@@Platypi007 Watching Papalymo, Ysayle, and Gosetsu in the video make me so incredible sad and i still wish i could forget everything of the game until the end of ARR so i can relieve everything once again fresh. Also, man this song, still hits me.
For those that didn't know, this part also takes you through the expansions in order until Endwalker: "on a land (a realm )reborn from the ashes 'Neath the heavens(ward) To sunset, blood-red skies tranquil after the storm(blood) Blessed shadow(bringers)""
The coolest thing about this song is that it evolves as you journey through the zone it plays in. It starts out as just very distorted melancholy, then it starts to become less distorted... Then at a certain point the voice track kicks in and you can hear it clearly. It's one of the most amazing uses of music in storytelling I've experienced, the emotional damage it does is both horrible and great at the same time. I had to stop a few times in the zone this plays in because I was so emotionally broken. To be fair the music in FF14 is great at doing that. I believe you reacted to Answers; that song too will break me due to a certain cutscene a version of it is used in.
I have vague memories of playing the Atari 2600 before the original NES released in North America, that's how long I've been gaming. The walk up the crystalline path, that first conversation with Alisaie where she stated that our friends were still with us, then saying, "They are...they are...aren't they?" That was the second time, in all my many years of gaming and love of story driven games, that a video game made me cry.
The part when the lyrics kicked in, I did the walk immediately after the cutscene while heavily sobbing at my husband (who had already finished Endwalker and was enjoying watching me suffer lol) and I had to take a few minutes to gather myself before I could continue with the next cutscenes. Last time I cried that hard at FFXIV was in Heavensward. If you played, you know when.
@Kathleen1590 Oh that's a mood. Roomie had to ask me to leave the room cause she was behind me on the playthrough and I was just SOBBING and than she played through it and now we're both sobbing(as I also enjoy her suffering)
Close in the Distance has to be THE one song that makes my cry no matter how many times I hear it. It's the music that, first faintly, then clearly, accompanies us in the final steps of a monumental journey. The pain, losses, victories and connections we made all pushing us to fulfill our promises. "The sorrow of a thousand worlds weighs heavy. And yet... you can walk on."
The whole of FFXIV can be summed up in the theme song "Answers," in which a series of questions is asked: "I close my eyes, tell us why must we suffer? Release your hands, for your will drags us under! My legs grow tired, tell us where must we wander? How can we carry on if redemption's beyond us?" After another couple of verses (in which answers to these questions are given - although not to the questioners' satisfaction), we lead into one defining question, both for the song and the game as a whole: *"Tell us why, given life, we are meant to die, helpless in our cries?"* The ending of the song gives a final answer aimed at this one query: "Thy life is a riddle, to bear rapture and sorrow To listen, to suffer, to entrust unto tomorrow! In one fleeting moment from the land doth life flow Yet in one fleeting moment, for anew it doth grow *In that same fleeting moment, thou must live, die, and know."* The understanding that to live is to bear rapture and sorrow... and also to listen, to suffer, to entrust unto tomorrow. To turn towards others and seek to create a future that you will never see in your fleeting moment. But those fleeting moments ever grow anew, ever pointing towards a dawn for someone else. And perhaps, if you're lucky, you will see that dawn too! But if it is not seen in your brief window of time, you are to look forward for the people who shall experience it, creating a memory and example of how to live so that when they cry out in despair: "Tell us why, given life, we are meant to die, helpless in our cries!" they can look back and see a way forward from those who faced that question, and found an answer. *This* is the core of Close to the Distance. It is a song sung by those in the hour before dawn, vowing to never forget what has come before, and vowing to continue striving for a future that may yet still be out of the reach of their fleeting moments - for who can know what will happen in the next hour? Shall we fall in battle? Will the dawn ever come or will we be defeated at the end? It is a reflection on all that has happened, and a prayer for what shall be.
To summarize... you have 7 friends that you have spent most of the game with (through the base game and 4 expansions with, hundreds of hours of questing through the story quests), and you go to this desolate place at the edge of the universe chasing a villain that threatens to end all life in the universe. But, one by one, the characters that are travelling with you, these very close friends, are lost one by one to pave the way forward. There's 3 versions of this song as the song starts to play during that last area, and when you lose a couple of the people, more of the piece plays, more layers are added on until it happens to G'raha then the lyrics suddenly appear with the full song, it's just you and the twins left, and the song plays again after they're taken too and it's just you, left to confront the villain yourself. However, the quest is called "You're not alone". That might raise a few eyebrows. I won't spoil what happens after, but it is one of the most epic moments in the game, that would be difficult to explain without context.
