Music Arcade

Not all episode themes are created equal, and for this episode of our regularly scheduled recent releases in the booming Arcade games space, we're just grabbing what's within reach, whether it's indie plywood boxes of fun, whole day strategic endeavors with glow-up skulls, or dance pad neighbors.

Time marches on, and so do we - literally, as we march to the beat of actual marches! Join the crew and follow the rhythm of iconic marches like "Hell March" from Command & Conquer: Red Alert, "Guardia Castle ~Pride & Glory~" from Chrono Trigger, and... the fortress town theme from Heroes of Might & Magic III?!

Valentine's Day is... in the past, but we didn't miss it, we're just fashionably late!

This time, the crew explores the many interpretations of love: from Story of Seasons playing it straight, to Signalis going melancholic, to God of War III doing... whatever the hell it wants, really.

Today, the crew touches some grass - or, rather, one of us does, while the others are left to just talk about it.

From the classic fields of games such as Legend of Zelda and Pokémon to more niche pieces of grass as the woods of Terranigma and Shovel Knight, the only question we don't answer is whether the grass really is always greener on the other side.

Today, the crew puts its oracular powers to the test, trying to guess the best upcoming games and game music of 2024. Did we get things wrong? Did we guess correctly that 2024 is the year of the RTS? Did we remember to include Senua's Sage: Hellblade 2 with Heilung's soundtrack? We shall see!

Ho-ho-holy crap, it's already our third anniversary! The crew (plus friend of the podcast Sam "Zeral") get together to take a look back at 2023. Tune in to check out our thoughts on the 2023 Game Awards, notable moments in video game music and our favorite soundtracks over the past year!

The crew goes fast, as that's the name of the game on today's episode.

Whether it's Roboquest's speedy combat, Top Gear's (not the show) speedy races, or Valkyrie Profile 2 simply distilling speed itself and turning it into music, we got all bases covered in this speedy episode of Music Arcade.

From a joke starter to a cursebreaker, today the crew learns the many possible roles of the xylophone family.

Marimbas, glockenspiels, xylophones and everything in-between, we dive deep into their presence in games like Donkey Kong Country, Final Fantasy XIV, and, uh... Killer Instinct?!

Is Spinal the true identity of the mysterious Xylophone-Chan? You decide!

Today, the crew gets together to wish a happy 60th birthday to Michiru Yamane - and she's the one bringing gifts!

The crew reunites, sharing in their untapped evil traits, and discuss all matters of cool evil themes in video games.

From the mysterious and ominous Bass.exe in Rockman.exe 4.5 to the bombastic and in-your-face Lu Bu from Dynasty Warriors 8 and the utter madness of Luca Blight from Suikoden II, never let it be said that we aren't all-inclusive of villain archetypes!

Chaos ensues, as Ranakel makes Galen learn about rhythm games under knife point while Edie goes, quite literally, under the knife.

From the early beginnings with Bust a Groove to the modern minigames of Friday Night Funkin' and the Yakuza franchise, it's time to take a trip through the history of rhythm games - yes, including Guitar Hero 3 and "Through the Fire and Flames".

On this episode, the crew mixes things up quite literally, discussing remixed tracks in official soundtracks

This time, the crew dives, swims, and explores through the seas of watery themes in all of gamedom.

The crew celebrates our 50th episode with the perfect pieces of gaming music to party to.

From celebrating the overcoming of challenges in Destiny 2: Lightfall to the realization that JRPGs like Chrono Triggerand Trails in the Sky love to have some oddly similar-sounding festivals - plus a dose of the grand old celebration of pure, unadulterated, world-ending power in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3.

Come join us, 'cuz it's a party in here!

A video game concert shows up and the crew follows their instincts: this MUST be talked about!

In what may be one of the most interesting setlists we've covered yet - going from a medley of songs from Amiga titles like Secret of Monkey Island and Turrican to more orchestral soundtracks like Bloodborne and Journey - and with potentially the best singer we've watched perform, prepare for interesting songs, long conversations and a hell of a lot more emotion than even we expected.

Trumpets invade the thoughts (and ears) of the Music Arcade crew, in an exploration for the best that the Doot has to offer.

