A small correction I want to make. At the end I say Yasunori Nishiki 'adhered to the same technical limitations as the classics', but that would mean he's using the old soundchips and making something that could actually work on the old consoles. What I meant to say was 'the same compositional limitations.' 🙂
Hey, man love your videos a ton, I am a motion graphics artist and just wanted to say I love the graphic feel of this video attached to the more important musical aspects. Really makes it feel great and fluid!
Game Score Fanfare - As someone who has written indie games (and my own music for them, with strong inspirations from Nobuo Uematsu and Yoko Shimomura's work), I think there's a fundamental point to address in that: Limitations are the seeds of creativity. If you have all the options...none of them are valid options. When you have to work under a constraint like, "I can only use five instruments", or "My tune has to loop", or "This theme needs to seamlessly transition into a boss theme at literally any point", that's where you rule out unnecessary possibilities, which allows you to focus A) on what you need, and B) on what you need to _exceed._ I haven't written any games or music for a while now, but between your work and 8-Bit Music Theory, I'm starting to rethink that decision. Your channels have reminded me why I took the paths I started.
A small technical note: While technical limitations played a strong role, the "primitive waveforms" thing wasn't true for the SNES, which had the most iconic JRPG soundtracks. The SNES sound chip had 8 voices that could play back BRR/ADPCM samples (a simple but effective compression technique for sample data). Each voice had an individual ADSR envelope, volume and pitch control, and most incredibly a fully programmable 8-tap FIR filter (called the "echo filter" in official documentation, but you could program it with arbitrary FIR coefficients). By the standards of the time, this was pretty much a carte blanche for composers in terms of musical styles, polyphony and instrumentation, and there were enough voices for sound effects to coexist with music without the hard compromises of the NES era.
TheAsvarduilProject Alfyn’s way more broken. Tressa’s neat, especially with Runelord subjob, but Alfyn’s ridiculous by himself, just due to Concoct and Last Stand.
Yeah, 100%. He's even featured in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake OST (He arranged One Winged Angel!), Kingdom Hearts 3 (and its DLC) As well as Granblue Fantasy Versus, the Granblue Fantasy anime, Princess Connect, Azur Lane anime, and Sakura Wars. All since completing Octopath Traveler. Hard to believe he began as a nobody at Konami working on Quiz Magic Academy and that weird Suikoden spiritual successor Frontier Gate (which has some amazing work by him on it as well!)
"Best boy Alfyn" Shucks, good taste right there 👌 Btw while his theme wasn't amongst my favourites at first, it really grew on me later. His theme as well as the Riverlands theme are like the musical embodiment of a comforting hug, which perfectly fits his super nice and chill personality (him being voiced by Greg Chun also helps) ^^
Agreed with everything x100!! Alfyn's theme grew on me with time, and now it makes me tear up! And the riverlands theme is soooo comforting. I listened to it during a long drive and couldn't stop smiling. The soundtrack of this game is so amazing...it's helped me through a lot of tough times, too! Glad to see fellow gamers loving it as well.
You know how you gave us chills with Wind Song? Yeah, I felt that twice with Octopath's main theme. It's fantastic, and learning about the creation and limitations of these songs is simply amazing. Really makes you appreciate video game music far beyond just background tunes.
Ow man, your videos keep making me tear up... Being a very auditory person sucks if you have a strong emotional response to music, haha :'D But seriously, *absolutely awesome* video, mate!! Now I need to get Octopath :'D
I think people generally only care on what they've properly experienced. And if you haven't actively listened to music or got the passive nostalgia that you get from gaming you're unlikely to develop a deeper bond with it. Of course there are some very rare people who apparently _can't_ enjoy music due to their physiology, but that's a different story. I really don't think anyone who'd try to get into music for some amount of time wouldn't find something that they care for. That sounds to me like the equivalent of not caring about anything, as Music seems like just a more primal form of language. I'm talking out of my rear by the way, just random thoughts and rambling with not much to back it up.
Nal Sure, nostalgia and the way we consume music (through games, movies, radio) plays a big role in how our relationship to music is, but I also think it has to do with how each person's brain processes music and how different parts of the brain react to it. Of course, everyone likes music to some extent but I assume that there are less people who have a deep passion for music. I'd say that the community of this channel are the ones with passion. :') I understand your thoughts and think you're right though.
Ahhh the Sax, no wonder the trailers convinced me to start with Alfyn :) Spectacular game with incredible music, and unpacked brilliantly as always man!
Great video! Octopath Traveler (and Yasunori Nishiki) deserve a great deal of praise for such an outstanding soundtrack. The music from the demo alone sold me on the OST CD set. I especially appreciated all the little auditory details tucked in, from each character theme featuring a different lead instrument, to the clever and intense boss music transitions that are based off the character themes as well.
I didn’t grow up with the classics. I didn’t even know any games existed outside of Pokémon and Mario til my early teens. But I do make a habit of revisiting the classics. Only last year I played Chrono Trigger and it’s one of my all time favorite games. Octopath is a game I hold close to my heart, especially the music, because it just… feels like childhood. It’s a game I desperately want to revisit when I have the time, and it did an excellent job of recreating the magic of old games. After all, it did the exact same thing the old ones did to a new generation.
This soundtrack is beautiful and while it's very nostalgic, the addition of live instruments give the pieces a certain feeling (musician interpretation) old school rpgs sadly couldn't have. While I love all of the character themes, specially Tressa (because clarinet bias) H'aanit's theme has a certain ad lib to it that makes it stand out even from the other soloists (everyone has a sort of accompaniment but this theme is pure piano. Great video as always, and I know it's a bit late but I would like your input on that.
