still going strong). One of their most popular albums remains Flood released in 1990 which contains 'Birdhouse in your Soul', still probably their best known song.

Splendid Arcade Music #2

Space Harrier (1985)

So there I was, sitting at my desk at work, back aching as I tipped and tapped away on my keyboard doing my largely inconsequential work while also thinking about all the blog stuff I want to do but don't have time for, when I realised something. I was listening to a variety of music as I worked and when I got to Space Harrier it made me think: it's a pretty old game now, from an innovative era where tech and ideas evolved quickly; could it be the earliest game to actually have great music?

Now, before you all start reeling off lists of examples, I'm very well aware of lots of earlier games that featured appealing, catchy tunes and jingles, but while I was listening to the awesomeness that is Space Harrier's main theme, I was struggling to think of any games that featured what you might actually call a high quality musical composition that predate the 1985 release of Yu Suzuki's classic shooter. You know, the kind of music that's so good you might play the game just to hear it...

I'm probably wrong of course, as is frequently the case, but it certainly doesn't hurt to shine the retro spotlight on this stonking game once again, and particularly its (underappreciated?) music which, like the more celebrated Out Run and After Burner, is the work of the supremely talented Hiroshi Kawaguchi who is now one of the few staffers of that era still at Sega. It might not have a fancy name like Magical Sound Shower but this must surely be one of first truly great pieces of game music?

(full Space Harrier review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit to, firstly the original composer, and secondly the YouTube user who uploaded it!
 

Game Music #3

The time of the 16-bit console wars was a glorious time to be a gamer. The die-hard Sega and Nintendo fans spent more time arguing the virtues of their chosen system with their each other than they did actually using their chosen system, or so it often seemed, and the subject of these arguments included just about every single aspect of ownership. Everything from tech specs and graphical prowess to individual games were discussed, but one subject I often found myself focusing on was the respective audio abilities of each company's powerhouse.

It was a topic worthy of discussion too, in my opinion - both systems had distinctive yet quite different sounds. Sega's MegaDrive made use of the Yamaha YM2612, an FM sound synthesiser chip which could produce some cracking synth choons, while the Super Famicom was armed with Nintendo's S-SMP, a sampler that could pump out some impressive orchestrations with a highly recognisable style. One of the most common arguments I heard from Ninty fan-boys, in fact, was regarding the supposed superiority of the SFC's and how the mere MegaDrive would be hopelessly lost trying to replicate them, and I often felt compelled to concede this particular point.

Splendid MegaDrive Music #5

Thunder Force 2 (1989)

My new job sadly doesn't leave me as much spare time as my last one did, and that in turn means I have less time to do blog stuff, but one of the perks is that I can listen to music all day. Naturally I've therefore spent much of this time listening to stonking game soundtracks, and one that I find myself returning to often is Thunder Force 2, probably the most neglected installment of the celebrated Thunder Force series. Tomomi Ohtani's synth-rock soundtrack contains lots of great choons but I think my favourite is the one that accompanies the first side-scrolling stage. It's called 'A Ray of Hope' (in the X68000 version at least - the MD's tracks don't have names) and is quite awesome. Check it check it! :)

(full Thunder Force 2 review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid Arcade Music #1

After Burner / After Burner II (1987)

Considering a great many retro games originated in the arcades, I have perhaps been a bit neglectful of the motherland with these Game Music posts. Spurred on by my recent review of the stonking After Burner, however, here is the very first such post.

As mentioned in the full review, my favourite of Hiroshi Miyauchi's compositions is Red Out and I was going to feature that ace choon here, but while listening to it on YouTube at work, that stupid autoplay feature played more After Burner tracks, and after a couple of these it came to a rather cool fan rendition of the intro theme.

