Customer Reviews

Final Fantasy X-2: Original Soundtrack

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Disc One (66:30)
1) Eternity ~Memory of the Light and Waves~ 2:37
2) real Emotion (FFX-2 Mix) 2:33
3) YuRiPa Fight No. 1 1:29
4) Yuna's Theme 2:52
5) YuRiPa Fight No. 2 2:00
6) Mission Complete 1:36
7) Sphere Hunter - The Gullwings 2:47
8) Mission Start 2:55
9) Mt. Gagazet 3:38
10) YuRiPa Fight No. 3 1:45
11) Game Over 0:17
12) Anything Is Possible With LeBlanc! 1:44
13) I'll Give You Something Hot 2:08
14) Shuyin's Theme 3:41
15) Besaid 2:48
16) Kilika 2:16
17) Luca 1:45
18) Mi'ihen Highroad 2:18
19) Mushroom Rock Highroad 1:55
20) Youth League 2:38
21) Machina Faction 1:56
22) Guadosalam 1:42
23) Thunder Plains 1:15
24) Macalania Forest 2:55
25) Bikanel Desert 1:53
26) New Yevon Party 1:36
27) The Calm Lands 1:52
28) Zanarkand Ruins 2:31
29) Sphere Hunter 1:53
30) Temple 1:14
31) Tension 1:49

Disc Two (72:06)
1) The Gullwings March 2:32
2) Great Being 1:31
3) Good Night 0:17
4) Anxiety 2:10
5) Infiltration! LeBlanc's Hideout 1:43
6) Rikku's Theme 2:08
7) Chocobo 1:48
8) Paine's Theme 2:39
9) Bevelle's Secret 1:14
10) Under Bevelle 2:00
11) Yuna's Ballad 3:00
12) The Gullwings to the Rescue 2:21
13) Now It's Our Turn 2:58
14) Mystery 1:43
15) Confusion 1:41
16) Summoned Beast 1:06
17) Otherworld Abyss 2:23
18) Eternity ~Memory of the Light and Waves~ (Band Member Musical Performance) 3:33
19) 1000 Words (original mix) 3:53
20) Nightmare of the Cave 1:19
21) Akagi Team 3:04
22) Vegnagun Starts Up 2:31
23) Clash 1:34
24) Struggle 1:22
25) Destruction 2:58
26) Demise 2:33
27) 1000 Words Piano Version ~Feelings That Crossed Time~ 3:44
28) Ending ~Until the Day We Meet Again~ 2:10
29) 1000 Words Orchestra Version 6:29
30) Epilogue ~Reunion~ 3:28

The release of Final Fantasy X-2 upon American shores was greeted with an equal measure of accolade and angst-ridden anguish. Half of FF's hardcore fan-base (and most of the casual video-game audience) applauded Squaresoft for creating a worthy sequel to arguably the greatest installment of its Final Fantasy franchise, along with changing/streamlining certain series-flaws therein; while the other half gnashed their teeth at the campy, `cheezy' aura surrounding Yuna and co.'s girl-power hijinks, and claimed to be *offended* by the mere fact that this sequel existed at all and that it displayed pretty girls in pretty outfits - heresy to the necronerd ethic! Amongst the voluminous whining and griping to ensue within the virtual confines of the cyberverse, the fact that seminal franchise-composer Nobuo Uematsu would not be writing or even participating on the score (his time served elsewhere, on FF11 and FF12), and his replacement by two FF "n00bs" (though Squaresoft alumni in their own right) Norika Matsueda and Takahito Eguchi, was enough to forever scar and mar the Final Fantasy brand-name for hard-core old-skool FF zealots. Well, good riddance, I say! Separate the chaff from the wheat and *then* we'll see where the quality remains.