Games like this keep Melody alive. These days games are using cinematic soundtracks and effects but they've lost what people loved. Memorable soundtracks.
Amazing video! I was already considering buying Octopath Traveler, but now I'm convinced! It's on my wish list now. I'm still amazed that your channel only has 39 thousand subscribers. You deserve more!
I haven't done Alfyn's chapter 4 yet, but so far my main issue with his story is that it's the least coherent. Feels very disjointed within itself compared to the others.
You know, I've never noticed how easily recognizable the melodies of these pieces were. I was so engaged in the game and reliving my childhood, I never noticed how the songs were made. I think they did an excellent job on doing what they were trying achieve.
Uematsu does give deference to the old masters, but a lot of his music is heavily inspired by 70s prog rockers. Aping Rick Wakeman and Ian Anderson was one of his favorite pastimes. Incidentally, this game also does the same. The boss themes and Daughter of the Dark God knew what made old RPG boss themes work, and that's sparse arrangements that have rich texture. Battle at Journey's End has a little more than its share of Yes in its DNA. So many "modern" arrangements of the classics (like The Dreadful Fight) miss out on what makes those songs so special, and it's the sparse arrangements with interplay between timbre. I'd like to see what Nishiki's thought process could do as an arranger for a remix album of some of my old favorites.
I haven't even played the game yet, I stumbled upon the soundtrack while looking through VGLeadSheets and thought Octopath Traveler had an interesting name and listened through some of the songs to decide on one to learn and I just fell in love with the whole soundtrack. The main theme has been stuck in my head for days. I'm enamored by "How Amusing!" and how well the oboe, clarinet and flute play together. Double bass and accordion is a deadly combo.
Another great bonus to the music, especially the fact that it doesn't use 5 instruments simultaneously is that it remains background music. With maybe the exception of the Main Theme and battle themes, the music remains in the background, not taking away from other game mechanics. This also makes it great to use as background music in things like DND-Sessions
I just picked up this game a few days ago after hesitating to pick it up for years, due to its pricetag. I've been crying nerd tears for the first time in like 20 years. It's truly a beautiful throwback to my teenage years, and I think the music is where most of the magic happens. I get carried away everytime the character themes ease themselves into decisive battle each in their own unique ways.
I love how you break out the staffs. It's so great how you don't just present your argument for the purpose of the soundtrack, but you present the real evidence that supports those claims. It adds determination and authenticity to the essay. It reminds me of Lessons from the Screenplay that uses the script to prove its points. Very good practice for this type of review.
Thanks! I try to do it whenever I can, but only really when the argument calls for it. I can't transcribe myself so it can be hard to get my hands on sheet music, especially stuff that I can trust is actually correct.
This is a great analysis of this game's amazing soundtrack. I agree with the point that a full orchestra tends to feel like too much-I think the most memorable example of that for me Zelda Skyward Sword's soundtrack, which feels overcrowded to me in a lot of tracks.
In terms of Zelda, that’s why I appreciate Breath of the Wild’s recording process. Where they have solo instruments record separately and have certain sections of the orchestra (such as the string section) record together in a smaller recording studio and smaller number. It allowed the performances to sound a lot more clearer in comparison to Skyward Sword’s, without losing the grandeur they needed in moments.
Good point. The Skyward Sword tracks that I liked best were the more sparse ones, like Fi's theme or Romance in the Sky. Ballad of the Goddess on the other hand is a nice composition but the arrangement is totally overcrowded (poor bassoon, trying to be heard with his counter-melody). Breath of the Wild takes a similar process as Octopath with solo instruments primarily defining the character of the tracks. (Hateno Village has the marimba and uillean pipes, Rito Village has the clarinet and dulcimer etc.).
Aha! I knew the victory fanfare was familiar! Brilliant video, this has to be your best editing yet! Totally agreed, Octopath has easily become one of my new all-time favorite soundtracks.
Havent played the game yet but I really want to. Yasunori Nishiki does a phenomenal job with this game's score. So many great pieces and character themes! EDIT: Omg I love that you cited Noriyasu Agematsu!
My favorite part about the main theme, and really a lot of the music in Octopath in general, is the progression. In the main theme, we start with a few strings, and then the flute comes in, and the horns come in. They get louder, and the the secondary motif brings in more instruments at a stronger dynamic, and it keeps going from there. And this is shown in game with other music tracks, with a few building upon one another to make for a cohesive experiment. Great sounding game, and amazing video
The explanation of the reversal of "game OSTs imitating classical orchestra compositions and then an orchestra composition trying to sound like an old game OST" helped me finally figure out how to describe Octopath Traveler's visual style: it's the same kind of reversal. Old SNES RPGs were 16-bit depictions of a realistic world, and Octopath is an extremely realistic depiction of a world that looks like it really *is* 16-bit.
"It's why hearing Wind Scene from Chrono Trigger still send shivers up your spine 20 years later." Plays music: Literally felt shivers up my spine. 🤯 "Yeah just like that." This man is a wizard!
The textures of these arrangements are exceptional, especially in combination with strong, old-school inspired compositions. Nice video, glad to have found your channel!
A composer sought to recreate the feel of classic videogame/RPG music? That's brilliant! You always choose such beautiful games and music to showcase for us, Mathew. It's a gift.