I'm not sure who the performer is beyond his YT username of 'haibanhunterk' but he's clearly a very talented guitarist - his channel features a number of other guitar-based renditions of popular game music - but I can't see any of the others being more awesome than this one. Check it out along with the original:

Splendid MegaDrive Music #4

James Pond: Underwater Agent (1990)

I've long felt alone in having a soft-spot for the first James Pond game. Many love its sequel, Robocod, and justifiably so, but the original? There are many things I like about it - the jolly graphics, the environmental theme, the fact that it takes place underwater (well, James is a fish and all) - but one of its less appreciated features as far as I can tell is its music, composed by Richard Joseph. Much of it is somewhat more befitting the character's secret agent status but my favourite is this, one of two level themes that get alternated. It's might be a little strange but it suits the game well and also makes me smile every time I hear it. What more can you ask for?

(full James Pond review here)

Splendid Amiga Music #2

Okay, time for another embarrassing confession - I have never played the Secret of Monkey Island games... (silence, occasional tumbleweed)... Yes yes, I know, it's a shameful state of affairs. In my defence, I've never been a big PC gamer, I got into the Amiga really late, and I was never the biggest fan of point 'n' click games to begin with, but it's still unacceptable. Another chance for the mighty Red Parsley to avail me of my oversight for sure. I do, however, have the game's theme tune in my vast game music collection and, having just heard it again while writing a review, I felt compelled to post it here. So behold, for the nostalgic pleasure of the game's many fans, and to treat the ears of other ignorant oafs like me, it is thus:



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit to, firstly the original composer, and secondly the YouTube user who uploaded it!
 

Splendid MegaDrive Music #3

Gauntlet IV (1993)

There are several things this MegaDrive exclusive does to improve upon the already-splendid Gauntlet and one of them is its music. Neither the arcade version nor the mighty fine Speccy conversion on which I spent so much time featured any in-game music, but some cracking choons have been added to this MD version courtesy of Hitoshi Sakimoto and Masaharu Iwata.

They all have cool names like 'March in the Dark' and 'Adventures of Iron' and they really do add a lot to the game in my opinion. Some are like rousing battle anthems, others create a sense of mystery, but one of my favourites is one called 'Whisper of Phantom'. It takes a little while to get going but... check check check it out:



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid 3DO Music #1

Star Fighter (1995)

As much as us retro gamers loved and continue to love chiptunes, it wasn't until CD-based games started appearing that we had the first 'proper' soundtracks composed by real instruments or featuring samples, voices, or anything else the composers cared to add - the limits, in other words, were now non-existent. One of the earliest examples of this kind of soundtrack that I really liked was found in Fednet's stonking 3D shmup, Star Fighter. Composed by John Avery, it consists of nine techno/trance tracks (I've never been great at differentiating the many sub-genres of 'electronic music') which the game cycles through as you play (and you can jiggle the order around as you please). All of them are superb but I think my favourite is this one...

(full Star Fighter review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit to the splendid Mr. Avery, as well as my thanks for making such a great soundtrack to start with!
 

Splendid Master System Music #1

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)

Some time ago now I wrote about the intensely nostalgic feeling I had when I heard a much-loved piece of Master System music again for the first time in many years, and this past weekend it happened again! Okay, perhaps the feeling wasn't nearly as pronounced this time but I was still very pleasantly surprised to be reminded of this fantastic piece by industry legend, Yuzo Koshiro. It was featured in both the Master System and Game Gear versions of the original Sonic the Hedgehog, specifically the 'Bridge Zone', and must surely count among the finest pieces of Master System music I've heard. Check out its splendour thus:

(full Sonic MS review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid Xbox Music #1

OutRun 2 (2004)

I think it's safe to say that OutRun is a rather famous and much-loved game and a big part of its popularity is down to Hiroshi Kawaguchi-san's magnificent musical compositions. Any sequel to the mid-80's classic would therefore have a tough job living up to it, and when OutRun 2 finally appeared over ten years ago now the first thing I looked into was its music. Unsurprisingly, the soundtrack includes remixes of the classic tracks but there are also a similar number of new tracks. They were never going to have the same sort of impact as they originals but they are pretty good, and the standout track for me is Risky Ride by Fumio Ito. The original version as heard in the arcade game is great but even better is the 'Guitar Mix' as featured on the Xbox conversion. See what you think:



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Gaming Flashbacks #1

For most of us, gaming is a casual interest or pastime. Regardless of how 'hardcore' you may or may not consider yourself, and regardless of how many hours you spend in front of the screen, video games aren't actually that important when it comes right down to it. That's not to say, however, that time spent with them is wasted.

