Best Soundtrack of the PS1 Generation?

[Wolf Kanno]

I think the main thing that strikes me about VII's OST over VIII and IX is that it has the strongest character themes of the three. You hear Aerith's theme and regardless of whether you like her or not you're probably humming along but Vivi who is a fantastic character has imo a pretty weak character theme that is easily forgettable because it doesn't really embody him like it should. I think this is largely why I like VII the best cause its character themes and slower pieces are pretty memorable whereas VIII and IX tended to go a bit overboard with re-using melodies throughout their OSTs so they ultimately blend in a bit too much for my taste. It also helps that VII re-uses its themes more often with only a few tracks being one shot whereas VIII and IX have quite a few more that only play once in the whole game so I never felt the OSTs had a strong base.

They are all great OSTs though, I just feel V-VII is Nobuo Uematsu's Magnum Opus.

[chionos]

I think the main thing that strikes me about VII's OST over VIII and IX is that it has the strongest character themes of the three. You hear Aerith's theme and regardless of whether you like her or not you're probably humming along but Vivi who is a fantastic character has imo a pretty weak character theme that is easily forgettable because it doesn't really embody him like it should. I think this is largely why I like VII the best cause its character themes and slower pieces are pretty memorable whereas VIII and IX tended to go a bit overboard with re-using melodies throughout their OSTs so they ultimately blend in a bit too much for my taste. It also helps that VII re-uses its themes more often with only a few tracks being one shot whereas VIII and IX have quite a few more that only play once in the whole game so I never felt the OSTs had a strong base.

They are all great OSTs though, I just feel V-VII is Nobuo Uematsu's Magnum Opus.

Re-blending works for FFIX. I mean that was the whole point of the game, wasn't it? It's a re-blending of past FF's, a mash of all that came before.

I liked the way Uematsu weaved the music of FFIX. Yes, none of the songs are as distinctive as some of FFVII's songs, but that also means that FFIX was musically cohesive, and FFVII was not. My personal favorite OST from any FF is FFVI's, but it's not necessarily the best. FFVI's soundtrack is even less cohesive than FFVII's. So while my favorite songs might be on FFVI's or FFVII's tracklists, overall FFIX still has the best soundtrack.

[Wolf Kanno]

Re-blending works for FFIX. I mean that was the whole point of the game, wasn't it? It's a re-blending of past FF's, a mash of all that came before.

I liked the way Uematsu weaved the music of FFIX. Yes, none of the songs are as distinctive as some of FFVII's songs, but that also means that FFIX was musically cohesive, and FFVII was not. My personal favorite OST from any FF is FFVI's, but it's not necessarily the best. FFVI's soundtrack is even less cohesive than FFVII's. So while my favorite songs might be on FFVI's or FFVII's tracklists, overall FFIX still has the best soundtrack.

I disagree on some of your points, I felt VI was one of the first games to have a cohesive OST whereas VII's offered more variety but lacked cohesion. My issue with re-using melodies is not that IX reworked old tracks from earlier games (that was quite creative) as much as it was the issue of it having three strong melodies that were overused in different variations that they ultimately became the three melodies you remember whereas I felt VI and VII both had a larger variety of memorable melodies.

VIII for instance has a ton of tracks but unless it was your all time favorite, I'm pretty sure the most memorable tracks most people could pick out would be one of the game's variations on Eyes on Me or Liberali Fatali, similarly I feel that IX's most distinct tracks are one of the variations of The Place I'll Return to, Melodies of Life, or Rose of May. Only Steiner and Garnet got proper leitmotifs of their themes which is why they probably stand out the most but considering Garnet's theme is itself a rearrangement of Melodies of Life it falls back to everything sounding a bit similar. My issue with IX's OST is ultimately the same as my issue with Chrono Cross though IX is a bit better about this, which is that I don't find the themes are tied to the situation as well as I would have liked. I blame this on the soundtracks being large enough to let every scene have a unique theme whereas earlier games, with VII being the last to do this, often had to re-use themes and thus reinforce it, making them memorable. For instance Steiner has a pretty memorable theme cause most scenes focusing on him actually made use of it, whereas Zidane and Vivi's theme rarely played beyond a few times and characters like Eiko, Freya, and Amarant got so few scenes to themselves that you often wonder if they had themes. Sometimes a track comes around that is kickass enough to be memorable and it works well for the scene like IX's Not Alone sequence, but I doubt you could name off the top of your head what track was playing when Atmos destroyed Lindblum unless this was just ultimately your all time favorite game ever. I listen to IX's OST and I often have to guess when a particular track played and while the music is very soothing and well done, I find it too easily falls into background noise with a few exceptions.

I like IX's soundtrack and it was in my mind the last really good OST by Uematsu as I feel X's OST is utterly forgettable beyond three tracks and XI's nice but again, forgettable.

[chionos]

I see what you're saying. FFVII was leitmotifarific. Some of the greatest character-to-song connections were made in that game and OST. And that is certainly one of the marks of a good soundtrack.

I disagree, though, that IXs music isn't as memorable. For that matter, the VIII songs that you mentioned aren't the ones that stood out to me: Balamb Garden totally sticks, as does Man With the Machine Gun (even though the latter is an example of music not "fitting" the moment, at least for me). And I would suggest that if you asked the average FFVII player, they wouldn't remember as many songs outside of the big 2 or 3 as you imply.

Also, I didn't say FFVI's soundtrack wasn't cohesive. It's one of the first games that ever made me think of video game music on the same level as say a movie score. One of the first games to truly make me realize that games could be art. It's just that Uematsu got better at it in later games and by FFIX, he'd mastered the form, or at least his version of it.