Judging from the thumbnail and how often Tressa was leading your parties, I bet you started with her too. A man of good taste I see! ;3 But anyway, I was so excited to see this video in my sub box. While I haven't finished it yet, this game quickly became one of my favorites in a very long time, which has a lot to do with the music and general atmosphere of the game. Once again you prove yourself worthy of being one of my favorite channels. Wonderful analysis! ♥
What a great analysis, you did give me chills that forced me to remember the first time I arrived at AD600 in Chrono Trigger. You deserve more subcribers, thank you for exploring and analyzing something I feel when listening to video game music in 16 bit era. This also convinces me to get Nintendo Switch only for this reason.
I wasn’t born before the 2000’s so I never played these old retro RPG’s but far off in the future when I’m much older, i’ll probably feel nostalgia for this game. It’s a nostalgic chain.
One other studio has been doing the same thing for more than a decade - *Falcom* Ever since Yuzo Koshiro and others started their composition work in the 1980s, Falcom had an immense backlog of their own retro music. And with new composers coming in, which themselves were fans of this works, made the later music that called back to those tunes. Like, listen to composition of Ys1's overworld theme from it's original PC-8801 all the way to the PC remakes, with different composers throughly recognizing the core elements of the "retro" music and turning it into "retro-modern". In the same way you described Octopath's music, all the later Falcom games put the melody and bass first, just so that the memorability factor of the tune strikes to the player first. You'll naturally start humming/whistling a tune after you close a Ys or Trails game.
I absolutely adore Jeremy Soule's score for Skyrim. Have you ever thought of making a video about it? I would be very interested in seeing such a video :)
I wish I found out about your channel years ago. This is absolutely incredible. I feel almost as if it was made for me lol. You sir just gained a subscriber. I'll be telling my friends, as well as subscribing with my gaming channel!
amazing quality videos, hope you get much more subs. I instantly like flamesgrace theme the first time I heard it, the first part with beautiful piano melodies then transition into more grand with cello(or violin ?) then turned into slow piano solo, and then the violin part kicks in. It feel very calming.
Great video. I've read interviews with composers talking about the limitations of those old consoles pushing them towards making music with really strong melodies. I was actually hoping you'd talk about it but I wasn't sure if the topic had enough material for a whole video, but I guess Octopath Traveler proved me wrong.
Yes! I've always wanted to talk about it, but never really knew how to approach it. Octopath finally provided a platform to explore it, through to be honest I don't think I could've done it until now anyway. My understanding needed to grow.
This guy is seriously one of the best game composers. I am shocked he doesn't have a lot of credits of big titles to his name... seriously people need to get him on some stuff.
This video is great! Appreciate it being a no spoiler video. I know you said you had no plans but I hope you will eventually do a Bravely Second video. Ryo needs some love after all the negativity surrounding his work on Second's ost.
I played the demo, and this was my main take away. Beautiful melodies clear as the photorealistic water, but with nuance allowed by the new tech. This video must have taken ages! :)
Your point about the composer focusing on the melody first really drives home why Octopath sounds like such classic video game music. FFXV's OST is a great example of how a composer can just overdo it. So many tracks have a full orchestra going and the sound is so complex that it becomes a forgettable mess. Great video!
Definitely some great tracks in FFXV, but I feel its biggest letdown is the battle music. As you say it's just so complex, especially when you consider all the other sound effects that are happening!
I felt like XIII had some similar issues. Like, the main battle theme was decently composed on paper, but in practice the arrangement was a bit too busy and the overly long buildup to a relatively short main section didn't suit the pace of the game's battles that well.
Hey, just got a comment to make: it is true what you said about the pitch of the instruments being above the others for the instruments that have the melody, in most cases. It is a normal practice in all music. But that is not what makes the sound of a solo instrument truly prevail. I believe it is the diference of the families in witch the instruments belong and the diferent sounds the diferent families of intruments do. For example in the Ophilia theme, yes, we have a flute, witch is a very high pitched instrument reigning over the others BUT we also have violins, witch, as you said, are also very high pitched instruments suited for melodies. what makes this contrast is really not the pitch because we have a woodwind intrument, a flute, with the certain sound woodwinds do (i could explain better this sound in some kind off way, but i think you get the point, if not, i could try to awnser in the comments), and the strig instruments, the violins. It does not the diffference between pitch, but the polarity of the kinds of sounds the diferent instruments of the diferent families do (this setence was a bit confusing, but understandable). Heck, the same happens with Alfyn's theme! We have a woodind instrument, the sax soloing (witch i personally play) and guitars making the harmonic base, witch are from the string family. This example is even stronger, because an alto sax is not a particularly high-pitched instrument BUT it is well complimented by the guitar, that can have a higher pitch than the sax (this do not know for sure, but i believe it has). You could argue that the soloistt is never overtaken in terms of the highest pitch in a music, but it, as i said in tthe beggining, makes sense. I think back then they HAD to use the higher pitches with those sounds becauuse there was not a great sound and accoustic variety with the instruments. They had to use it so the solo really can surpass the rest. Overall, i think this video is great, but this detail made it not a perfect one. As i said, i am open for discussion!
For a while I was conviced that the composer for Octopath was the same as Brave Exvius until I looked into it. Your explanation about how they compose explained why their two styles are so similar! Great video as always! The fact that watching this and hearing Ocotopath's music at some point got me choked up is exemplary of how much of an excellent job Nishiki did with this beast of an OST. ♥
I said in the last video that I wanted Agematsu to do FFXVI. I changed my mind, he's already done a great FF soundtrack. Now I want Nishiki to do FFXVI.
