RPGamers Network > Reviews > Game Music Reviews > Final Fantasy Tactics OST
Reviewed by: Zhuzhen
Final Fantasy Tactics has such original music that it may be very well impossible to describe it using words. It blends two artists' styles together to form one beauty of a soundtrack, and I do mean beauty. This is the sort of music that Uematsu and Mitsuda only dream of. Masaharu Iwata and Hitoshi Sakimoto teamed up together to form what may very well be the greatest Final Fantasy soundtrack of all time (At least, I think so). The real question is; how do they do it? I say it is the style from which these artists work. I'll start with Sakimoto.
The Artists
Hitoshi Sakimoto has a style that is unmatched by any other composer I know. The way he manipulates beats and tones is something that many artists have tried to duplicate but have not even come close. It is extremely difficult to explain what exactly he does. He just has such a talent for hearing music that everything he touches turns to gold. If every father has a favorite son, then every artist has a favorite album and I think Sakimoto would consider this his finest work.
Some of Sakimoto other work includes Vagrant Story, All Sounds of Ogre Battle, Radiant Silvergun and Legaia Duel Saga but like I mentioned, nothing compares to Final Fantasy Tactics. His work on both Radiant Silvergun and Vagrant Story comes very, very near his work on this album but it does not achieve the same level of success.
Now, what would a carpenter be without his apprentice? Thus, enter Masaharu Iwata. Iwata is the swan to Sakimoto's goose. They go hand in hand and it shows on so many albums. Other albums that the two worked on include All Sounds of Ogre Battle, Treasure Hunter G, and a few other Ogre Battle albums but really, their finest work has to be this album. While all those albums are good, nothing really compares to Final Fantasy Tactics.
Baroque Original Soundtrack is one of the few albums that Iwata has worked on by himself and I must say, I thoroughly enjoy this album however I feel that without Sakimoto, Iwata is simply mediocre. When he and Sakimoto team together, both of their musical talents combine to form one some godly music.
The Music
The thing I most enjoy about Final Fantasy Tactics is the battle tracks. There are so many that it would be just about impossible to pick only one favorite. Each battle track has its own special quality, however, if I was forced to pick just one I would say that disc one, track thirty-seven (Apoplexy) is by far my favorite. It has such a unique tone to it that I cannot help by get stimulated when I hear it.
One thing Sakimoto is known for is his amazing staff rolls and Final Fantasy Tactics is no different. The last track on disc two is one of his better staff rolls (If not his best, that is). It may only shadow in comparison to the staff roll he did for Vagrant Story.
Character themes are something just about every RPG in existence has. Final Fantasy Tactics doesn't really have a set of main characters you get in the beginning but rather it lets you pick your party. However, the key characters (Such as the Hero, Delita, Alma, Ovelia, Zalbag, etc) got their own themes. Of all the character themes, I'd have to say I enjoyed Zalbag's theme the most (Disc 1; track thirty eight). It just has such a sound to it that I still love to hear this song even to this date no matter how many times I've played through Final Fantasy Tactics.
The Overall Presentation
This album does the game it was created for so much justice in the sense that all the songs truly flow well with the battles and the characters. However, it also is one of those albums that you don't need to play the game first to thoroughly enjoy it.
There are reasons that it doesn't deserve a perfect score, however. One thing I think the Final Fantasy series is known for is always having an extremely powerful vocal track. Tactics was missing this and I think the addition could have done the album only better.
Also, another gripe about this album is the fact that is was also missing a bit or variety in the battle tracks. Are the current ones good? Heck yes. My gripe is that each sounds somewhat similar. Final Fantasy Tactics needed a somewhat slow battle theme. Something along the lines of Xenogears' boss theme. In fact, just something to vary the sounds during battle would do.
If you've never played this game and are wondering if getting the soundtrack would be worth your money, I can say honestly that it would be. This is an album that should be in every video game music fan's collection.
