ESTi

Featured, Game Music

Soundtrack of the Month 10/2010: Granado Espada OST Volume 1

October 1, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 5 Comments Share this

This one has certainly been a long time coming. Granado Espada Original Sound Track Volume 1 is an interesting release for a number of reasons, and is quite special to me in that it was the first album I reviewed for Music4Games. I admit I’m using some of that writeup as my basis for this review, but it’s crazy how much has happened since 2006 that I’ve been able to expound upon!

What has happened, you ask? Well, just here on OSV, we’ve interviewed composer Osamu Kubota on two separate occasions about his work on the title, introduced fans to Korean composer Sevin, founding member of S.F.A. and former member of soundTeMP, talked to TaQ about his sole contribution to the game, uncovered the fact that all soundTeMP tracks on this album were actually written by Jinbae “ESTi” Park, and even reviewed the Granada Espada Original Sound Track Volume 2 digital release from Streamline Records. Yeah, a lot of stuff, and what better time to have Granado Espada as our soundtrack of the month than with the announcement that a proper Volume 3 is now on its way!

Hit the jump to find out why you need to hunt this one down. (more…)
Game Music

More Ways to Love DJ MAX Fever: Now Downloadable on PSN!

January 26, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on More Ways to Love DJ MAX Fever: Now Downloadable on PSN! Share this

Miss out on a physical copy of DJ MAX Fever last year? I admit that I never saw the title at my local retailers, so this is a great way to introduce more gamers to this amazing rhythm game on the PSP. It’s from Korea, so you know the music is good. If you somehow managed to miss out entirely on this game, I recommend checking out our interview with PM Studios and Korean artists ESTi and Natus for more information as to what it’s all about.

Patrick also raved about the game’s music selection and multiple difficulty settings (which you’re going to need, because this game is HARD) in his review. PM Studios made the title available online last week, so be sure to pick it up if you missed it last year.

[via Siliconera]
Game Music

ESTi Remixes “Feliz Navidad” For Christmas

December 25, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on ESTi Remixes “Feliz Navidad” For Christmas Share this

Merry Christmas everyone! We weren’t planning on updating today, but I figured I had to mention this awesome “Feliz Navidad” remix that Korean composer ESTi created for the holidays. For those who don’t recall, ESTi is a member of soundTeMP where he worked on titles like Ragnarok Online and Granado Espada, PangYa Portable and a slew of other projects over the years.

His arrangement of “Feliz Navidad” is rather slow-paced and contemplative, but true to his insanely catchy pop style, it goes down smooth. The melody is carried by beautiful belltones, and rich, dreamy pads sit in the background with lots of reverb to create a sense of space. It’s a nice little ditty to listen to on a groggy Christmas morning. Be sure to grab the download!

Are you a fan of ESTi’s music? Are you enjoying all the Christmas-themed remixes and releases this year?

[via Don’s Twitter]
Game Music

DJ Max Fever Review: Or, “I Used To Think I Was Good At Rhythm Games”

April 29, 2009 | Patrick Gann | 2 Comments Share this

PM Studios brought DJ Max Fever to North America, and it marks the first time a console-based DJ Max game is officially released here in the US (the other games have “International Versions” that work on American PSPs, but were technically import products). Korean developer “Pentavision” created a sleeper-hit of a rhythm game that has really started to catch on in East Asia. And Americans who want to jump in on the latest rhythm game have the opportunity with one fantastic collection.

You see, in East Asia (Korea and Japan), multiple DJ Max games were released on PSP. DJ Max Portable and DJ Max Portable 2 each had over 50 songs. The “best” tracks from each of those two games were merged to create the North American DJ Max Fever. The soundtrack features music from a group of fantastic composers, most of whom are Korean. Among the many great composers on here, I have to give props to ESTi and Nauts, the prolific composers whom I (and many other fans) first encountered through Ragnarok Online nearly a decade ago.

In this review, we’ll be analyzing not just the music, but also the gameplay for this unique rhythm game. All of this comes, of course, after the jump. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Chicks With Mechs On a Spank Mission: POWER DoLLS 1 Soundtrack Resonance (Review)

April 20, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 3 Comments Share this

Sounds like hentai, but it’s not. I guess POWER DoLLS is a strategy game series for the PC centered on an all-female combat unit that utilizes mechas. DoLLS interestingly is an acronym for “Detachment of Limited Line Service.” Is it all starting to make sense to you? Well, not for me either, but what I can tell you is that Hiroto Saitoh’s music for the series is amazing.

This album goes even further though, providing you with three different versions of the original POWER DoLLS soundtrack. There’s an FM version (awesome!), a MIDI version, and the focus of this release, an all-new arranged version featuring remixes from Saitoh, the SuperSweep team, and even ESTi from Korea!

This is quite the dream team, so join us after the jump for our review of POWER DoLLS 1 Soundtrack Resonance. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Koreans Are Happy About Golf! PangYa Portable Soundtrack (Review)

March 4, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 2 Comments Share this

You’ve probably figured out by now that if “Korea” appears anywhere in my posts, it’s a good indication that it’s something I like. It’s no different with the PangYa Portable Soundtrack that was just released last December in Korea. Another pattern you’ve likely noticed is my mentioning of soundTeMP and ESTi when I talk about Korean game music… and yes, the ubiquitous ESTi strikes again here along with a team of seemingly untested composers that I’ve never heard of.

Similar to La Tale Soundtrack that was released last year, ESTi teams up with a new group of composers including nev, supbaby, and Nikacha. NieN and Electronic Boutique (of La Tale) even make an appearance as performers, and vocalist Sanch provides some of the album’s most memorable moments. Needless to say, this super laid back and poppy soundtrack is amazing, and needs to be in your collection.

Hit the jump to find out why through our review of the soundtrack album. (more…)
Game Music

Soundtrack of the Month 02/2009: The Memory of Ragnarok

February 2, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 2 Comments Share this

It’s about time we got around to this one. Ragnarok Online spawned my unhealthy obsession with soundTeMP, as it was one of their first titles to make it big on an international level. I’ll admit though, I am kind of cheating, as this isn’t the game’s original soundtrack, but rather half arrange album and half enhanced original soundtrack.

If you’ve read any of the twenty or so articles that I’ve mentioned soundTeMP in, you know that they write pop and trance music, and they do it well. Even more, The Memory of Ragnarok includes track-by-track credits, which revealed Seock-Jin Lee to be the primary composer responsible for Ragnarok Online. The booklet is even translated in English for crying out loud! Needless to say, this is one of the gems of my collection, and it’s not even out of print!

Hit the jump for our review of one of the greatest albums in history. Period. (more…)