Bittersweet Boss Ballads

Square Enix Edition

There is something about the term “boss fight” that implies a cacophony of raucous musical phrases smashed together to create an epic climax. Works like Nobuo Uematsu’s “Dancing Mad” and “One-Winged Angel” come to mind immediately.

But occasionally, the player is allowed to experience an epic boss confrontation to something a little softer. The effect of these moments is a unique emotional event that boldly stands apart from the rest of the game. It’s a beautiful thing when executed well.

Below are some examples of these quieter, more delicate musical works along with a brief description of their contexts. Keep in mind I limited myself to Square Enix games. There are some moderate spoilers below as well, so be warned.

1.     Kingdom Hearts II
“The Other Promise”

Adapted from Roxas’s Theme

For fans of the Kingdom Hearts series, the opening hours of Kingdom Hearts II are both infamously tedious and undeniably melancholy. Instead of playing as the chipper series hero (Sora) the player must work through the struggles of Twilight Town as the troubled and confused youth, Roxas. Despite all his sincere efforts to understand his muddled memories and puzzling circumstances, Roxas never seems to catch a break. His friends become frustrated by his bizarre behavior. His life becomes uncertain and broken. His freewill is largely an illusion. He ends up rejoining Sora, which results in both his own self-sacrifice and loss of everything else he cares about.

When Sora reawakens (and fans rejoice), he is blissfully unaware of the tragedy that recently befell his Nobody counterpart. Roxas inhabits Sora silently, occasionally influencing Sora’s feelings but otherwise remaining a passive component of Sora’s heart.

Eventually, Sora reaches the world of the Nobodies, a.k.a. The World That Never Was. Once there, he is confronted by Roxas and their keyblades clash—presumably inside Sora’s heart. It is at this moment that many gamers would expect an energetic flood of boisterous music. But instead, this happens:

Roxas isn’t really my favorite Kingdom Hearts character. He’s not the strongest or the most interesting. He’s not even the most tragic. But the game’s approach to this fight builds his character into something simply beautiful. Each aspect of the conflict—the visuals, the mechanics, and especially the music—takes all the unresolved feelings of one character and confronts the player. Everything about this moment conveys Roxas’s frustration and defiance. It eventually communicates his acceptance just as effectively. It’s a fantastically well executed song choice. Well done, Yoko Shimomura.

2.     Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core
     "The Price of Freedom"

Crisis Core is another game where a melancholy sense of loss is balanced with upbeat humor and optimism.

For the sake of giving readers a point of reference, here is one of the themes you hear a lot of in Crisis Core:

Notice the choice of electric guitar as opposed to the typical RPG orchestra. This game’s music feels strong and epic, but not in a grand and noble Ocarina of Time sort of way. It’s significantly more personal and grungy.

Toward the end of this portable gem, main character Zack is forced to abandon his livelihood and risk everything to save his buddy, Cloud. What results is a never-ending conflict set to this unforgettable tune:

For more information (and huge spoilers) regarding why this game is a masterpiece, read this.

3.     Final Fantasy IX
     "Sword of Doubt"

Part of Final Fantasy IX’s charm resides in its clever opening plot. Main character Zidane is part of a band of thieves hired to kidnap the neighboring country’s princess. Unexpectedly, she wants to be kidnapped. She leaves with the hero to be swept away midst dangerous terrain and formidable foes.

One such danger presents itself in the form of General Beatrix of the Alexandrian army. Beatrix boasts amazing strength, having once bested 100 enemies single-handedly. Of all her character traits, her power is surpassed only by her determined willingness to be the perfect soldier.

Zidane et al take on Beatrix in the ruins of Bermecia, a dark, rainy, abandoned city. During the encounter, this is played:

Interestingly, this piece--which is relatively tame for a boss fight--is actually a vamped up version of Beatrix's theme. This translates well for the game's story, in which you discover that Beatrix is actually a much gentler person than she appears during this battle.

4.     Chrono Cross

"People Imprisoned by Destiny"

It’s been a long time since I have beaten Chrono Cross. I started replaying it two or three years ago, but I had to put it down due to the increased number of wonderful new games flooding the market. But I will say that revisiting that game was such a pleasant experience. Its battle system is brilliant, its story is intricate, but best of all, its soundtrack is ear candy.