Amazing as always! And that breakdown of the main theme in the end was top notch. If some of your next videos ask for a thing in the same vein, dont hesitate to go into a more in-depth music theory "mode"! ;)
Incredible quality video! The content was great and very much interesting, though that background which moved constantly was sadly (at least for me) incredibly distracting. I think the videos are a lot more engaging when the clips are fullscreen without borders. Even so, keep up the great work :)
i've never played an old style, SNES kind of rpg, but this music is just awesome. I have very little nostalgic value with octopath traveler. Octopath on its own is just an amazing rpg to me. it's like it takes what's great from the old and the modern, with it's hd/pixel graphics, very simple and classic battle system and stories, but with modern touches that make it stand out, like the boost mechanic
Really good video. Working on a little game myself and need to make/write my own music (which i have close to no experience in) so these videos are quite helpful, and fun to watch i must add 👍
I would love to see you do a video about Jeremy Soule. He uses orchestra but a lot of his songs are so memorable. I get the Elder Scrolls theme stuck in my head all the time. I just discovered your channel so forgive me if you've already talked about him.
Man, I've never played Chrono Trigger, but it still sent shivers down my spine! To be a bit nitpicky, you speak of the composer writing it with melody and chords first as if it is something special. Isn't it how most music's made though? Except maybe for some super talented composers that can think up tons of instruments at once. The same with violins/flutes sitting on top. It is not a trait of video game music, but just common practice to write melodies for higher register/tone instruments. Imagine if bass had to carry all the melodies. Great video though, just my two pennies worth of thoughts that some explanations seemed a bit strange.
A small correction I want to make. At the end I say Yasunori Nishiki 'adhered to the same technical limitations as the classics', but that would mean he's using the old soundchips and making something that could actually work on the old consoles. What I meant to say was 'the same compositional limitations.' 🙂
Hey, man love your videos a ton, I am a motion graphics artist and just wanted to say I love the graphic feel of this video attached to the more important musical aspects. Really makes it feel great and fluid!
That really means a lot to me, thank you! 😄
Game Score Fanfare - As someone who has written indie games (and my own music for them, with strong inspirations from Nobuo Uematsu and Yoko Shimomura's work), I think there's a fundamental point to address in that: Limitations are the seeds of creativity. If you have all the options...none of them are valid options. When you have to work under a constraint like, "I can only use five instruments", or "My tune has to loop", or "This theme needs to seamlessly transition into a boss theme at literally any point", that's where you rule out unnecessary possibilities, which allows you to focus A) on what you need, and B) on what you need to _exceed._
I haven't written any games or music for a while now, but between your work and 8-Bit Music Theory, I'm starting to rethink that decision. Your channels have reminded me why I took the paths I started.
A small technical note: While technical limitations played a strong role, the "primitive waveforms" thing wasn't true for the SNES, which had the most iconic JRPG soundtracks. The SNES sound chip had 8 voices that could play back BRR/ADPCM samples (a simple but effective compression technique for sample data). Each voice had an individual ADSR envelope, volume and pitch control, and most incredibly a fully programmable 8-tap FIR filter (called the "echo filter" in official documentation, but you could program it with arbitrary FIR coefficients). By the standards of the time, this was pretty much a carte blanche for composers in terms of musical styles, polyphony and instrumentation, and there were enough voices for sound effects to coexist with music without the hard compromises of the NES era.
I really really hope Octopath Traveler is the start of a new trend. I want to see more games that reimagine old genres this well.
I reckon this studio will remake FFVI in this style. That's my prediction.
Honestly this game gives me hope that xenogears will one day be remastered/completed.
It looks like it is starting a trend. Look at Eiyuden Chronicles. Almost similar to Octopath graphics.
We’re getting Dragon Quest III :)
"Best boy Alfyn"
Damn right.
Alfyn = best Traveler.
As a huge Therion fan, even I have to say: Alfyn is just better, and not [i]just[/i] because he's a broken character (though not as broken as Tressa.)
TheAsvarduilProject Alfyn’s way more broken. Tressa’s neat, especially with Runelord subjob, but Alfyn’s ridiculous by himself, just due to Concoct and Last Stand.
My main the best choice from far!
There's only one hero, the one who wields UNBENDING BLADE!!!!!
This review is *UNBENDING!*
This review is UNPARALELLED!
This game's theme song is an all time classic. Yasunori Nishiki is going to be the most in-demand composer in Japan now.
Yeah, 100%. He's even featured in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake OST (He arranged One Winged Angel!), Kingdom Hearts 3 (and its DLC) As well as Granblue Fantasy Versus, the Granblue Fantasy anime, Princess Connect, Azur Lane anime, and Sakura Wars. All since completing Octopath Traveler. Hard to believe he began as a nobody at Konami working on Quiz Magic Academy and that weird Suikoden spiritual successor Frontier Gate (which has some amazing work by him on it as well!)
The music of Octopath is simply magical. It evokes so much emotion and fits so well.
"Best boy Alfyn"
Shucks, good taste right there 👌
Btw while his theme wasn't amongst my favourites at first, it really grew on me later.