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| Album Information | Reviewer Rank |
|---|---|
|
Final Fantasy Tactics OST Published by: DigiCube Release Date: June 21st 1997 Composed by: Masaharu Iwata, Hitoshi Sakimoto Arranged by: Masaharu Iwata, Hitoshi Sakimoto 2 Discs, 71 Tracks Catalog: SSCX-10008 |
89 |
Reviewed by: Zhuzhen
Final Fantasy Tactics has such original music that it may be very well impossible to describe it using words. It blends two artists' styles together to form one beauty of a soundtrack, and I do mean beauty. This is the sort of music that Uematsu and Mitsuda only dream of. Masaharu Iwata and Hitoshi Sakimoto teamed up together to form what may very well be the greatest Final Fantasy soundtrack of all time (At least, I think so). The real question is; how do they do it? I say it is the style from which these artists work. I'll start with Sakimoto.
The Artists
Hitoshi Sakimoto has a style that is unmatched by any other composer I know. The way he manipulates beats and tones is something that many artists have tried to duplicate but have not even come close. It is extremely difficult to explain what exactly he does. He just has such a talent for hearing music that everything he touches turns to gold. If every father has a favorite son, then every artist has a favorite album and I think Sakimoto would consider this his finest work.
Some of Sakimoto other work includes Vagrant Story, All Sounds of Ogre Battle, Radiant Silvergun and Legaia Duel Saga but like I mentioned, nothing compares to Final Fantasy Tactics. His work on both Radiant Silvergun and Vagrant Story comes very, very near his work on this album but it does not achieve the same level of success.
Now, what would a carpenter be without his apprentice? Thus, enter Masaharu Iwata. Iwata is the swan to Sakimoto's goose. They go hand in hand and it shows on so many albums. Other albums that the two worked on include All Sounds of Ogre Battle, Treasure Hunter G, and a few other Ogre Battle albums but really, their finest work has to be this album. While all those albums are good, nothing really compares to Final Fantasy Tactics.
Baroque Original Soundtrack is one of the few albums that Iwata has worked on by himself and I must say, I thoroughly enjoy this album however I feel that without Sakimoto, Iwata is simply mediocre. When he and Sakimoto team together, both of their musical talents combine to form one some godly music.
The Music
The thing I most enjoy about Final Fantasy Tactics is the battle tracks. There are so many that it would be just about impossible to pick only one favorite. Each battle track has its own special quality, however, if I was forced to pick just one I would say that disc one, track thirty-seven (Apoplexy) is by far my favorite. It has such a unique tone to it that I cannot help by get stimulated when I hear it.
One thing Sakimoto is known for is his amazing staff rolls and Final Fantasy Tactics is no different. The last track on disc two is one of his better staff rolls (If not his best, that is). It may only shadow in comparison to the staff roll he did for Vagrant Story.
Character themes are something just about every RPG in existence has. Final Fantasy Tactics doesn't really have a set of main characters you get in the beginning but rather it lets you pick your party. However, the key characters (Such as the Hero, Delita, Alma, Ovelia, Zalbag, etc) got their own themes. Of all the character themes, I'd have to say I enjoyed Zalbag's theme the most (Disc 1; track thirty eight). It just has such a sound to it that I still love to hear this song even to this date no matter how many times I've played through Final Fantasy Tactics.
The Overall Presentation
This album does the game it was created for so much justice in the sense that all the songs truly flow well with the battles and the characters. However, it also is one of those albums that you don't need to play the game first to thoroughly enjoy it.
There are reasons that it doesn't deserve a perfect score, however. One thing I think the Final Fantasy series is known for is always having an extremely powerful vocal track. Tactics was missing this and I think the addition could have done the album only better.
Also, another gripe about this album is the fact that is was also missing a bit or variety in the battle tracks. Are the current ones good? Heck yes. My gripe is that each sounds somewhat similar. Final Fantasy Tactics needed a somewhat slow battle theme. Something along the lines of Xenogears' boss theme. In fact, just something to vary the sounds during battle would do.
If you've never played this game and are wondering if getting the soundtrack would be worth your money, I can say honestly that it would be. This is an album that should be in every video game music fan's collection.
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