[metagloria]

Dude, I can name a dozen unrelated amazing tracks from the VIII soundtrack. Not just Liberi Fatali, but Balamb Garden, FH, Triple Triad, Force Your Way, Blue Fields, Timber, Martial Law, Succession of Witches...that's an absolutely killer soundtrack.

[Scotty_ffgamer]

VIII will always be my favorite soundtrack, but that's mostly because it is my favorite FF. It holds a lot of nostalgia value and whatnot for me. I do really like IX's soundtrack though! Honestly, both of these are more enjoyable to listen to for me than VII.

I do really like the sort of cohesion that comes with reusing those certain melodies in different ways. It might sound silly, but a recurring melody is something I like to see in the soundtrack of games, movies, etc. I also like how in VIII (and IX really), those recurring tunes are tied pretty deeply with the story too.

[Wolf Kanno]

I disagree, though, that IXs music isn't as memorable. For that matter, the VIII songs that you mentioned aren't the ones that stood out to me: Balamb Garden totally sticks, as does Man With the Machine Gun (even though the latter is an example of music not "fitting" the moment, at least for me). And I would suggest that if you asked the average FFVII player, they wouldn't remember as many songs outside of the big 2 or 3 as you imply.

Notice how the themes you listed are all tracks that are played repetitively in the game's OST. Most action takes place in Balamb Garden which is why it is familiar. You also mention a distinct battle theme, but could you hum Roses and Wine or Junction off the top of your head if I asked you to do it right now with no reference? Do you remember where The Successor played in the game? What theme plays in Dollet after the invasion when you visit their normally?

I also disagree with VII only having a few memorable themes. I don't even like VII but I remember themes like Mako Reactor, Under the Rotting Pizza, On that Day Five Years Ago, Trial of Blood, To Become a Great Warrior, and Lifestream. While I would agree that not every track is pure gold and instantly memorable, I feel the majority of its soundtrack is both distinct and memorable because the game does a better job of fitting the music with the moment. I didn't really see that with VIII or IX, not as well at least though the exceptions are stunning when they did.

Dude, I can name a dozen unrelated amazing tracks from the VIII soundtrack. Not just Liberi Fatali, but Balamb Garden, FH, Triple Triad, Force Your Way, Blue Fields, Timber, Martial Law, Succession of Witches...that's an absolutely killer soundtrack.

Again, mostly repeatable themes you remember, most of which are a map theme, a battle theme and a mini-game theme. Succession of Withes happens to be a leitmotif of Liberali Fatali so you are kind of proving my point. No one talks about Tell Me which plays in a early defining scene for Quistis and Squall which the theme itself is a leitmotif of the track Ami and goes back to my point that the most memorable tracks are repetitive pieces or re-arrangements of the same theme.

Honestly, I am not trying to make some objective observation, simply stating why I don't adore either soundtrack as much as the ones I do. I like VIII and IX's OSTs, they just don't give me the full impact like V-VII where I feel the themes are nestled deep into the scenes they happen in so every track is like replaying that awesome game.

[metagloria]

I won't "defend" myself too much, but Martial Law and FH are not frequently repeating themes, and the repeating ones I did pick, I picked because they're legitimately awesome. I could hum you the world map theme and battle theme from IX, but I wouldn't mention them in a list of the best IX tracks.

Honestly, I am not trying to make some objective observation, simply stating why I don't adore either soundtrack as much as the ones I do. I like VIII and IX's OSTs, they just don't give me the full impact like V-VII where I feel the themes are nestled deep into the scenes they happen in so every track is like replaying that awesome game.

This is how I feel about the OSTs of Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, and Star Ocean 3.

[Karifean]

FF VIII has my favorite soundtrack from any game to date. And Final Fantasy VII is Number 2. So yeah... sorry FF IX, your soundtrack is amazing, but best of the PS1 gen? The competition is just too hot.

[Wolf Kanno]

I won't "defend" myself too much, but Martial Law and FH are not frequently repeating themes, and the repeating ones I did pick, I picked because they're legitimately awesome. I could hum you the world map theme and battle theme from IX, but I wouldn't mention them in a list of the best IX tracks.

Both of them are town themes, meaning you always hear them whenever you enter the location. They may not see the same action as a battle theme or the Triple Triad card theme but they are still repeatable themes if you revisit locations often.

This is how I feel about the OSTs of Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, and Star Ocean 3.

I understand that, though in a reversal, Chrono Trigger is one of my top soundtracks.

[metagloria]

This is how I feel about the OSTs of Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, and Star Ocean 3.

I understand that, though in a reversal, Chrono Trigger is one of my top soundtracks.

Oh, that's no reversal, it's one of mine too! Just your point about how the soundtrack meshes perfectly with the game. Those three, I feel, nailed that aspect honestly better than any FF despite their consistently great OSTs.

[Wolf Kanno]

Sorry I misread that, well um...

CHRONO TRIGGER!!!

[Forsaken Lover]

Final Fantasy IV was on the Playstation in the form of FF Chronicles. (Which strangely included Chrono Trigger...) So nope, FFIX can't win.

Seriously though, I've always had trouble deciding whether I like FFVII's, VIII's or IX's soundtrack more. it's purely a "what I'm in the mood for" basis. If I'm in a VII mood, I prefer that. VIII mood then that. IX mod....you get the idea.

That all being said,


Top 10 Material for best song in the whole series.