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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best soundtrack in the Final Fantasy series, December 31, 2003
The long running Final Fantasy series has had atleast decent music in all of it's titles, but FFVI leads the way, by far. FFI has a great musical score for it's time, FFIV is even better, and VII is a worthy follow up to VI, while IX has a good soundtrack, but VI is easily the best the series has to offer. Even for those that just want good music, you should buy it. It's not only a great accomplishment for game music, but it's a great accomplishment as far as musical talent goes. Nobuo Uematsu is probably the most talented videogame composer out there, and just a very talented musician overall.Disc 1 is the second best of three that are included. It contains most of the character theme songs, with all of them being atleast good. One thing that Nobuo really specializes in is fitting every character with the perfect theme, that perfectly resembles the character. For example, Lockes is upbeat and adventurous; considering he's a treasure hunter and is a pretty upbeat character. Kefka's is comical, yet sinister at the same time. The character themes on disc 1 are: Locke, Kefka, Shadow, Cyan, Gau, Edgar, and Celes. Shadows is mysterious, and is easily a favorite of mine. Cyans, Gaus, Edgars, and Celes' also rank up there as some of the best songs ever in videogame history. No joke; FFVI contains one great track after another. Other high points include: The Battle Theme, Mt. Koltz, The Returners theme, The Phantom Forest, Phantom Train, Kids Run Through the City, The Boss battle theme, and Metamorphosis. Really, though, disc 1 is good all the way through, so just because I didn't mention a few, it doesn't mean they aren't good. The Battle Theme isn't the best in the series, but it's still a good one. Your typical intense battle music is used. The Phantom Forest is great; one of the catchiest and most relaxing beats you will ever hear. Kids Run Through the City is another relaxing and exellent one. The Boss battle theme ranks right up there at #1 or #2 in the series as far as Boss battle music goes. With FFVII being the only that rivals it. Metamorphosis is an intense track, that gives you the feeling that something big is happening. One of my favorites on the first disc. Disc 1 score = 5/5 Disc 2 starts out with a bang, as one of the best, if not the best, videogame track of all time plays: Terra's theme. It also doubles as the overworld song. Most reading this review have heard it, and I'm sure they agree that it is one of the best ever. I have not ever seen one person say that they dislike this song. Other high points include: The Coin Song, Forever Rachel, Slam Shuffle, Overture, Aria de Mezzo, The Empire, and Another World of Beasts. A few of the other tracks are decent, but there's quite a few here that I can't get into. It's the ones that have that really happy and crazy feel to it. Ones I mean are: Spinach Rag, The Devils Lab, and add in Mogs and Stragos theme as well. I'm not a fan of the bluesy Johnny C Bad either. Some will like them, though. Setzers theme is pretty average too, and the Wedding Song isn't a favorite of mine. Overall, the second disc has about half filled with average songs(and a couple below average, but nothing bad), and about half filled with great, great stuff. Disc 2 score = 3.5/5 Disc 3 is the favorite for me. It opens with another one of those intense songs where it feels like something big is going to happen. It has some really crazy stuff going on in it. I love it. Catastrophe captures what a Catastrophe would sound like. It's a pretty good track. These are two of the darker songs you will hear, as that's what the third disc leans more towards.
More darker tunes to follow, with all of them ranging from good to exellent. Other darker tracks: The Fierce Battle, Dark World, with it's intense Organ(I think) and a Piano; very neat combonation. 1-3 & 5 are some of the better ones you will hear on this OST, in my opinion. It does get better from there, believe it or not. The Day After is just amazing. I really can't describe it, since I don't know what's used in the song, but it's more on the sad and relaxing side. One of my favorites. Searching for Friends is the second overworld song, and while not as good as Terras Theme, it is one one heck of a song. I'd say it's better than most other overworld themes in the series, but it has tough competition with Terras theme, so that one always gets all of the attention. Epitaph and Fanatics are awesome, while The Last Dungeon theme is another favorite of mine. Then, of course you have The Prelude(AKA the Final Fantasy Theme), which is in most FF's, mainly used at the beginning screen. We all know how amazing it is. Gogo and Umaro's themes are all right, but really get left behind in the dust when compared to the rest of this disc. As far as character themes go, they are just average. The Magic House is a nice & catchy tune, but nothing spectacular. Then there's the two LONG songs at the end. Dancing Mad is about 18 minutes long(it plays during the final battle in the game), while Ending Time is about 21 minutes long(I'd say about half is a mix of songs throughout the OST, while the other half is original). Both are amazing, and really showcase Nobuo's musical talent. Disc 3 score = 5/5 Overall = 5/5 Disc 2 is the weak spot, but even then it's only half of the songs on the disc. I'd say about 10 of the 60 songs range from below average to average, but everything else is just freaking amazing. Honestly! If you're looking for a soundtrack to buy, make it this one.
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by Nobuo Uematsu () 