Just as this song is heard for the first time in the game, one of the only two of your friends (you brought 7 with you) says "You IDIOT! Just once... just ONCE stay with us 'till the end!" after he willingly sacrifices himself like the others did before him to pave a path forward.
This song means so much. It is yet another celebration of the WoL's journey; it is a celebration of your journey. It is the gentle reminder that you're forging ahead to the end for those you have lost and those you can yet save. And, in a more spoiler heavy context, the opening to me is very much a conversation happening between you and your allies. Your friends. You feel it. You know they are still there with you. Still remaining, even now. Even if you can't see them, you can feel them. It's the lyrical manifestation of the fact that they are still with you every step, even as you ostensibly walk, alone, to the end. But to me, it can also be read as a conversation between the scions and the broken denizens of Ultima Thule. Exploring their pasts as well. Maintaining hope, even in the face of darkest despair. And at the end of it all, find light everlasting. This is a refutation and a wish. To be reunited. To gently empathize with those who have come before and their pain.
The entire song is a love letter to the fans. Tales of Loss (Heavensward) And Fire (Stormblood) And Faith (Shadowbringers). The world rose from the ashes of OG XIV after it was shut down and rose again as ARR. "Promises made so long ago". Was Yoshi-P's promise to make ARR great following the Critical Miss that was OG XIV.
I was surprised you managed to pick up so much about what was going on when they used it based on the song itself. And when you said it reminds you of 90s rock, I just realized another level of brilliance as the average MMO player is in their 30s or 40s, so if you want to get us in our feels about the past, 90s rock is a good way to do that.
Like the editing in this video! Feels like there's an extra layer of polish to it with all the audio transitions into and out of pauses compared to some of your earlier analysis videos. Nice job!
Not sure how much you know of the story of this song but some spoiler light free context to add to the depth is this song is the main theme for the last zone in a 10 year, multi-expansion story. When you get to the zone, most of the instrument tracks are missing and the song sounds very static and faded. To touch on your point about confronting loss and despair, you go through those emotions as you progress this final zone, and each story beat brings those feelings along with another layer to the track. By the end of it when the song plays for the first time leads to one of the most powerful moments where you walk into the end, trying to hold onto hope and forgr ahead. I've never been more emotionally devastated and invested in a not just a game but any piece of media in my entire life, period. Glad I found this channel, just listening to the song got me to tear up again. If you haven't listened to this track yet, I would also recommend the song Travelers [All Instruments] from the game Outer Wilds. After listening to that, if you want an extra bit of fun with music layers, you can see how the same song is changed in tone by the DLC version of track from the Echoes of the Eye DLC.
Morning rises on a land reborn from the ashes - ARR, 'neath the heavens- Heavensward, to sunset blood red skies tranquil after the storm- Stormblood, blessed shadows - Shadowbringers.
The way this tune has been playing in the background since you got to this zone, and then you start losing long-term NPCs throughout that zone, and once you start this long climb, basically up a mountain, the song swells with the vocals coming in and scenes from your memories with the NPCs you just lost.. It was too much to handle.
ah this one is a weird one, because this song actually has an ingame storytelling, without the split pieces you actually lose a lot of this song, for a first time listen. when you enter the area for the first time in game, there is no music. just a droll hum that fades in and out. as the story points happen and the tension rises, and your allies can no longer walk with you, the song adds elements. first the tune, then the percussion, then the guitar, and the vocals are not added until you are completely alone. witht he weight of all those left behind weighing heavy. Forge ahead, 'till the end. no way you could have know that ofcourse, but if you're reacting to this by some community request, this info would have not been obvious. also a funny thing...same singer as Metal Gear Rising. Jason Charles Miller.
5:50 to me this dissonance in the chord progression symbolizes what's going on with the character of Meteion. This one tiny note means that no matter how strong we might be, we will all fall at one point in our lives. But the song picks up again and never lets this dissonance stepping over.
This was in the gameplay trailer that they released in the weeks before Endwalker's actual release date. I couldn't properly hear the lyrics, but I just KNEW from the sound of the song that once I got to whatever part of the game it was attached to, I'd no longer be able to listen to it for a good, long while without crying. I was not wrong. I can usually get through it these days without becoming emotionally damaged, but even years on like this, it's not guaranteed.
I heard that the song was made from the perspective of albert tge warrior of light from the first who merged his soul with us to allow us to survive and protect our worlds ... we arent alone guys if you need a push he is right there behind us
The names of the various stages of FFXIV (the base game and its expansions) are: A Realm Reborn Heavensward Stormblood Shadowbringers Endwalker. "Rises, on a land Reborn from the ashes. 'Neath the heavens to sunset, blood red skys tranquil after the storm. Blessed shadows, turning, wending, always, night follows day."
