So Why Do You Think FF Music is so Good?

[Wolf Kanno]

I'm just sitting here listening to Theme of Love from the Distant World's soundtrack and it's such a gorgeous theme. I really do love a lot of the FF soundtracks. They just bring back a good amount of nostalgia but many of them are just so masterfully done. I mean the Rebel Theme from FFII is pretty simple and catchy in the NES version but the orchestrated theme just makes it so epic. So what do you think makes the music so damn good/ Is it the craftsmenship of the composers, the nostalgia the music is attached to, or maybe something else.

[Mirage]

I think older FF music (and game music in general) is good because the composers were limited in how high technical quality they could make the music in, and therefore were forced to use very good composition to make the music invoke the emotions they wanted. I think this is especially true for the games made in the 90s, where you finally got rid of the bleep bloop music of the NES. While the SNES was still pretty limited compared to streamed music(wav, mp3, etc), it started giving the composers the right tools to make really complex pieces.

I guess the remakes of these older pieces often sound great because they've already have very good compositions, and now they can get around the technical limitations as well, making it even better.

-edit-
And I guess it's hard to ignore the nostalgia factor too. Or maybe it's not exactly nostalgia, but game music pieces are often a significant part in setting the mood for a scene, and if the scene is powerful, we'll get the same feeling as the scene gave us when we hear the music later.

[Alpha2099]

I like it because much of the FF music, particularly earlier games, are rooted in the classical genre. It's nice and relaxing to listen to most of the time.

[Sephex]

To me, most of it is just catchy and does a fantastic job at helping the scenery move along. It's hard for me to describe why I like any music that I get into, but a lot of video game music really latches on to my brain. I remember an Extra Credits episode that explained that they felt the reason why such early game music is so memorable was because composers were more limited by older consoles, so they were forced to make simple, but awesome tunes that is pleasing to most peoples ears.

I don't exactly agree with that point, but I think it's an interesting perspective.

[Fynn]

I think it's mostly 'cause Uematsu has got an amazing talent for composing catchy melodies that really fit the moment. It's also amazing what progress he has made throughout the series. And if you listen to his soundtrack to the Last Story you can see that his talent is not just for melodies - he has a great ability to set the mood as well. He's actually tied with Hamauzu and Shimomura as my favorite composer of all time. It's fun how they're all awesome, but different. Shimomura is a purely romantic-era composer, and yet the beautiful things shre does merging violins with techno... God, there is no one who can do it so well. And Hamauzu's perfect at beautiful harmonies and incredible atmosphere. Uematsu seems to make the ones that stick in your head the most though. And I think that is why the music of FF is so beloved. And I may be alone in this, but I think Hamauzu is a worthy successor, if you can call him that (I mean, lately it's mostly him composing for FF). I don't really like X and I was not even able to play XIII yet, but the soundtracks are just gorgeous.

[Jiro]

The fact that the music evokes emotion and sets scenes perfectly is what makes it great. The nostalgia value is what keeps it great. A great soundtrack falls short of being great if nobody listens to or appreciates it.

[Del Murder]

It's pretty much Uematsu being brilliant. Like others have said, Uematsu was great at creating catchy tunes that fit the moment. I think under anyone else the FF music would not be as good. In some of the later games where he didn't do all the music I found myself liking his songs the best without even knowing he was the one who composed them.

[Trumpet Thief]

I'm restating what others have said, but most of it was just amazingly catchy. The tunes almost always fit the mood, and in some cases, even created it.

I just think that the best music, in general, has to be at least somewhat catchy in order to win me over. Uematsu delivered in spades, and I honestly don't think that it could be Final Fantasy without him.

[ReloadPsi]

I don't know. I honestly don't. It seems regardless of who the composer actually is, the fact they're working on a Final Fantasy game somehow brings out the best in them. For the last few days I've had the Rabanastre, Imperial and Clan Hall themes from FF12 stuck in my head.

[Jiro]

I'm not as disappointed with recent FF soundtracks as I thought I would be. The songs are not quite as memorable as a lot of the earlier ones, but I found myself humming a song from XIII the other day and was like "whoa okay :jess:" Uematsu is a genius but whoever they've got working music now isn't half fucking bad.

[Quindiana Jones]

I'm echoing the Nobuo Uematsu love here. The man is a genius. I can't think of any artist who can match themes, emotions and sounds better.

[Trumpet Thief]

Just to add a point, leitmotifs can be very powerful, and the main 'themes' of VI, VII, VIII, and IX (I would say X but the soundtrack was a collaboration, wasn't it?) were made that much better when they were spread into multiple tracks. Best example would be 'Melodies of Life' as the main theme, and as a part of several other themes in the game.

Just magical. :)

[Quindiana Jones]

Certainly in IX, Uematsu "remixes"(?) several tracks for different purposes, not just Melodies of Life.

[Trumpet Thief]

Certainly in IX, Uematsu "remixes"(?) several tracks for different purposes, not just Melodies of Life.

Absolutely. The recurring themes add a lot, but in particular, different variations of the 'main theme' (which I would argue 'Melodies of Life' is) are a recurring and very awesome trait of Uematsu.

[sabin101]

Nobuo Uematsu is pure genius. I am amazed on what he came up with in the old ff games with such limited technology. He really knew what he was doing and he did well. All of the music he did was just above the rest. I remember the first time I heard the music from ff 4 it blew me away. Just was blown away and the same with final fantasy six and above. I don't think I could compare his music to anyone else. He is just awesome. Enough said.

[Wolf Kanno]

I think the reason why many fans tend to disfavor the more recent entries OST is not so much the music is bad, cause it really isn't. Rather the shift into voice acting has diminished the music role in the games. In earlier entries, music is used to not just set the mood but help tell the story to the player who can only read the text. The emotion that voice gives is instead utilized by the music instead in earlier entries.

A good example of what I mean comes from FFX, the opening of the game, where you get to see the party at Zanarkand and they play Uematsu's To Zanarkand really gives the player the sense of mood and feeling that words really could not do justice to. Tidus says some profound thing by the end of the scene but the music and visuals have already collided to enrapture the player's heart and soul to the game. After that, the game really doesn't have as many strong music/story ties, because the voice acting is suppose to do all of this and the music is simply a mood enhancer or backdrop of the scene, as opposed to filling the scene with the motive and emotion like older entries.

[Del Murder]

I like what you say about the music telling a story in the older games. FFXI is a modern FF with no voice acting and the music definitely helps tie the emotion of a scene together.


I'm not as disappointed with recent FF soundtracks as I thought I would be. The songs are not quite as memorable as a lot of the earlier ones, but I found myself humming a song from XIII the other day and was like "whoa okay :jess:" Uematsu is a genius but whoever they've got working music now isn't half fucking bad.
I've also hummed tracks from XIII and XIII-2, but only one each. That's a big dropoff from the 10-12 songs I hum from each of the older games. Plus I can't even remember a single track from FFXII.

[Karifean]

I love Uematsu's music, but my favorites are from FFX, the collaberation - To Zanarkand/Ending Theme and Someday the Dream will end (aka Fleeting Dream). I think the reason I like certain musical pieces so much is because they so very nicely set the tone for a certain situation or they're just catchy - or both. The Landing, need I say more?