His theme as well as the Riverlands theme are like the musical embodiment of a comforting hug, which perfectly fits his super nice and chill personality (him being voiced by Greg Chun also helps) ^^
e x a c t l y
the riverlands and alfyn are very special to me and i can't thnak nishiki enough for making their themes so... soothing and peaceful
Agreed with everything x100!! Alfyn's theme grew on me with time, and now it makes me tear up! And the riverlands theme is soooo comforting. I listened to it during a long drive and couldn't stop smiling. The soundtrack of this game is so amazing...it's helped me through a lot of tough times, too! Glad to see fellow gamers loving it as well.
You know how you gave us chills with Wind Song? Yeah, I felt that twice with Octopath's main theme. It's fantastic, and learning about the creation and limitations of these songs is simply amazing. Really makes you appreciate video game music far beyond just background tunes.
Yup, Octopath's main theme does it to me too!
Ahhhh I always love the musical breakdowns and the Octopath Main Theme was no exception!
I'm hoping some other, more talented channels break it down in a compositional way. 😏
Ow man, your videos keep making me tear up... Being a very auditory person sucks if you have a strong emotional response to music, haha :'D
But seriously, *absolutely awesome* video, mate!! Now I need to get Octopath :'D
Thank you! 😢
If you don't have an emotional response to music it's either not very good or you aren't listening. :P
Nal I think it still depends on the person. 🤔 Some people don't care much about music...
I think people generally only care on what they've properly experienced. And if you haven't actively listened to music or got the passive nostalgia that you get from gaming you're unlikely to develop a deeper bond with it.
Of course there are some very rare people who apparently _can't_ enjoy music due to their physiology, but that's a different story.
I really don't think anyone who'd try to get into music for some amount of time wouldn't find something that they care for. That sounds to me like the equivalent of not caring about anything, as Music seems like just a more primal form of language.
I'm talking out of my rear by the way, just random thoughts and rambling with not much to back it up.
Nal Sure, nostalgia and the way we consume music (through games, movies, radio) plays a big role in how our relationship to music is, but I also think it has to do with how each person's brain processes music and how different parts of the brain react to it. Of course, everyone likes music to some extent but I assume that there are less people who have a deep passion for music. I'd say that the community of this channel are the ones with passion. :') I understand your thoughts and think you're right though.
Ahhh the Sax, no wonder the trailers convinced me to start with Alfyn :) Spectacular game with incredible music, and unpacked brilliantly as always man!
A sax in the right hands is a dangerous instrument. Cheers, Daryl! 😃
"And best boy Alfyn," YOU GOT THAT RIGHT!
Great video! Octopath Traveler (and Yasunori Nishiki) deserve a great deal of praise for such an outstanding soundtrack. The music from the demo alone sold me on the OST CD set. I especially appreciated all the little auditory details tucked in, from each character theme featuring a different lead instrument, to the clever and intense boss music transitions that are based off the character themes as well.
This guy is soon going to be a big name in the world of video game composers.
I didn’t grow up with the classics. I didn’t even know any games existed outside of Pokémon and Mario til my early teens. But I do make a habit of revisiting the classics. Only last year I played Chrono Trigger and it’s one of my all time favorite games. Octopath is a game I hold close to my heart, especially the music, because it just… feels like childhood. It’s a game I desperately want to revisit when I have the time, and it did an excellent job of recreating the magic of old games. After all, it did the exact same thing the old ones did to a new generation.
This soundtrack is beautiful and while it's very nostalgic, the addition of live instruments give the pieces a certain feeling (musician interpretation) old school rpgs sadly couldn't have.
While I love all of the character themes, specially Tressa (because clarinet bias) H'aanit's theme has a certain ad lib to it that makes it stand out even from the other soloists (everyone has a sort of accompaniment but this theme is pure piano. Great video as always, and I know it's a bit late but I would like your input on that.
Games like this keep Melody alive.
These days games are using cinematic soundtracks and effects but they've lost what people loved. Memorable soundtracks.
This is the highest quality video I've watched all week, and I live on the internet. 12/10 my dude.
I just bought this game and holy crap. This music is addicting. I never get sick of hearing the battle music.
Amazing video! I was already considering buying Octopath Traveler, but now I'm convinced! It's on my wish list now.
I'm still amazed that your channel only has 39 thousand subscribers. You deserve more!
I think that's a way too big number! But thank you. 🙂
Alfyn isn't best boi, YOU'RE best boi 👌
And I was so ready to get mad at you before reading the second half. 😘
Alfyn is worst boy
I haven't done Alfyn's chapter 4 yet, but so far my main issue with his story is that it's the least coherent. Feels very disjointed within itself compared to the others.
Cyrus exists so......
Blue Sparx As a traveling apothecary his story is deliberately a bit more open than the others as he learns about different views on the job.
You know, I've never noticed how easily recognizable the melodies of these pieces were. I was so engaged in the game and reliving my childhood, I never noticed how the songs were made. I think they did an excellent job on doing what they were trying achieve.
I wish I knew how they actually came up with them though! Pure talent.
Uematsu does give deference to the old masters, but a lot of his music is heavily inspired by 70s prog rockers. Aping Rick Wakeman and Ian Anderson was one of his favorite pastimes.
Incidentally, this game also does the same. The boss themes and Daughter of the Dark God knew what made old RPG boss themes work, and that's sparse arrangements that have rich texture. Battle at Journey's End has a little more than its share of Yes in its DNA.
So many "modern" arrangements of the classics (like The Dreadful Fight) miss out on what makes those songs so special, and it's the sparse arrangements with interplay between timbre. I'd like to see what Nishiki's thought process could do as an arranger for a remix album of some of my old favorites.