Rant aside, I judge this soundtrack with its modern-era FF contemporaries (7-10), and find it a worthy successor. For although there is very little development of Uematsu's previous FFX themes, and a few radical re-adjustments to certain long-standing musical motifs (such as the battle fanfare), the work by Matsueda and Eguchi retains the tonal qualities of the original score (location atmospheres, use of piano, guitar, synth and percussion), while adding contemporary elements (jazz, electronica, even J-pop [!]) to elucidate and enhance the themes of the *game itself*: i.e., that of change, and moving past loss; of forging a social-wide harmony and then working to maintain said harmony when the chips are down and everything is at its bleakest. As a game, Final Fantasy X-2 is another step for Squaresoft toward new developments and deeper thematic horizons; and it is only fitting that the soundtrack expands its aural scope and enriches the visual material it underpins.

Or, (for the sake of brevity), Matsueda and Eguchi retain the previous `tone' of FFX while incorporating a number of refreshingly new qualities that, in the end result, help the game feel like a true sequel rather than a cash-in rehash.

Now, to be honest, not a single FF soundtrack has escaped the required blight of background filler. This `filler' is an acute necessity when scoring a game 40+ hours in length: quiet, abstract material helps to offset the more epic, emotional pieces. Generally, these tone-poems are not very interesting, nor are they meant to be - they need only be present, to give greater emphasis to dialogue and development of story, to give an additional `weight' to the progression of cut-scenes. In the past I've found that each Final Fantasy soundtrack usually has around one full-length CD of great material sandwiched between the middling and the mediocre, and Matsueda and Euguchi's FF X-2 is no exception. I wrung a solid CD of greatness from the whole of this two-disc set - in truth, a better value than that found on Uematsu's sprawling four-disc releases.

The Specifics:

-As stated above, the location themes are for the most part highly faithful to both Uematsu's previous work and the progressive *history* of Spira's varied regions. The gentleness of Luca and Besaid surge and sigh, reminiscent of seaside tranquility, while the sinister choral found within the temples of Yevon resonate with uncertainty and pain, a dirge to lost glory. The tribal rhythms of Gagazet give the mountain climes an epic grandeur, and Zanarkand soars with the chords of a newly-found peace, appropriate for what is essentially a turbulent graveyard. Macalana Woods lulls the senses with a sorrowful treatment, emphasizing the steadiness of its decline.

-The electronica-tinged Battle Music is some of the best in the entire franchise. It moves well with the ATB system and the sphere-change dramatics, and unlike certain previous installments, never really grows tedious through repetition.

-J-Pop: I'm not much of fan of J-pop in general, though I do take pleasurable exception to previous FF mainstream compositions in the franchise (Eyes on Me, Melodies of Life, Isn't it Beautiful) - and with that said, *Real Emotion* and *1000 Words* are no exception to this, well, taste-exception, being exquisitely crafted slices of J-pop at its very best, though I must admit to finding the Japanese originals far more edifying that the English dubs.

-*Eternity (Memories of Lightwaves)* - the stunner of the set, easily par with the best of Uematsu's work. In the first mix, a simple piano loop shimmers with haunting beauty, gradually building into a synthesizer crescendo; in the second mix, break-beat elements and a weirdly `organic' tone (for Spira, anyway) enriches the previous theme in a marvelously subtle way.

-*Vegnagun Starting* directly lifts its opening riff from Edvard Grieg's `Piano Concerto in A Minor,' then launches into a shuddering choral masterpiece complete with keyboard frenzy highly reminiscent of Bach's `Organworks.' Haunting, driven, it's perfect for the final boss encounter.

I've deducted one star from my rating due to the fact that out of two discs, there's around 80 minutes of repeat-quality music included. Still, Matsueda and Eguchi have more than proved their chops, in atmospheric, mainstream-oriented and eclectic composition. Hopefully we will see more of their work in Square-Enix's rosy-dawned future releases.

I first would like to thank Ian Vance for his thorough and subjective review. For all those who were critical of this soundtrack (mostly those who were upset Nobuo Uematsu didn't contribute his amazing talent to this game's soundtrack), I'd like to point out the game's story and style is totally different to its predecessor. I find the music highly appropriate for the game. In a story where there are three girls going out to collect spheres and have fun, why not have some J-pop and synthesized music with an upbeat tempo?