This song came at the right time during the game. So much so that I RP walked up those etheric stairs just to so I could listen to the whole thing. If you know you know.
It might be that 90s production value but this song is very 2000s-2010s Christian pop-ballad coded and I will not be accepting any criticisms on that comparison. :D
2 years and that song still drives me to tears
I saw Papalymo in the video and that's what drove me over the edge this time.
@@Platypi007 Watching Papalymo, Ysayle, and Gosetsu in the video make me so incredible sad and i still wish i could forget everything of the game until the end of ARR so i can relieve everything once again fresh.
Also, man this song, still hits me.
For those that didn't know, this part also takes you through the expansions in order until Endwalker:
"on a land (a realm )reborn from the ashes
'Neath the heavens(ward)
To sunset, blood-red skies tranquil after the storm(blood)
Blessed shadow(bringers)""
The coolest thing about this song is that it evolves as you journey through the zone it plays in. It starts out as just very distorted melancholy, then it starts to become less distorted... Then at a certain point the voice track kicks in and you can hear it clearly. It's one of the most amazing uses of music in storytelling I've experienced, the emotional damage it does is both horrible and great at the same time. I had to stop a few times in the zone this plays in because I was so emotionally broken. To be fair the music in FF14 is great at doing that. I believe you reacted to Answers; that song too will break me due to a certain cutscene a version of it is used in.
@austinmartin612 When the Lyrics kicked in I couldn't hold it back anymore at that point. The tears flowed out
I have vague memories of playing the Atari 2600 before the original NES released in North America, that's how long I've been gaming. The walk up the crystalline path, that first conversation with Alisaie where she stated that our friends were still with us, then saying, "They are...they are...aren't they?" That was the second time, in all my many years of gaming and love of story driven games, that a video game made me cry.
I couldn't step foot in Ultima Thule for weeks without getting emotional
The part when the lyrics kicked in, I did the walk immediately after the cutscene while heavily sobbing at my husband (who had already finished Endwalker and was enjoying watching me suffer lol) and I had to take a few minutes to gather myself before I could continue with the next cutscenes.
Last time I cried that hard at FFXIV was in Heavensward. If you played, you know when.
@Kathleen1590 Oh that's a mood. Roomie had to ask me to leave the room cause she was behind me on the playthrough and I was just SOBBING and than she played through it and now we're both sobbing(as I also enjoy her suffering)
Close in the Distance has to be THE one song that makes my cry no matter how many times I hear it. It's the music that, first faintly, then clearly, accompanies us in the final steps of a monumental journey. The pain, losses, victories and connections we made all pushing us to fulfill our promises.
"The sorrow of a thousand worlds weighs heavy.
And yet... you can walk on."
it makes a lot of player cry. but a smile better suits a hero
This is emotional, but Flow just kills me every time.
@@RasenCore this song and the end of the Venat cutscene after Elpis are amazing but difficult to go through
@@melon1158 had to go there, didn't you. 😭😭😭
I still catch my breath every time I have to port to Ultima Thule.
The whole of FFXIV can be summed up in the theme song "Answers," in which a series of questions is asked:
"I close my eyes, tell us why must we suffer?
Release your hands, for your will drags us under!
My legs grow tired, tell us where must we wander?
How can we carry on if redemption's beyond us?"
After another couple of verses (in which answers to these questions are given - although not to the questioners' satisfaction), we lead into one defining question, both for the song and the game as a whole:
*"Tell us why, given life, we are meant to die, helpless in our cries?"*
The ending of the song gives a final answer aimed at this one query:
"Thy life is a riddle, to bear rapture and sorrow
To listen, to suffer, to entrust unto tomorrow!
In one fleeting moment from the land doth life flow
Yet in one fleeting moment, for anew it doth grow
*In that same fleeting moment, thou must live, die, and know."*
The understanding that to live is to bear rapture and sorrow... and also to listen, to suffer, to entrust unto tomorrow. To turn towards others and seek to create a future that you will never see in your fleeting moment. But those fleeting moments ever grow anew, ever pointing towards a dawn for someone else. And perhaps, if you're lucky, you will see that dawn too! But if it is not seen in your brief window of time, you are to look forward for the people who shall experience it, creating a memory and example of how to live so that when they cry out in despair: "Tell us why, given life, we are meant to die, helpless in our cries!" they can look back and see a way forward from those who faced that question, and found an answer.