Now keep in mind, I haven’t played the final boss battle of Chrono Cross in probably twelve years or so. Yet it is one of my most vivid video game memories, mainly because of this soothing track bursting with a sense of finality:

I’m certain there are many more amazing works out there in this particular category. Feel free to comment regarding your favorites!

Why I Love Final Fantasy IX

As everyone knows, the Final Fantasy franchise has had its ups and downs, its massive successes and its occasional flops. As such, I got curious and started investigating which games are the most critically acclaimed. I surfed through a few sites, but mainly spent my time digging through metacritic scores. Interestingly, the game that tops Final Fantasy’s list may surprise you.

No, it’s not Final Fantasy VII, despite it being so revolutionary and well-known. No, it’s not Final Fantasy VI regardless of its deeper subject matter and incredible story. No, it’s not Final Fantasy X with its gorgeous graphics, immensely fun battle system, and charming story. In fact, there are quite a few entries that I personally cherish, but the one that has topped both the metacritic charts and my own subjective list is Final Fantasy IX. Yes, the one with the weird art style and the protagonist with a tail.

I don’t claim to know all the components that went into Final Fantasy IX’s stellar metacritic score, but below are some reasons that I personally love the game.

1. The main character isn't moody, brooding, or whiny

There is something immensely refreshing about a character that is downright cheerful; between all the overpowered bad boys, sullen heroes, and otherwise exaggerated protagonists, I believe a witty, optimistic, baselessly confident good guy fills a void that I have been craving lately. Zidane is that guy. He is the Nathan Drake of JRPGs. A little reckless, always funny, certainly flirtatious, and never burdened with an overabundance of gloominess. It also helps that he reminds me so much of my always-cheerful husband.

The beauty of having a character whose default disposition is happy is that when the character has a legitimate crisis, the mood shift is more defined. There are a couple distinct developments in Final Fantasy IX’s story that cause great distress to Zidane, and as such, the contrast between his temporary emotional state and his typical upbeat, mischievous attitude is stark. It is enough to make the player realize that if this character is so upset, clearly something is very, very wrong.

2. The music is fantastic

If you enjoy listening to video game soundtracks, chances are good that at least one entry from the Final Fantasy franchise has made your playlist. Let me assure you that the ninth game in the series can certainly hold its own.

First there is the eloquently simple “A Place to Call Home” (a.k.a. “The Place I’ll Return to Someday”). Then you have the immensely catchy, energetic “Vamo’alla Flamenco” that plays both during the staged sword fight in the first act and during the chocobo mini game later on. There’s also the hauntingly understated “Freya’s Theme” (reiterated in the track “A Face Unforgotten”) and the emotional peaks and valleys of “You Are Not Alone”. I could go on for ages, but I will limit myself to two more mentions: the twin themes of “Rose of May” and “Something to Protect.” All of these will be posted below my list in case a desire to investigate happens to be strong enough for you to listen.

3. The ability mechanics are addictive

Having complete control over what skills my party learns and in what order is incredibly gratifying. Final Fantasy IX gives you that kind of influence over your game. I love equipping all the different weapons, armor, and accessories to immediately gain an ability with which I can destroy my enemies. By the end of the game, your abundant selection of abilities can give you a wide array of battle strategies, making fighting have plenty of depth and multiple paths to victory.

4. The game has something important to say

Many JRPGs these days seem to get caught up in the convoluted nature of the genre and don’t really end up saying much of anything by the end of the experience. It is complex for the sake of complexity. While the Final Fantasy series has never really seemed to suffer from that problem (at least not until after X), I will say that IX has a very different story than the surrounding entries.

This game focuses on the themes of war, power, self-acceptance, sacrifice, loss, a sense of home and belonging, mortality, and captivity. Okay, so every JRPG covers these themes. But Final Fantasy IX does carry them out in a new and fresh way, and it does this well.

5. Love

Final Fantasy IX is a love story. It carries some heavy themes just like VI, VII, and X, but it is also driven mainly by romance. While the characters in every other game have a huge purpose with love almost being a side mission of sorts, Zidane clearly is driven almost wholly by his affection for the female lead. In fact, the player is given the chance in game to select that as his motivating factor for everything he has done up until that point. And honestly, it is the choice that makes the most sense.