Now I should say that I really can't stand pop music, but both songs, "1000 Words" and "Real Emotion" are great!

Music for locations such as Besaid, Kilika, Gagazet, Bikanel Desert, etc felt perfectly paced and placed. I felt I was actually there.

My suggestion to all those who love Final Fantasy is to go into the game and the music with open eyes and ears. I'm sure you'll enjoy it if you take the music for what it's worth.

Ok, this is VERY different from any other FF soundtrack, believe me I have EVERY one of them ever made. Anyway, I felt like this was a nice change of pace for me...sure, FFVIII was the best soundtrack but most of that was really dark. This is really upbeat and is for anyone who wants to get in a good mood real quick. Although you will not find Jade from Sweetbox on this CD. Only Koda Kumi singing in Japanese, the only downfall of this CD, only because I can't understand Japanese...oh well buy it anyway, you will not be dissappointed.

By now, you've probably heard that FFX-2's music is NOT in the traditional FF style. In fact, the notorious Nobuo Uematsu didn't have anything to do with this album, which is a shame. But-- I give credit to the new composers for filling in his place, as they more or less did a decent job. However, like I said, the music isn't classic FF material. There are a lot of hip, upbeat tunes that worked for the game, but sound out of place on a FF soundtrack. On the other side, there are moving and intruiging scores just as well that compete closely with Nobuo's own work. In two CDs, there were only about 13 songs I liked. While these are great pieces of music, I wouldn't recommend paying such a high price, for the whole album, just for that.

This is the first Final Fantasy OST in which the master of Final Fantasy music has not participated. And sadly, it shows. Over the years of Final Fantasy, we have come to expect certain musical strains... the bouncy Chocobo music most particularly.

In the FF X-2 OST, the chocobo music only hints towards what it used to be, leaving one feeling like there should have been more to the music, as if a track were left on the cutting room floor.

Don't get me wrong. The music is sweeping, elegant at points (Gagazet's new theme is among those tracks, ) and there are elements of a J-Pop-ish nature evidenced in the vocal theme "Real Emotion" and with Rikku and Paine's themes.

Standing alone by itself, this OST has merit... but it just can't compare to the music of Uematsu. It just doesn't feel like a Final Fantasy to me.

I know some people miss N.Uematsu's music but this music is great. It has techno/rock beat into it and I have the game and I played it... it totally represents the story/background/character of the game. I don't think you will regret buying it. At least I am not.

I would recommend "real Emotion" who likes upbeat rock J-pop and "1000 words" for nice ballat. =)

This CD will make you get up and dance, it also has some very good piano pieces. Koda Kumi's Real Emotion and 1000 words will take you away. It can be fun to dance to and great to just sit down and listen to these songs. You will never want to stop listening or put it down. You will be swept of your feet when you hear this CD. I strongly recommend buying this CD even if you don't like the Final Fantasy series. You will never want to stop listening to this great, spectacular CD. If you don''t buy this CD you are missing out on some great music.

I wouldn't consider myself to be a professional critic, but i have played most of the ff games and have most of the music. It is also primarily what I listen to. Needless to say that this album is quite different from all of the others. I am a big fan of Nobuo Uematsu's writing style and didn't like this album as much as his works but i still enjoyed it. The album has what I would call a modern Japanese feel to it. Very fun and up-beat. There are really only about a dozen "good" songs in the soundtrack. Most of the songs are short little bits that are designed to loop over and over during gameplay, making the album, unfortunately, boring. It's most enjoyable only if you've played the game, but of course if you have played it, you would'nt be wondering how good the music on this album is.

My solution is simple. If you have played the game and liked the music, buy it. If you haven't played the game yet, buy the game and not this album as you will hear the music anyway but in a more enjoyable way, ei: during gameplay. ;)

I think this album was a good change from the traditional Uematsu music, but should only remain temporary. I feel it is good but not really Final fantasy.

It's a nice change of pace from other FF soundtracks. Considering the new gameplay and the charlie's angels quality of FFX-2 it fits.

And for those reviewing it's Nobuo Uematsu, not Eumatsu.