PSP

Game Music, Gear

Peace Walk In Style With The Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker Walkman!

May 13, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

Too much use of the word “walk.” Sony and Konami have teamed up to bring you an exclusive Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker themed Walkman to celebrate the release of the game in Japan. The limited edition NWD-W253/Z Walkman sports a camouflage paint job and comes pre-loaded with six tracks from the game, including “Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Main Theme,” “Heavens Divide,” “CHRYSALIS,” “Outer Heaven,” “Zero Allies!,” and “Love Deterrence.”

Sounds like a pretty nifty idea, although it will set you back a hefty 11,800 Yen (about $128 USD). Honestly, the biggest news to me here is that Sony is still using the Walkman brand. When I first saw this, I thought they were releasing a cassette tape player, as the Walkman name kind of outgrew the Sony-specific brand to become a catch-all phrase for any portable tape-playing device. This is, in fact, a 4GB digital audio player, so maybe Sony will actually sell a few.

What do you think of the player? Are you looking forward to Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker next month?

[via Siliconera and GameSetWatch]
Game Music

Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga Dated, Pack-Ins Revealed

April 21, 2010 | Justin Pfeiffer | 10 Comments Share this

More Falcom news! In an official press release by Falcom, the company has revealed that first pressing limited editions of their PSP fighting spin-off title, Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga, are set to include a bonus package called “Falcom Collective Music Files” which will include three parts. First is the Ys. vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga Original Soundtrack, which will be two discs and include the entire original soundtrack plus newly arranged tracks. Next is Falcom Best Sound Collection -ALL in ALL-, a compilation album of various tracks that Falcom has chosen from over 4,000 of their game’s BGMs. Finally we have the Collective Music Files special booklet, which will include various information about Ys. vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga and other famous Falcom titles.

Not a bad bonus package. As Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga is a fighting game based on Falcom’s two most successful series, we can assume there will be lots of fast-paced arranges of our favorite themes from both games and hopefully some new music as well. Veteran Falcom music collectors probably won’t be too excited about the compilation album, but it’s a great opportunity for newer Falcom fans to get a taste of the company’s other titles. I’m curious what they’ll include this time (it’s like their 238743th, right?). Perhaps the booklet will offer some information about the arrangements of the soundtrack from Sound Team jdk. Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki: Alternative Saga is scheduled to release in Japan on July, 29th 2010.
Game Music

Valkyria Chronicles 2 Soundtrack: Sakimoto Goes West (Reviews)

February 17, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 2 Comments Share this

We’ve known for awhile that Hitoshi Sakimoto has been actively seeking out projects in the West. A couple years ago he joined Bob Rice’s artist representation firm, FBI, although we’ve yet to see him score a Western game. But wait ‘till you hear what he’s done with Valkyria Chronicles 2… you’ll think you’re hearing music for one of those World War II games, but that’s not to say it’s unoriginal.

I suppose you could say it’s similar in style to his original Valkyria Chronicles soundtrack, which we loved immensely, so much so that we asked Sakimoto to provide us with exclusive liner notes. This time it’s more military goodness, but with a much larger and refined sound. It’s still classic Sakimoto, but taken to an all new level.

Check out our review of the Senjou no Valkyria 2 Gallian Royal Military Academy Original Soundtrack after the jump! (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

“100 Million Ton no Bara Bara” Sound Interview with Hideki Sakamoto

December 22, 2009 | Carl Larson | 2 Comments Share this

Want to spice up your list of New Years’ Resolutions with activities like rock climbing, torch welding, and ripping apart huge flying airships? Come February, you’ll be able to do all that on your PSP, thanks to SCEJ & Acquire’s latest collaboration. Your team needs to climb aboard an invading airship and start cutting away at that metal monstrosity, piece by piece, to send it crashing to the ground.

So what would this sky high adventure sound like? We watched the trailer video and then asked Hideki Sakamoto what that catchy song is all about. His company Noisycroak was hired to work on the game’s audio, and being the CEO has it’s benefits, like getting to pick which projects to work on himself!

Read our interview to find out how Hideki envisions the sound of 100 Million Tons. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Ys SEVEN Original Soundtrack: Kicking 7 Shades of… (Review)

December 9, 2009 | Wes Chung | 7 Comments Share this

In 1987, Nihon Falcom released a simple action-RPG with genre-defining music called Ys: Ancient Ys Vanished. 22 years, over ten games, and almost a googolplex of arranged CDs later, the franchise continues to adhere to these two elements. From rock-synth and memorable MIDI ditties to full orchestral arrangements, Ys will likely be remembered far more for its music than any other aspect, so we won’t open this review with any sort of query or cliff-hanger.

Ys SEVEN’s soundtrack is great, and after the jump we’ll tell you why. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Persona Soundtrack Gets Remixed and Bundled With Shin Megami Tensei: Persona on PSP (Review)

September 26, 2009 | Michael Schiciano | 2 Comments Share this

The Megami Tensei franchise as a whole is a rather unique one in the realm of Japanese RPGs, and has been ever since it started on the Famicom in 1987, not only in the subject matter that it used, but also in its presentation and soundtrack.

Now, the popularity of the franchise has risen dramatically, which can be attributed to the critical success of Persona 3 and 4, both spin offs from the main Megami Tensei franchise. In the US, however, the two other games in the Persona franchise weren’t as well known or well treated when they were brought to the US originally, with the then titled Revelations: Persona featuring very questionable cultural changes in addition to some rough translation work, and only one of the two games that made up Persona 2 actually being brought over. As a result, after the PSP remake/port of the original Persona was completed, Atlus has decided to not only bring the game over to the US with the promise of a better localization, but also with the added bonus of a 2-disc soundtrack for those who buy a physical copy of the game, featuring the work of Shogi Meguro on this project.

Read our review of this new soundtrack after the jump. (more…)