Be it giant mechas in Mega Man X6, crazed (yet majestic) clowns in Final Fantasy VI, a fearless bounty hunter in Super Metroid or a song you wouldn't expect to hear in Age of Mythology, trumpet fans will not be disappointed.

Except, maybe, by the lack of Pokémon Gen 3 songs. Whoops.

The MusArc crew, joined by friend of the show Sam "Zeral", decide to make lemonade from an April Fools' set of lemons. If you were curious about what we really thought of when prompted to think of video game music for themes such as "dreamy", "glass", "cute but ferocious", or... "purple", you got it!

From the Italian dreams of Civilization 6 and Assassin's Creed 2, to the glassy pianos of... more games than we thought possible, to be honest, we're in for quite the varied ride.

We also take a moment to pay our respects to the great late Lance Reddick, known to the world of gaming through the Destiny and Horizon franchises, may he rest in peace.

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, the calendar leads to confusion about themes, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel and Edie Alexsander getting a peptalk by our very own anime intruder Sam "Zeral", and a discussion involving more songs than you can shake a stick at.

PS: please don't shake sticks at your monitor or audio setup, m'kay?

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:25 - Final Fantasy XIV - is it actually the final one? Probably not!

0:05:03 - Through the Fire and the PAAAAIN

0:09:31 - Call of Du- I mean, Battlefield 2

0:11:57 - Command & Conquer: The Commies Are Here 2

0:14:25 - Super Fighting Robot X

0:17:47 - F-Zero's got the blues

0:20:46 - Sandstorm, sans-Darude

0:24:18 - Sonic & the lesson that Blue + Green = Purple

0:26:42 - Excuse me, you got some samurai in my dance party

0:30:03 - Dark Souls III brings up Galen's deepest secrets

0:33:34 - Hitman 2 - no, not that one, the OTHER Hitman 2!

0:35:36 - ¡Viva El Presidente!

0:37:49 - Legend of Link: Zelda Between- wait...

0:41:28 - Xeno-what, now?!

0:44:21 - Middle-Earth: Spartan of Mordor

0:47:00 - Resident Evil: Trumpet's Cut

0:48:38 - T'was all but a ruse!

0:59:22 - Music Arcade Now Playing, feat. "A New World" concert

1:32:26 - Outro

Full music credits (in order of discussion):

Final Fantasy XIV - "Thunderer" by Masayoshi Soken

Guitar Hero III - "Through the Fire and the Flames" by DragonForce

Battlefield 2 - "Main Theme" by Fredrik Englund, David Tallroth & Jonas Ostholm (arranged and performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra)

Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 - "Grinder" by Frank Klepacki

Mega Man X - "Icy Penguigo Stage" by Setsuo Yamamoto, Makoto Tomozawa, Yuki Iwai, Yuko Takehara & Toshihiko Horiyama ("Braving the Storm" remix by Frederic Petitpas

F-Zero - "Big Blue" by Yumiko Kanki & Naoto Ishida

Killer Instinct - "Sandstorm" by Mick Gordon

Sonic the Hedgehog - "Green Hill Zone" by Masato Nakamura ("Lofi Remix" by Helynt & Koreskape)

Samurai Warriors 2 - "Osaka Castle ~Sengoku2 Mix~" by Mari Yoshida

Dark Souls III - "Soul of Cinder" by Yuka Kitamura

Hitman 2: Silent Assassin - "Hitman 2 Main Title" by Jesper Kyd

Tropico 4 - "Candela y Tumbao" by Tumbao

Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds - "Lorule Theme 2" by Ryo Nagamatsu, Koji Kondo, Akito Nakatsuka & Hajime Wakai

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 - "Incoming!" by ACE (TOMOri Kudo, CHiCO)

Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor - "The Hammer" by Nathan Grigg

Resident Evil: Director's Cut - "Mansion Basement" by Mamoru Samuragochi

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander decide to explore that most dramatic and ominous of moments in gaming history: the time indie games got big.

But not without reminiscing about the old days of Flash games, because it wouldn't be an episode of Music Arcade without at least one of us showing our age.

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:51 - So... Why this topic, exactly?