My 3rd favorite ost of all time. It’s beautiful and amazing and this game doesn’t deserve the hate it’s getting
I haven't even played the game yet, I stumbled upon the soundtrack while looking through VGLeadSheets and thought Octopath Traveler had an interesting name and listened through some of the songs to decide on one to learn and I just fell in love with the whole soundtrack. The main theme has been stuck in my head for days. I'm enamored by "How Amusing!" and how well the oboe, clarinet and flute play together. Double bass and accordion is a deadly combo.
Another great bonus to the music, especially the fact that it doesn't use 5 instruments simultaneously is that it remains background music. With maybe the exception of the Main Theme and battle themes, the music remains in the background, not taking away from other game mechanics. This also makes it great to use as background music in things like DND-Sessions
I just picked up this game a few days ago after hesitating to pick it up for years, due to its pricetag. I've been crying nerd tears for the first time in like 20 years. It's truly a beautiful throwback to my teenage years, and I think the music is where most of the magic happens. I get carried away everytime the character themes ease themselves into decisive battle each in their own unique ways.
I love how you break out the staffs. It's so great how you don't just present your argument for the purpose of the soundtrack, but you present the real evidence that supports those claims. It adds determination and authenticity to the essay. It reminds me of Lessons from the Screenplay that uses the script to prove its points. Very good practice for this type of review.
Thanks! I try to do it whenever I can, but only really when the argument calls for it. I can't transcribe myself so it can be hard to get my hands on sheet music, especially stuff that I can trust is actually correct.
Fantastic work, and man, this soundtrack...
10 seconds in and I'm already blown away by your editing!
Holy smokes!
This is a great analysis of this game's amazing soundtrack. I agree with the point that a full orchestra tends to feel like too much-I think the most memorable example of that for me Zelda Skyward Sword's soundtrack, which feels overcrowded to me in a lot of tracks.
Yeah, I can definitely feel that in places!
In terms of Zelda, that’s why I appreciate Breath of the Wild’s recording process. Where they have solo instruments record separately and have certain sections of the orchestra (such as the string section) record together in a smaller recording studio and smaller number. It allowed the performances to sound a lot more clearer in comparison to Skyward Sword’s, without losing the grandeur they needed in moments.
Yeah, I believe they did a similar thing for Octopath. The recordings were in really small groups and then stitched them together.
Game Score Fanfare Yeah, they actually did. In fact, both soundtracks use the same string section: Koichiro Muroya Strings.
Good point. The Skyward Sword tracks that I liked best were the more sparse ones, like Fi's theme or Romance in the Sky. Ballad of the Goddess on the other hand is a nice composition but the arrangement is totally overcrowded (poor bassoon, trying to be heard with his counter-melody).
Breath of the Wild takes a similar process as Octopath with solo instruments primarily defining the character of the tracks. (Hateno Village has the marimba and uillean pipes, Rito Village has the clarinet and dulcimer etc.).
"Frozen deep inside us"
>immediately switches background music to Frostlands
nailed it.
Aha! I knew the victory fanfare was familiar! Brilliant video, this has to be your best editing yet! Totally agreed, Octopath has easily become one of my new all-time favorite soundtracks.
Ahh thank you! I put a lot of effort into the editing (too much tbh) so I am glad you think so. 😊
Havent played the game yet but I really want to.
Yasunori Nishiki does a phenomenal job with this game's score. So many great pieces and character themes!
EDIT:
Omg I love that you cited Noriyasu Agematsu!
Much like bravely default this composer did good to make game music.
Heck yes, Bravely is still one of my favourites.
Game Score Fanfare I saw this game and I went well another final fantasy game that is not named final fantasy.
Octopath is the new game by the Bravely producers!
My favorite part about the main theme, and really a lot of the music in Octopath in general, is the progression. In the main theme, we start with a few strings, and then the flute comes in, and the horns come in. They get louder, and the the secondary motif brings in more instruments at a stronger dynamic, and it keeps going from there. And this is shown in game with other music tracks, with a few building upon one another to make for a cohesive experiment. Great sounding game, and amazing video
This is an incredible video about Octopath's music! Simply amazing, thank you very much!
Oh my gosh! Thank you for this vid! You are one of my favourite youTubers!
aww thank you for the smile! 😄
The explanation of the reversal of "game OSTs imitating classical orchestra compositions and then an orchestra composition trying to sound like an old game OST" helped me finally figure out how to describe Octopath Traveler's visual style: it's the same kind of reversal. Old SNES RPGs were 16-bit depictions of a realistic world, and Octopath is an extremely realistic depiction of a world that looks like it really *is* 16-bit.
Octopath music is perfect, just hearing it again evokes such powerful emotions
You got me with the spine tingles on that Wind Theme playback
This game took the number 1 spot for game score in my book!
You deserve way more subscribers. I love the analysis of all these pieces and the videos!
"It's why hearing Wind Scene from Chrono Trigger still send shivers up your spine 20 years later."
Plays music: Literally felt shivers up my spine. 🤯
"Yeah just like that."
This man is a wizard!
The textures of these arrangements are exceptional, especially in combination with strong, old-school inspired compositions. Nice video, glad to have found your channel!
Amazing as always 💕 you totally captured my feelings!
Thank you shibby! 😄
Ay! Wind Scene from Chrono Trigger sent shivers through my body ! Love your videos as always.