*This* is the core of Close to the Distance. It is a song sung by those in the hour before dawn, vowing to never forget what has come before, and vowing to continue striving for a future that may yet still be out of the reach of their fleeting moments - for who can know what will happen in the next hour? Shall we fall in battle? Will the dawn ever come or will we be defeated at the end? It is a reflection on all that has happened, and a prayer for what shall be.
You know a song and game has a deep impact on you, that when you hear it, it draws you back to "The Walk"
It's been years and I still cannot listen to this song without open sobbing. It just manages to hold so much emotion and memory.
😭😭😭 feel the same
Soken have you all figured out 😆
To summarize... you have 7 friends that you have spent most of the game with (through the base game and 4 expansions with, hundreds of hours of questing through the story quests), and you go to this desolate place at the edge of the universe chasing a villain that threatens to end all life in the universe. But, one by one, the characters that are travelling with you, these very close friends, are lost one by one to pave the way forward. There's 3 versions of this song as the song starts to play during that last area, and when you lose a couple of the people, more of the piece plays, more layers are added on until it happens to G'raha then the lyrics suddenly appear with the full song, it's just you and the twins left, and the song plays again after they're taken too and it's just you, left to confront the villain yourself. However, the quest is called "You're not alone". That might raise a few eyebrows. I won't spoil what happens after, but it is one of the most epic moments in the game, that would be difficult to explain without context.
The Walk was truly the culmination of our journey ~sobs in a corner~
This song is so perfect in the game, it plays when you are truly alone, and the game expects you to keep walking, to move on, to forge ahead
You should watch a playthrough of this zone to see how the song is presented.
agree, may be a long one but completely worth it
"If you need a push, I'll be right there behind you."
@@Steve-YT383 The way they have it slowly build up. THE FACT WE GET THE LYRICS WITH BEST BOI! ~dies~
@@SailorMusicCat 😺😸😼
@@SailorMusicCat oh yeah, i sat there for a good 10 minutes processing it when this hit
I still cry every time I hear it. This is powerful stuff. I love it!
“The sorrow of a thousand thousand worlds weighs heavy. And yet you can walk on.”
The end of a long, long journey.
I also broke down and cried for a bit during the walk when, "you know who" spoke.
The endwalker debuff before you do the last trial of the base expansion.
do not despair, you are not without allies
@@oberoneledthar3782 STOP CUTTING ONIONS!
@@CSKaras It has been nine years, and i never will stop doing it XD
Just as this song is heard for the first time in the game, one of the only two of your friends (you brought 7 with you) says "You IDIOT! Just once... just ONCE stay with us 'till the end!" after he willingly sacrifices himself like the others did before him to pave a path forward.
This song means so much. It is yet another celebration of the WoL's journey; it is a celebration of your journey. It is the gentle reminder that you're forging ahead to the end for those you have lost and those you can yet save.
And, in a more spoiler heavy context, the opening to me is very much a conversation happening between you and your allies. Your friends. You feel it. You know they are still there with you. Still remaining, even now. Even if you can't see them, you can feel them. It's the lyrical manifestation of the fact that they are still with you every step, even as you ostensibly walk, alone, to the end. But to me, it can also be read as a conversation between the scions and the broken denizens of Ultima Thule. Exploring their pasts as well. Maintaining hope, even in the face of darkest despair. And at the end of it all, find light everlasting.
This is a refutation and a wish. To be reunited. To gently empathize with those who have come before and their pain.
One of my favourite parts is the little play on words.
'No time for mourning
rises on a land reborn from the ashes'
The entire song is a love letter to the fans.
Tales of Loss (Heavensward)
And Fire
(Stormblood)
And Faith
(Shadowbringers).
The world rose from the ashes of OG XIV after it was shut down and rose again as ARR.
"Promises made so long ago". Was Yoshi-P's promise to make ARR great following the Critical Miss that was OG XIV.
I was surprised you managed to pick up so much about what was going on when they used it based on the song itself. And when you said it reminds you of 90s rock, I just realized another level of brilliance as the average MMO player is in their 30s or 40s, so if you want to get us in our feels about the past, 90s rock is a good way to do that.
Yeah, late 90s, early 2000s at the most
Awesome production and breakdown!! The way you catch the little details in this song was amazing!! Thank you for uploading this
Thanks mate!
Like the editing in this video! Feels like there's an extra layer of polish to it with all the audio transitions into and out of pauses compared to some of your earlier analysis videos. Nice job!
Thanks!