The virtues of our hobby are often argued about but one that seems to get taken for granted is that of nostalgia. Sometimes it might be the games themselves, other times it's incidents or periods in our lives that are associated with them, but being reminded of them, usually by way of a certain sight, sound, or even smell, and often suddenly and unexpectedly, can bring a flood of long-forgotten memories and warm feelings rushing back, and that's exactly what recently happened to me. There I was sitting at home writing a post for this very blog while listening to music on my MP3 player which features many thousands of songs, both game music and 'normal' music, when suddenly a tune started that I hadn't heard since many moons ago in my youth. This happens now and then of course - sometimes the tune is slightly familiar, other times I don't even remember it, but on this occasion I recognised it instantly.

Splendid MegaDrive Music #2

Battle Squadron (1990)

Time for some more splendid MegaDrive music and I've gone for another shmup. This particular shmup, however, is one that's more famous on the Amiga. Being completely impartial of course, I am able to recognise the superiority of the MegaDrive version in most regards, and one of those is its music. Battle Squadron has never been blessed with many tunes but those that do exist are all outstanding. Originally composed by Ron Klaren and later remixed by Robb Hubbard for the MD version, my favourite tune is probably the main in-game theme. Enjoy its splendour thus:

(full Battle Squadron review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid PlayStation Music #2

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (1997)

Few original PlayStation games are as revered as this one so I'm very pleased to say it's one of the couple of dozen that I actually own! I very much doubt I'll get around to giving it the coverage it deserves for a good while yet but it is of course a thoroughly splendid game in pretty much every way. One particularly noteworthy way is its amazing soundtrack by Michiru Yamane which features over thirty songs spread over a typically eclectic variety of styles including classical, rock, techno, and jazz. My favourite tracks, however, are the gothic ones like this fantastic piece:



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid Nintendo 64 Music #2

Space Station Silicon Valley (1998)

As regular readers will know, Red Parsley recently celebrated not only a two year anniversary but also the posting of my 200th full game review! Hooray for me! To honour the occasion I decided to review one of my all-time favourite games - Space Station Silicon Valley. There are many reasons why I like this game so much - it's a nearly perfect blend of so many things I like in a game but none of them really stands above any of the others. However, one aspect that I can single out a little more easily here than any of the others is its music. The fantastic soundtrack by Stuart Ross is one of those rare ones that comes along every now and then which completely encapsulates the zany game that it accompanies. I've never been very good at categorising music though, so couldn't really explain it in the review. Most tracks are upbeat and feature the likes of organs, pianos, and snare drums and stuff like that and they're all very catchy! So much so, in fact, that I had a tough time deciding which to feature here. So, if you enjoy this selection, listen to some of the others on YouTube! I may even upload the rest at some stage... :)

(full Space Station Silicon Valley review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid PC Engine Music #1

Dragon Egg! (1991)

The PC Engine was a strange console in many ways. It was tiny but deceptively powerful and it managed to push 16-bit performance out of an 8-bit CPU. One of the numerous advantages of that was the superb quality of its audio which rivalled that of the fully-16-bit MegaDrive. For my first look back at some of the most splendid Engine compositions, I've chosen this delightful platformer and, in particular, the catchy tune found on its first stage:

(full Dragon Egg! review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer

Splendid MegaDrive Music #1

Hellfire (1990)

Shoot 'em ups were certainly pretty abundant on Sega's 16-bit power-house and they were definitely of varying quality but one of the finest must surely be Hellfire, one of Toaplan's few horizontally-scrolling efforts. It was never the flashiest game around but it did have one vital ingredient - a great first impression - and a big reason for that was the fantastic music, composed by Toaplan stalwart Tatsuya Uemura, that blasted out at you as soon as you undertook your mission. Games like Thunder Force 3 and Super Fantasy Zone have better overall soundtracks but few shmups on any system get you pumped-up for the alien smackdown like this one does. See if you agree!

(full Hellfire review here)



Special Note: I didn't record this great tune myself, I'm just an admirer, so all credit goes to the original composer