A composer sought to recreate the feel of classic videogame/RPG music? That's brilliant!
You always choose such beautiful games and music to showcase for us, Mathew. It's a gift.
I just have excellent taste.🤓
Watched this video 3 times within a year, I learnt something new every single time. Thank you!
Judging from the thumbnail and how often Tressa was leading your parties, I bet you started with her too. A man of good taste I see! ;3
But anyway, I was so excited to see this video in my sub box. While I haven't finished it yet, this game quickly became one of my favorites in a very long time, which has a lot to do with the music and general atmosphere of the game. Once again you prove yourself worthy of being one of my favorite channels. Wonderful analysis! ♥
Tressa's best girl. And thank you! 😄
lowryder259 Tressa may be good taste but Ophilia is HOLY taste.
I agree with the pineapple gentleman
Game Score Fanfare personally I prefer breaking the early game with h’aanit.
What a great analysis, you did give me chills that forced me to remember the first time I arrived at AD600 in Chrono Trigger. You deserve more subcribers, thank you for exploring and analyzing something I feel when listening to video game music in 16 bit era. This also convinces me to get Nintendo Switch only for this reason.
He played wind scene and the nostalgia all came to me.
Battle Theme 2 is definitely one of my favorite game tracks of all time, hands down
I wasn’t born before the 2000’s so I never played these old retro RPG’s but far off in the future when I’m much older, i’ll probably feel nostalgia for this game.
It’s a nostalgic chain.
Great to see another fan of VG Soundtracks. Keep doing what you're doing :)
This made me realize that I REALLY need the octo path music playlist. Ima go check for it RIGHT NOW!
Another amazing video ! Once again, you helped me appreciate video game music even more. Thank you !
Your videos are awesome, you undoubtedly deserve more attention. Keep going like that!
Damn, you hit the nail on the head. I love the soundtrack of Octopath Traveler, now I know why. Thanks for that.
Thank you for this video! Thanks for your time and your work :)
Your comments are very nice and they make me feel valued. 😊
I like your work, making you feel valued is just fair :)
Amazing. That's probably why there's something special to game music particularly RPGs
The score for this game is so freaking gorgeous.
gosh, watching your video made me appreciate even more octopath traveler's soundtrack even more. I need to buy this game :
One other studio has been doing the same thing for more than a decade - *Falcom*
Ever since Yuzo Koshiro and others started their composition work in the 1980s, Falcom had an immense backlog of their own retro music. And with new composers coming in, which themselves were fans of this works, made the later music that called back to those tunes.
Like, listen to composition of Ys1's overworld theme from it's original PC-8801 all the way to the PC remakes, with different composers throughly recognizing the core elements of the "retro" music and turning it into "retro-modern".
In the same way you described Octopath's music, all the later Falcom games put the melody and bass first, just so that the memorability factor of the tune strikes to the player first. You'll naturally start humming/whistling a tune after you close a Ys or Trails game.
This is interesting!
Game Score Fanfare
Broke : Modernizing other old retro game music style
Woke Falcom : Modernizing your own old retro game music style
Probably the reason why I dont enjoy Falcom games music, their base music isnt that great. Modernizing mediocre gets you modernized mediocre.
The main theme makes me emotional. Every. Single. Time. even in my first listen.
A true masterpiece.
Octopath traveler is a masterpiece. I’ll fight anyone.
I absolutely adore Jeremy Soule's score for Skyrim. Have you ever thought of making a video about it? I would be very interested in seeing such a video :)
When I listened to Orewell’s theme the first time I immediately felt nostalgia even though I had never even been to Orewell in game
I wish I found out about your channel years ago. This is absolutely incredible. I feel almost as if it was made for me lol. You sir just gained a subscriber. I'll be telling my friends, as well as subscribing with my gaming channel!
amazing quality videos, hope you get much more subs. I instantly like flamesgrace theme the first time I heard it, the first part with beautiful piano melodies then transition into more grand with cello(or violin ?) then turned into slow piano solo, and then the violin part kicks in. It feel very calming.
All of that area's music is amazing, I really love The Frostlands.
Great analysis as always. Thanks!!
Great video. I've read interviews with composers talking about the limitations of those old consoles pushing them towards making music with really strong melodies. I was actually hoping you'd talk about it but I wasn't sure if the topic had enough material for a whole video, but I guess Octopath Traveler proved me wrong.
Yes! I've always wanted to talk about it, but never really knew how to approach it. Octopath finally provided a platform to explore it, through to be honest I don't think I could've done it until now anyway. My understanding needed to grow.
This guy is seriously one of the best game composers. I am shocked he doesn't have a lot of credits of big titles to his name... seriously people need to get him on some stuff.
I just stumbled onto this video and I absolutely loved your analysis. Subscribed. Please make more!
I always wondered why games from the NES/SNES era had such memorable tunes. Limitations really does bring out the best in creativity
I super loved watching this video. I can't wait to get a hold of this game. It looks and sounds so lovely! Thanks for another awesome video! :D
Mark my words, if there hasn't been an Octopath Traveler concert yet, there will be at some point. The Universe wills it. :)
This channel is UNPARALLELED!
Wait I always thought that the Victory fanfare was a variation of the Main Theme
One of the best OST ever!
This video is great! Appreciate it being a no spoiler video. I know you said you had no plans but I hope you will eventually do a Bravely Second video. Ryo needs some love after all the negativity surrounding his work on Second's ost.
