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| Final Fantasy (1987; Squaresoft / SquareEnix) |
By the mid 1980's Squaresoft's sales were spotty at best, and one of their lead designers, Hironobu Sakaguchi made the assertion that he will make one more game. If it failed, he was going to call it quits. The game, Final Fantasy, titled as such as Sakaguchi was sure it would be his swan song, became a cash cow, and would become one of the most enduring franchises in the industry's history.
Final Fantasy was greatly similar to the Enix title from the year before, Dragon Warrior, wich would become arguably the most popular RPG series in Japan. The difference would be in the narrative. The game used storytelling in a way that most gamers had not yet experienced and the ability to form and name your own party brought you into the game like no other game has.
The composer for Final Fantasy, Nobuo Uematsu, is the most recognized and revered composer in the industry. Never taking a formal lesson, the entirely self-taught Uematsu has made a name for himself by composing game soundtracks that were so far above what players were used to hearing that it made the series an entirely different, richer experience than any other games released at their time. While the series would have highs and lows in the overal quality of the games, Uematsu's work, along with other composers such as the talented Hironobu Sakaguchi, would stand out as masterworks in the inudstry.
I have chosen to go with the arranged versions of the soundtrack rather than the 8-bit classic version. I did this because it was a lot easier to find and the fuller sound makes the experience that much richer. So it begins. YouTube embeds tend to slow down the page loading quite a bit, so for this and other, longer soundtrack examinations, I am going to link to the youtube vidoes for the songs, rather than put them directly into the article. I will do this whenever the spotlight features ten or more songs. For convenience you can simple shift+click the links, or you can right click and choose "Open Link in New Tab."
The Soundtrack -
Main Theme - The Song
This song, which doubles as the overworld theme is adventurous and memorable. The song is encompases the adventure that is Final Fantasy.
Town - The Song
This is a soft guitar theme, a soft flute melody and a nice little piece of nostalgia. The Town Theme is one of the more recognizable themes from the game, outside of maybe the Main Theme and...
Battle Theme - The Song
This one has an air of menace and threat yet it is an exiciting piece. Seeing as how it is probably the one song you will hear more than any other in this game, it is a pretty good thing that it does not suck, eh?
Inn - The Song
In need of a little R&R? This song has a tinge of Italiano while still fitting in with the rest of the soundtrack quite well.
Bridge Building - The Song
Light and cheery this theme is an example of the kind of music this series has become known for.
Temple of Fiends - The Song
The final stage has one of the best themes in the game. It is haunting and beutiful. It all leads up to the final bout with Chaos. Another example of why this series has become so famous for it soundtrack.
Matoya's Cave - The Song
Following the bout with Astos, we get this happy little piece of work. It is a simple piece but it is actually quite uplifting. I like this one a lot.
Underwater Temple - The Song
This is a strong piece. It is both a little dark and lovely. The strings and piano combo is a personal favorite of mine and this is one of the best video game compositions to make use of them.
The Battle With Chaos - The Song
Final Fantasy has a long history of amazing final boss themes. The very first one is one of the all-time greats. The theme is intense, exiciting and really draws you into the final showdown. It also happens to be another one of my all-time favorite video game themes.
The Ending Theme - The Song
This beautiful rendition of the town theme closes things out with a beautiful air of peace. Now that you've saved the world, what are you going to do now!?
All above music, Final Fantasy and all elements therein are property of Squaresoft, now SquareEnix. The video files were found on YouTube and I do not own the videos or their contents.
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