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- Written by: Grady Owens
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On to day three! If you missed the first two days, they're all grouped together in the same category, at the top of the article.
For those of you just joining us, this is Day 3 of a 30 Day Video Game Music Challenge; each day consists of a different category of music, and I respond with a song that I feel fits it well, in terms of being one of my favorites of that category. Hard mode: I can't repeat games. Challenge mode: I can't repeat franchises either. (Repeat characters appearing in other franchises are fine.)
Day 3's category is "8-bit music", and it's hard to think of a better 8-bit song than Mega Man II's "Wily Castle I". This song is my JAM. When I was a kid, I'd often spend lots of time during the summer at my great-aunt's house, hanging out with my second cousin, her grandson. We were of similar ages, and while we didn't always agree on things to do, playing the NES was something we often agreed on. Played the hell out of this game in particular; we'd rent it from a local video store all the time, this and BattleToads. Truly one of the classics, and this song defines it. Played in the introductory level of the final area of the game, "Wily's Castle I" lets you know, you're in for a world of hurt.
After yesterday's little "Honorable Mention", I've decided, I might try to provide such a song from the same franchise if I can; these categories can often be shared by more than one song. In this case, you'd think it'd be easy: With six original 8-bit entries (eight if you count Mega Man 9 and 10), where all but the first had eight unique robot masters with their own stage themes (the first only had six), my cup must surely runneth over. And yet, I find myself struggling to come up with a good entry. In the end, I'm going with Mega Man IV's "Pharaoh Man Stage". Admittedly, part of my difficulty with this is nostalgia, or more appropriately lack thereof; I didn't play any of the other titles in the series until I was in college. Still though, they all have some nice songs.
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- Written by: Grady Owens
- Category: Video Game Music Challenge
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Welcome back! Continuing yesterday's initial attempt, we're going for 30 video game songs in 30 days, each representing a different theme or subject. Challenge mode: No repeats in games, or game franchises. (I'm going to allow non-canon mash-ups, for example Super Smash Bros., under the same specific rule that I cannot repeat games from that specific franchise, while still allowing characters, for example Samus, to be considered as separate franchises.)
Day 2's category is "Opening level music", and for this, I went with the iconic classic: Castlevania. I had to. "Vampire Killer" is itself so iconic, and it truly represents the whole series; for a song on the original NES hardware, it slaps. (It's probably even better on the Famicom Disk System! I can't find that one.) Hard to find a song like that.
In fact, I'm going to break from the original point of the challenge and make an honorable mention in this case: Castlevania II: Simon's Quest. Similar to "Vampire Killer", "Bloody Tears" does a magnificent job of representing the entire franchise from the opening frames of the game, this time the second. I would be remiss if I didn't at least bring it up.
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- Written by: Grady Owens
- Category: Video Game Music Challenge
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I'd made an attempt to do this about a month ago on my personal Twitter account, but I ended up not following through. So, I'm trying it here! Music is such an important part of a given game for me, and in many cases it can make or break a title. This "challenge" is 30 days long, with a different song each day to represent a different spectacular song within a given category. "Hard mode" is, I can't repeat a game; I'm giving myself an additional challenge: No repeating franchises. Starting this on June 30; let's see how far I get!
Day 1's category is "Title screen music"; for this, I have chosen Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. I was a huge fan of the original Metroid Prime title song, but it didn't hold a candle to the sequel when it came out. It incorporates elements of the first Prime game's theme and the original Metroid theme, with a fun, funky remixed beat that brings in the Echoes. There were times in college when I'd just let the title screen play for hours on end, hanging out in my dorm room. It also represents probably the first game I completed 100% within a day or so of its release.
I did also enjoy the theme for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, but feel that Echoes was overall better.