Final Fantasy X gets a
bit of a bad rap these days. While it is not the best game in the
series, it is a fun game. I enjoy Final Fantasy X for many of the
characters, the evolution of the battle system (for a time) and of
course the music. Personally, I enjoyed the music. Not to the extent
of Final Fantasy IX, but it is still a good soundtrack.
Final Fantasy X was
also the first game in the main series that didn't have Nobuo Uematsu
as the main composer. Instead the job was split between himself and
two others; Masashi Hamauzu and Junya Nakano. Honestly, I found their
work on the game's OST to be good for their first time. Many people
grief about how some songs seem out of place (mostly pointing at the
heavy metal Overworld track) and incorrectly blaming the new
composers, failing to realize that it was Uematsu who composed the
track.
To be perfectly honest,
Overworld is not a bad track. It is a very western piece of music
that you would hear in a shooter, not a jRPG so perhaps that is why
people complain. It is not bad as a song, but as an opening music
track, it kind of fails. I am aware of what they were trying to do
and it works somewhat, but the way the destruction of Zanarkand is
spliced with a game of Blitzball, I find it incredibly awkward.
On the opposite end of
the spectrum we have the Hymn of the Fayth track which is one of
Uematsu's best tracks in the series. The song is more akin to a
church choir and as such has a haunting beauty to it. When the music
begins to play, you can't help but sit back in awe. This track plays
a key importance in the game and when it plays outside of the
temples, there is something important happening. Normally I chastise
a song for being short, but Hymn of the Fayth is the exception to the
rule. Had the track been longer, it would have lost its impact on the
player. For an excellent cover of the track, I suggest checking out
Lauren Liebowitz (Of the video game coverband The Returners) rendition
of Hymn of the Fayth. She does an excellent cover of the track and
captures the haunting essence of the song.
When you compare the
Final Fantasy X OST with other games in the series, it finds itself
in the middle. It's not as good as other games, but when you compare
it to games such as Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy Mystic
Quest, then it is a you find that it is still a good soundtrack. The
Final Fantasy X OST is not a bad soundtrack. Its main problem is that
parts of it truly weigh down the quality of the OST while other parts
are fantastic. There is very little middle ground.
This is Daimo Mac and I
am lost in the music.
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