Believing that he cannot be with Garnet completely demotivates Zidane, and when he eventually tries to take on the group’s quest on his own, his solo mission results in massively negative effects.
Because Zidane is ineffective without Garnet, which is beautiful really. It harkens back to what we all already know about man needing a helper (רעֵ֫זֶ). It’s not that Zidane isn’t skilled (it’s clear he is) or that he “needs her” or that she “completes him” or anything tacky or misguided like that. But when she is with him, he becomes a better version of himself. He is more selfless, more confident, more driven.

Now I’m sure anyone could argue that Final Fantasy X is a love story on par with IX. But I would also argue that the tones of these two stories are vastly different. I appreciate IX’s lighthearted take on what love can accomplish.

Finally...

I recently found time to replay the PlayStation classic in all its glory. Considering it was released 15 years ago back in 2000, it has aged remarkably well to the point where the game felt simultaneously fresh and nostalgic. I never once felt demotivated by traditional RPG grinding, nor did the graphics hinder the experience in the least. The mechanics remained quite solid, and the story still captivated me. All these pieces of the puzzle come together to form a very complete, satisfying game.

Here’s what I am trying to say (unfortunately veiled behind pretty words and elaborate sentence structure): I really enjoyed it to the point where thinking about it gives me a bittersweet, melancholy feeling because I beat the game and miss playing it.

Theatrhythm: Kingdom Hearts is a Perfect Fit

I've been playing a lot of Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy Curtain Call as of late, primarily due to the recent release of Chrono Trigger and The World Ends with You DLC. I have just passed the 40,000 Rhythmia mark in addition to the 70,000+ I collected from the first game, yet I feel just as entertained by Theatrhythm as I was when I first played it (if not more so).

I admit almost bashfully that part of the satisfaction I experience is due to the immensely satisfying reward system within the game. I know it seems silly to enjoy unlocking crystal shards, earning gold stars in my record book, and gathering up CollectaCards, but I just can’t help it. The creators did a fantastic job giving me a reason to keep coming back for more tapping, holding, and sliding. But that isn't the only rationale for why I love Theatrhythm, nor is it my primary reason.

Theatrhythm takes music that is both expertly composed and emotionally resonant and creates something new with it.

The music is well-written. They have passionate back stories. And they have the player’s memories to tie it all together. Theatrhythm takes all those elements and reveals them at their maximum potential by allowing players the opportunity to vividly and retroactively experience feelings they had at the climax of a game. Plus it’s fun to tap along.

It’s something I wish I could do with every epic video game moment because quality music is such an instrumental (pun intended) part of that climax. Chrono Cross’s “People Imprisoned by Destiny” and Persona 3’s “Battle for Everyone’s Souls” are perfect examples of songs that I vividly recall experiencing for the first time and would love to relive. And while songs from Chrono Cross are a distinct possibility, it disappoints me to think that I will most likely never play a game like Theatrhythm that utilizes the dynamic, catchy soundtracks of franchises like Persona. But I digress.

Knowing that so much of Theatrhythm’s strength comes from this trifecta of story intricacies, skillfully constructed music, and emotional appeal, I have to make a case for the perfection that could be Theatrhythm: Kingdom Hearts.

First off, Kingdom Hearts is epic, endearing, and filled with layered narrative. It has a loyal following, beautiful scores by Yoko Shimomura, and—thanks to its prolonged gaps between releases—plenty of nostalgia and emotional appeal. However, this in itself is not enough to make a good argument for its success were it to be made. Fortunately, I have included here several additional reasons why I think Kingdom Hearts could work.

1. A plethora of characters to choose from

Surprisingly, one of the most common criticisms I’ve seen on the web happens to be what I consider one of its greatest strengths. I have seen many forum posts and comments beneath articles stating that Kingdom Hearts simply doesn’t have enough characters to substantially fill the game. I beg to differ.