Not sure how much you know of the story of this song but some spoiler light free context to add to the depth is this song is the main theme for the last zone in a 10 year, multi-expansion story. When you get to the zone, most of the instrument tracks are missing and the song sounds very static and faded. To touch on your point about confronting loss and despair, you go through those emotions as you progress this final zone, and each story beat brings those feelings along with another layer to the track. By the end of it when the song plays for the first time leads to one of the most powerful moments where you walk into the end, trying to hold onto hope and forgr ahead. I've never been more emotionally devastated and invested in a not just a game but any piece of media in my entire life, period.
Glad I found this channel, just listening to the song got me to tear up again. If you haven't listened to this track yet, I would also recommend the song Travelers [All Instruments] from the game Outer Wilds. After listening to that, if you want an extra bit of fun with music layers, you can see how the same song is changed in tone by the DLC version of track from the Echoes of the Eye DLC.
"Don't cry" he says in the thumbnail, while doing a fantastic analysis of the single most emotionally charged song in the entire game.... 🫠
I hope you enjoyed the song and thanks for the insight and care that was put into the video. Cheers
Thanks mate!
Morning rises on a land reborn from the ashes - ARR, 'neath the heavens- Heavensward, to sunset blood red skies tranquil after the storm- Stormblood, blessed shadows - Shadowbringers.
The way this tune has been playing in the background since you got to this zone, and then you start losing long-term NPCs throughout that zone, and once you start this long climb, basically up a mountain, the song swells with the vocals coming in and scenes from your memories with the NPCs you just lost.. It was too much to handle.
ah this one is a weird one, because this song actually has an ingame storytelling, without the split pieces you actually lose a lot of this song, for a first time listen.
when you enter the area for the first time in game, there is no music. just a droll hum that fades in and out.
as the story points happen and the tension rises, and your allies can no longer walk with you, the song adds elements. first the tune, then the percussion, then the guitar, and the vocals are not added until you are completely alone. witht he weight of all those left behind weighing heavy. Forge ahead, 'till the end.
no way you could have know that ofcourse, but if you're reacting to this by some community request, this info would have not been obvious. also a funny thing...same singer as Metal Gear Rising. Jason Charles Miller.
Even when they are gone, they are still at our side...
What it is about, is ripping your heart out every damn time it comes around. At FanFest they started the concert with it :/
They know
5:50 to me this dissonance in the chord progression symbolizes what's going on with the character of Meteion. This one tiny note means that no matter how strong we might be, we will all fall at one point in our lives. But the song picks up again and never lets this dissonance stepping over.
I cry so fucking hard when i hear this, i can't. Every singlular time, on the first note i just burst man
This was in the gameplay trailer that they released in the weeks before Endwalker's actual release date. I couldn't properly hear the lyrics, but I just KNEW from the sound of the song that once I got to whatever part of the game it was attached to, I'd no longer be able to listen to it for a good, long while without crying. I was not wrong. I can usually get through it these days without becoming emotionally damaged, but even years on like this, it's not guaranteed.
Sneaky
YOU NEED TO LISTEN TO ECHOES IN THE DISTANCE AND THEN CLOSE IN THE DISTANCE INSTRUMENTAL THEN THIS SONG IN ORDER
If you haven't, strongly recommend playing the game for more context and to feel the weight and impact of these songs.
I heard that the song was made from the perspective of albert tge warrior of light from the first who merged his soul with us to allow us to survive and protect our worlds ... we arent alone guys if you need a push he is right there behind us
The final que are only in the single, where the game BGM it loops back to the start.
TALES OF LOOOOOOOOOOOSS AND FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRE AND FAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIITH (thank you!!)
The names of the various stages of FFXIV (the base game and its expansions) are:
A Realm Reborn
Heavensward
Stormblood
Shadowbringers
Endwalker.
"Rises, on a land Reborn from the ashes. 'Neath the heavens to sunset, blood red skys tranquil after the storm. Blessed shadows, turning, wending, always, night follows day."
This song came at the right time during the game. So much so that I RP walked up those etheric stairs just to so I could listen to the whole thing. If you know you know.
That synth version is really cool. Did you make a full length version?
Thank you!
Footfalls reaction when ?
Yo drop the synth version?? Hello?? That was fire!
Your videos became more professional. There is a jump in quality and information. Keep rock!
Thanks
Please react to Dedicated to Moonlight from FFXIV one of my favourite songs from the game :)
It might be that 90s production value but this song is very 2000s-2010s Christian pop-ballad coded and I will not be accepting any criticisms on that comparison. :D
To be truthful I was very disappointed in EW until The final Zone… o.M.G. It broke me hard 😭 made up for most of the rest of the expansion.