0:09:12 - VVVVVV - "Positive Force" by Magnus Pålsson

0:18:03 - Plants vs. Zombies - "Watery Graves" by Laura Shigihara

0:26:50 - Canabalt - "Run!" by Danny Baranowsky

0:32:53 - Alien Hominid - "Area 51 4 (Hardcore Fight)" by Matt Harwood

0:37:24 - Before the Echo - "Oncue" by Ronald Jenkees

0:46:57 - Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet - "Eradication Instincts Defined" by Dimmu Borgir

0:54:24 - Hotline Miami - "Turf" by El Huervo

1:00:12 - Recettear - "Closed" by m_box

1:09:07 - Journey - "Apotheosis" by Austin Wintory

1:18:46 - Dungeons of Dredmor - "Brawl" by Matthew Steele

1:24:53 - Right and Wrong Way to do Music (Don't steal!)

1:29:43 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander take a stroll around the city and explore the environment downtown in a showcase that, just because it's called a "concrete jungle", doesn't mean it has to be colorless and uninteresting. 

Also we take some time to take potshots at the Grammys, because why not?

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:49 - Streets of Rage 4 - "Call the Cops" by Olivier Deriviere

0:07:58 - Anno 2070 - "Industrial Landscapes" by Markus Schmidt

0:17:27 - Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2 - "Karma City" by Shoji Meguro

0:23:02 - John Wick: Hex - "The Uncaged Bear" by Austin Wintory

0:28:21 - Anarchy Reigns - "My Town, My City" by Skitz the Samurida

0:34:16 - Castlevania: Curse of Darkness - "Cordova Town" by Michiru Yamane

0:41:02 - The Sims - "Samba SIM" by Jerry Martin

0:51:06 - Warriors Orochi 3 - "Anegawa ~Sengoku3 Mix~" by Michihiko Shichi (Arr. by Yojiro Yoshimatsu)

0:56:56 - Disco Elysium - "Red Rock Riviera" by Sea Power

1:07:53 - The state of GTA radios, feat. "Bark at the Moon" by Ozzy Osbourne and "Fire Doesn't Burn Itself" by Sam Flax

1:21:11 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On this episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander delve into an amazing online concert for a certain Asian game that often comes up in our conversations.

Get your Final Fantasy out of here, it's time to discuss Arknights: Ambience Synesthesia 2022!

All songs produced and/or published by Monster Siren Records. Full songwriting and performance credits not publicly available in the West at the time of publishing this episode.

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:04:16 - "Dreamland"

0:08:57 - "Shadowstorm"

0:13:01 - "Immutable"

0:14:31 - "Awaken"

0:20:09 - "Towards Her Light"

0:23:40 - "Hometown Wind"

0:27:12 - "Under Tides"

0:31:37 - "Jiang Hu"

0:34:34 - "Till the Wave Ends"

0:36:51 - "Random, Randomly"

0:41:57 - "Melting White"

0:48:49 - "Operation Lead Seal"

0:53:22 - "Loyal to the Beat"

0:57:25 - "Across the Wind"

1:01:43 - "Quadrant Breaker"

1:05:44 - "Y1K"

1:11:45 - "Radiant"

1:16:39 - "Day Daydream"

1:20:17 - "Operation Pine Soot"

1:24:08 - "Alive"

1:28:56 - "Phenomenal Agents"

1:34:46 - "Operation Pyrite"

1:43:58 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander sneak around guards, make daring escapes, and engage in swift sabotage, all while listening to a surprising amount of jazz on the way and dodging the obvious Metal Gear Solid-shaped trap on the ground.

Who knew Noir and Stealth had so much in common, huh?

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:29 - Shhh! We awe hunting wabbits!