Including only characters original to the series gives us Sora, Riku, Kairi, Aqua, Ventus, Terra, Roxas, Naminé, Xion, Axel/Lea, Ansem the Wise, Ansem Seeker of Darkness, Xemnas, Xehanort, The rest of Organization XIII, Data Sora, Data Riku, Vanitas, and Eraqus. The cast could easily be broadened with some of the Disney cast (particularly Mickey, Donald, and Goofy). Some of the more prominent Final Fantasy characters could also add to the mix (including “Leon”, Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith, etc.). Finally (albeit unlikely), I would include the main five characters from The World Ends with You due to both their involvement in Dream Drop Distance and their Square Enix roots. This would lend itself to a cast of 40+ without even depending on a bunch of Disney characters getting added into the mix.

2. Fantastic music from seven (soon eight) games

Yes, some of the main themes repeat. But there is still an appropriate amount of music to be considered here. Consider the following tracks pulled from the first game alone. Note that (to my knowledge) I didn’t even have to pull any Disney tracks to compile this list. I also believe that the later games actually show a greater diversity in their soundtracks, which would help.

• Hikari
• Destiny Islands
• Kairi’s Theme
• Night of Fate
• Destiny’s Force
• Traverse Town
• Shrouding Dark Cloud
• Blast Away III
• Hollow Bastion
• Scherzo Di Notte
• Destati
• Forze Del Male
• Always on My Mind
• Simple and Clean

So from the first game alone, I pulled 14 tracks that stand out quite well. If the same quantity can be pulled from the other six games that are currently released, that would include nearly 100 songs to play. While Curtain Call boasts an impressive 200+ songs, I think it is important to keep in mind that 100 songs from less than half the number of titles is equally remarkable. And keep in mind, Disney tracks could always be included to further satisfy the already excellent selection of music.

Again, since these were only pulled from the first game, there are many impressive pieces that we are missing out on here, many of which are my favorites (looking at you, “Unbreakable Chains”). But I think my point stands that there is in fact more than enough quality music to make a Theatrhythm: Kingdom Hearts.

3. Easily adapted feature zones

Feature zones are included in each music stage of Theatrhythm as a means to break apart each type of music stage into memorable parts. This also serves to provide players with a particular goal mid-song as they strive to summon powerful allies, ride fast chocobos, or see the extended version of a video mash-up.

The feature zones from each Battle Music Stage (BMS) could be seamlessly implemented into a Kingdom Hearts adaptation through the inclusion of Disney summons as seen in Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2. Instead of Ifrit, Shiva, and Bahamut (among others), the game would include the familiar likes of Simba, Genie, and Mushu. Another option—if Disney summons seem a bit too small compared to the grand Final Fantasy affairs—would be to implement Sora’s Drive Forms at this point in the stage, allowing him to use Valor, Wisdom, Limit, Master, Final, or Anti Form.

Similarly, Field Music Stages (FMS) could substitute the use of a gummi ship in the feature zone instead of riding a chocobo. The player’s successful input of touch, slide, and hold commands could be the primary factor in determining how grand a gummi ship they receive for the short time they have it. This would easily parallel the various chocobos and their different speeds.

Finally, the Event Music Stages (EMS) could be increased in number due to the sheer quantity of Kingdom Hearts cut scenes, something the Final Fantasy series can’t even compare to. Traditionally, each Final Fantasy title only has one EMS to play through, most likely due to the lack of usable clips from some of the earlier games in the series. However, I roughly calculated the time it would take to watch every cut scene so far that takes place in Sora’s universe, and I came up with a number just over twenty-one hours. Twenty-one hours! Even if my calculations are slightly erroneous, that is an insane amount of footage to pull from. It is easy to conclude from that ridiculously high number that pulling enough iconic clips from across each game would be simple enough; in fact, the creators of a Theatrhythm: Kingdom Hearts could even include 2 or 3 EMS pieces with ease and still have plenty of extra footage for each feature zone.

4. The possibilities are endless

It is exciting to think of all the possible directions the Theatrhythm franchise could take. I honestly believe Kingdom Hearts would not only be an incredibly enjoyable installment but also a logical one. Whether it be changing the CollectaCards to match the cards found in Chain of Memories, or adapting the Record Book to reflect the feel of Jiminy’s Journal, I can already see how great Theatrhythm would be if it were to accommodate the Kingdom Hearts realm.

What would you expect from a Theatrhythm: Kingdom Hearts? Leave your ideas and comments below! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some tapping to do.