I played the demo, and this was my main take away. Beautiful melodies clear as the photorealistic water, but with nuance allowed by the new tech. This video must have taken ages! :)
It took a bit longer than I wanted yes, but mainly in the editing. I tried to let go of being a perfectionist for the script!
Your point about the composer focusing on the melody first really drives home why Octopath sounds like such classic video game music. FFXV's OST is a great example of how a composer can just overdo it. So many tracks have a full orchestra going and the sound is so complex that it becomes a forgettable mess. Great video!
Definitely some great tracks in FFXV, but I feel its biggest letdown is the battle music. As you say it's just so complex, especially when you consider all the other sound effects that are happening!
I felt like XIII had some similar issues. Like, the main battle theme was decently composed on paper, but in practice the arrangement was a bit too busy and the overly long buildup to a relatively short main section didn't suit the pace of the game's battles that well.
Hey, just got a comment to make: it is true what you said about the pitch of the instruments being above the others for the instruments that have the melody, in most cases. It is a normal practice in all music. But that is not what makes the sound of a solo instrument truly prevail. I believe it is the diference of the families in witch the instruments belong and the diferent sounds the diferent families of intruments do. For example in the Ophilia theme, yes, we have a flute, witch is a very high pitched instrument reigning over the others BUT we also have violins, witch, as you said, are also very high pitched instruments suited for melodies. what makes this contrast is really not the pitch because we have a woodwind intrument, a flute, with the certain sound woodwinds do (i could explain better this sound in some kind off way, but i think you get the point, if not, i could try to awnser in the comments), and the strig instruments, the violins. It does not the diffference between pitch, but the polarity of the kinds of sounds the diferent instruments of the diferent families do (this setence was a bit confusing, but understandable). Heck, the same happens with Alfyn's theme! We have a woodind instrument, the sax soloing (witch i personally play) and guitars making the harmonic base, witch are from the string family. This example is even stronger, because an alto sax is not a particularly high-pitched instrument BUT it is well complimented by the guitar, that can have a higher pitch than the sax (this do not know for sure, but i believe it has). You could argue that the soloistt is never overtaken in terms of the highest pitch in a music, but it, as i said in tthe beggining, makes sense. I think back then they HAD to use the higher pitches with those sounds becauuse there was not a great sound and accoustic variety with the instruments. They had to use it so the solo really can surpass the rest. Overall, i think this video is great, but this detail made it not a perfect one. As i said, i am open for discussion!
For a while I was conviced that the composer for Octopath was the same as Brave Exvius until I looked into it. Your explanation about how they compose explained why their two styles are so similar!
Great video as always! The fact that watching this and hearing Ocotopath's music at some point got me choked up is exemplary of how much of an excellent job Nishiki did with this beast of an OST. ♥
I said in the last video that I wanted Agematsu to do FFXVI. I changed my mind, he's already done a great FF soundtrack. Now I want Nishiki to do FFXVI.
Amazing as always! And that breakdown of the main theme in the end was top notch. If some of your next videos ask for a thing in the same vein, dont hesitate to go into a more in-depth music theory "mode"! ;)
hahahah thank you, I will try! I am not great at it though. Don't wanna come across as uninformed as I actually am. 😅
Incredible quality video! The content was great and very much interesting, though that background which moved constantly was sadly (at least for me) incredibly distracting. I think the videos are a lot more engaging when the clips are fullscreen without borders. Even so, keep up the great work :)
Wow. Great editing
The soundtrack also works for someone that never really grew up with these kinds of games.
And Alfyn is indeed best boy. :D
I miss playing this game
Tbh I've never played Chrono trigger I still get shivers.
YOU ARE SO RIGHT
ALFYN *IS* BEST BOI
also fantastic video!
This is very well done!
i've never played an old style, SNES kind of rpg, but this music is just awesome. I have very little nostalgic value with octopath traveler. Octopath on its own is just an amazing rpg to me. it's like it takes what's great from the old and the modern, with it's hd/pixel graphics, very simple and classic battle system and stories, but with modern touches that make it stand out, like the boost mechanic
I wasn't going to watch this out of fear of spoilers. Glad I at least clicked the video to check for some music without context.
Yes, that was my plan! Glad it worked.
Spectacular video.
Really good video. Working on a little game myself and need to make/write my own music (which i have close to no experience in) so these videos are quite helpful, and fun to watch i must add 👍
Ahh good luck! Glad I can be of some help! 😃
I would love to see you do a video about Jeremy Soule. He uses orchestra but a lot of his songs are so memorable. I get the Elder Scrolls theme stuck in my head all the time. I just discovered your channel so forgive me if you've already talked about him.
Man, I've never played Chrono Trigger, but it still sent shivers down my spine!
To be a bit nitpicky, you speak of the composer writing it with melody and chords first as if it is something special. Isn't it how most music's made though? Except maybe for some super talented composers that can think up tons of instruments at once. The same with violins/flutes sitting on top. It is not a trait of video game music, but just common practice to write melodies for higher register/tone instruments. Imagine if bass had to carry all the melodies. Great video though, just my two pennies worth of thoughts that some explanations seemed a bit strange.
YES I'VE BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS SINCE YOU RESPONDED TO MY ONE TWEET
EXCEPT I DIDN'T BECAUSE I WENT TO SLEEP AND SOMEONE ELSE DID IT FOR ME.
REGARDLESS, THANK YOU
YOU'RE VERY WELCOME.