PlayStation 2 Archives - The Greatest Game Music

Dragon Quest V Soundtrack (PlayStation 2)

Dragon Quest V Soundtrack (PlayStation 2), Koichi Sugiyama, 2004

Considering just how big the Dragon Quest franchise has always been in Japan, it was a bit of surprise to only see it landing on the SNES in 1992 – maybe the last big 8-bit franchise to make the jump. Of course, once Dragon Quest V was released, it was another massive success for Chunsoft and Enix, selling 2.8 million copies on the SNES. Add in sales of its remakes (PlayStation 2 in 2004, Nintendo DS in 2008 and mobile phones in 2014) and the figure exceeds six million units.

For a franchise that has a reputation for not changing much from instalment to instalment, Dragon Quest V does try some interesting things. First and foremost, there’s the way its narrative is structured, covering thirty years of the main protagonist’s life, from birth to the point when he is married and has a family. And while Dragon Quest V didn’t invent the idea of collecting monsters (the Megami Tensei series had been there first), it was still a relatively novel concept that would soon become ubiquitous via the Pokémon franchise.

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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Soundtrack

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Soundtrack, Jeremy Soule, 2002

The Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets soundtrack is easily the best of Jeremy Soule‘s five scores for the franchise. It also benefits from a better album presentation than Soule’s other Harry Potter soundtracks. Only eight minutes of notable material are missing from the album release, which thankfully excises a lot of ruminative underscore. In fact, Chamber of Secrets is Soule’s most satisfying fantasy soundtrack. Yes, that’s a big claim to make, considering his work on franchises like The Elder Scrolls and Guild Wars. But Chamber of Secrets achieves a consistency of quality that Soule’s more bloated scores don’t accomplish. He doubtlessly deserved his 2004 win of the BAFTA Games Award for Best Original Music for Chamber of Secrets.

Soule’s designation as “the John Williams of game music” has always had more to do with hyperbole and facile comparisons than with actual musical parallels. For example, Soule seems almost entirely disinterested in the elaborate thematic structures that shape so many of Williams’ works. However, there’s no denying that at his best, Soule is able to create a lavish orchestral sound broadly reminiscent of John Williams’ works in the science fiction and fantasy genre.

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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Soundtrack

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Soundtrack, James Hannigan, 2009

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix turned to be industry veteran James Hannigan’s breakthrough work – a delectably luscious orchestral game score that topped Jeremy Soule’s previous contributions to the franchise and could proudly sit aside John Williams and Patrick Doyle’s Harry Potter soundtracks. It’s no surprise then that Hannigan’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince soundtrack doesn’t change the winning formula. Hannigan’s follow up work is as riveting as Order of the Phoenix, but it does introduce a few noteworthy changes.

The most important thing first: Half-Blood Prince once again features near-symphonic depth in its orchestrations and counterpoint. And of course, once more its melodies are gorgeous, full-bodied creations. Like Order of the Phoenix, it’s a work that sits very near the top of orchestral game soundtracks. The most significant difference between Half-Blood Prince and Order of the Phoenix is a greater sense of scope and scale. Outside of its roaring battle cues, Order of the Phoenix mostly pivoted between light-hearted mischievousness and hushed nocturnal wonder. The Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince soundtrack tips the balance in favour of a sweeping sensation of adventure.

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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Soundtrack

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Soundtrack, James Hannigan, 2007

There is some irony to the fact that in several interviews, James Hannigan voiced his concern about film scores by default overshadowing the music written for the game adaptation. If anything, Hannigan’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix soundtrack is the opposite case. Nicholas Hooper’s movie soundtrack was largely deemed underwhelming. Meanwhile, Hannigan garnered praise for his game score that in the eyes of many was the superior work. Indeed, it hits almost all the right notes for a sweeping, yet relatable fantasy epic like the Harry Potter series. Hannigan achieves a perfect balance between humour, magic and gravitas, mixing moods and orchestral colours masterfully. The only thing missing might be a more pervading sense of adventure and romanticism. Fortunately, this is something that Hannigan would address on The Half-Blood Prince.

Stylistically, Hannigan’s lushly orchestrated and meticulously crafted compositions don’t deviate from a certain generic fantasy sound one would expect from a soundtrack like this. This is not a work like Everquest II, out to expand and subvert genre conventions. Then again, on an assignment like this – writing for the sixth entry in a game series with an established sound world – upending expectations was never the aim. Instead, Hannigan’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix soundtrack fits snugly into the franchise’s musical history. At the same time, it is most definitely not a copycat of its illustrious predecessors.

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Medal of Honor: Frontline Soundtrack

Medal of Honor: Frontline Soundtrack, Michael Giacchino, 2002

Both Medal of Honor and Medal of Honor: Underground had made a point of treating World War II not as a fun shooting spree (well, mostly). Instead, they approached the subject matter with an unusual degree of seriousness and respect. Medal of Honor: Frontline went further still, basing its story line on a failed Allied offensive: Operation Market Garden. This allowed the game’s developers to aim for an even greater sense of gravitas, born out of defeat and tragedy. Medal of Honor series regular Michael Giacchino responded similarly to the game’s comparatively downbeat subject matter. For Giacchino, Frontline is the ideal opportunity to once more expand the Medal of Honor franchise’s emotional palette. The result is one of the most operatic, grand Western game soundtracks ever written.

Where Frontline truly sets itself apart from previous Medal of Honor franchise scores is on its slower, downright elegiac compositions. These take the score’s theatricality to melodramatic heights that rival the game-music-as-opera surges of Heroes of Might and Magic II. “Arnhem” is one such piece, taken to emotional extremes by a full choir, to absolutely heart-rending effect. Based on a gently rocking, almost lullaby-like four-note motif, “Arnhem” is a stunning creation whose emotional impact is nearly overwhelming, climaxing in two massive choral outbursts. Patriotism had always featured in this franchise, but on “Arnhem”, it doesn’t come from a place of solemn pride. Instead, it is born out of sorrow and the desperate will to survive.

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Secret Weapons Over Normandy Soundtrack

Secret Weapons Over Normandy Soundtrack, Michael Giacchino, 2003

Among Michael Giacchino‘s WWII scores, the Secret Weapons Over Normandy soundtrack is conceptually and emotionally the most straightforward one. There’s none of the anguish and tragedy of Medal of Honor: Frontline here, none of the subtle character beats of Medal of Honor: Underground, or even the few injections of solemn patriotism of Medal of Honor – and the viciousness of Call of Duty, released almost at the same time as Secret Weapons, seems worlds away. Instead, the Secret Weapons Over Normandy soundtrack takes Medal of Honor‘s ‘war-as-adventure’ aesthetic to its extremely entertaining, bombastic extreme.

How to locate Secret Weapons Over Normandy within the context of Giacchino’s body of work? You might accurately describe it as a return to the original Medal of Honor‘s ballsy gung-ho attitude. That spirit is channelled through Medal of Honor: Frontline‘s superior grasp of orchestral colours, but without its sense of tragedy. This is partially due to Secret Weapon‘s arcade-like nature, which didn’t require a score of operatic emotional range.

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Taikou Risshiden V Soundtrack

Taikou Risshiden V Soundtrack, unknown composer, 2004

There’s no doubt that Koei’s most prominent franchises of historical war simulations are Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Nobunaga’s Ambition – both of them spanning several dozen games and ports. However, Koei worked through this particular subject matter in other games as well, for example the Taikou Risshiden titles. The first game in this particular franchise – almost unknown outside of Japan – was released in 1992 for PC-98, Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis. The series continued up until Taikou Risshiden V, which saw the light of day in 2004 – and apparently concluded the franchise. The Taikou Risshiden games set themselves apart from other Koei history simulations through their sandbox-style gameplay that gave players greater freedom in choosing their path to victory. For example, available job classes included not just samurai but also pirates, merchants and blacksmiths, while gamers were free to roam the game’s world at their leisure.

Musically speaking, the Taikou Risshiden franchise had always held promise, but ultimately failed to make waves – despite renowned anime composer Michiru Oshima scoring the first game in the series early in her career. Finally, the Taikou Risshiden V soundtrack managed to unlock the potential that lay dormant in these games, producing one of the best orchestral PS2 scores that charms listeners with an exquisite wealth of melodies and colours. Unfortunately, there’s no information in the English-speaking parts of the internet about who composed the music – and while the game’s Wikipedia page details a score album, such a release isn’t confirmed by any other sources such as VMGdb.

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