0:02:03 - Judgment - "Like a Shadow" by Saori Yoshida

0:07:23 - Dishonored - "Flooded Suspense" by Daniel Licht

0:11:09 - Alpha Protocol - "Turn up the Radio" by Autograph

0:15:04 - Deus Ex: Human Revolution - "Police Station [Restricted Access]" by Michael McCann

0:20:34 - Trails in the Sky SC - "Infiltration" by Takahiro Unisuga

0:27:18 - Chrono Cross - "Viper Manor" by Yasunori Mitsuda

0:32:47 - Mark of the Ninja - "Mark & Blade" by Yamantaka // Sonictitan

0:37:50 - Hitman: World of Assassination - "Near Exit (Isle of Sgàil)" by Niels Bye Nielsen

0:48:23 - Assassin's Creed: Unity - "Ballroom Fight (Invention No. 13 in D Minor)" by Sarah Schachner

0:57:39 - Gunpoint - "The Five-Floor Goodbye" by Ryan Ike

1:08:14 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

Someone said the weather outside is frightful? Well, we don't believe him! Join Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander in our trek through the tropics to find some of the coolest summery tracks - which may or may not include a heck of a lot of tropical vibes.

Get your piña coladas ready and let's dive in!

Time stamps:

0:00:55 - Summer themed? Tropics themed? You decide!

0:02:36 - The Secret of Monkey Island - "Opening Theme" by Michael Land

0:07:30 - Transistor - "Sandbox" by Darren Korb

0:12:26 - The Last Remnant - "Limberlost" by Tsuyoshi Sekito

0:16:21 - Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag - "La Havana" by Brian Tyler

0:22:14 - Stardew Valley - "Summer (Nature's Crescendo)" by ConcernedApe

0:35:40 - Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate - "Tehu Tehu -DW SW MIX-" by Makoto Hosoi (arr. by Miki Fujii)

0:46:21 - Sid Meier's Civilization VI - "Brazil (The Medieval Era)" by Geoff Knorr

1:00:11 - Far Cry 6 - "La Espada" by Pedro Bromfman

1:14:28 - Arknights: Heart of Surging Flame - "m_bat_fesmetal" by an unknown composer

1:20:06 - Super Mario Sunshine - "Delfino Plaza" by Koji Kondo & Shinobu Tanaka

1:26:55 - OutRun 2 - "MAGICAL SOUND SHOWER Euro Remix" by Hiro (arr. by Richard Jacques)

1:32:09 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

Can you believe it's been two years already? 'Cuz we can! Join Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander as we discuss and review another year of Music Arcade - and another year of video game music.

Also we talk about something called "Grammys", whatever that is.

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:25 - A Blooper and a Welcome

0:02:02 - The Year of Music Arcade 

0:24:35 - Game Awards and Grammys 

0:51:23 - Year of the Dragon: previewing a project in the making 

0:56:11 - Year of games in review!

1:52:25 - Outro

[This episode is rated PG-13 due to: rough language]

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander explore the discography of a Man at Work coming from a land Down Under. If you're asking Who Can It Be Now? Let there be no mistake: it's a deep dive into the works of Mick Gordon!

If you're thinking all these Men At Work puns are a bit Overkill... you might actually have a point, to be honest.

Time stamps (all songs below have been written and performed by Mick Gordon except where noted otherwise):

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:49 - Internal Ripping and/or Tearing + Justice For Mick Gordon

0:08:57 - Wolfenstein: The New Order - "House of the Rising Sun" (by Copilot Music + Sound)

0:16:59 - Hot Dog King - "Hot Girls"

0:19:38 - Need for Speed World - "Free Roam 2"

0:28:30 - Killer Instinct - "Lycanthropy"

0:34:42 - Killer Instinct - "Polemos"

0:38:29 - Killer Instinct - "Village of Whispers"

0:41:27 - Killer Instinct - "Vengeance & Temperance"

0:50:47 - Wolfenstein: The New Order - "The New Order"

0:55:29 - DOOM - "Rip & Tear"

1:01:03 - Prey - "The Experiment"

1:04:42 - Prey - "Everything is Going to be Okay"

1:10:40 - Lawbreakers - "Faust"

1:20:35 - Now Playing

1:54:13 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Ranakel gets top billing, as Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone and Edie Alexsander celebrate the birthday of their favorite frenchman by letting him convince the world that Kid Icarus: Uprising has an awesome soundtrack. It is the Ranakel Power Hour!

Time stamps:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:38 - Kid Icarus: Uprising is awesome, m'kay?

0:07:58 - "Return of Palutena" by Motoi Sakuraba and Yasunori Mitsuda

0:13:08 - "Magnus' Theme" by Yuzo Koshiro

0:18:54 - "Pandora's Labyrinth of Deceit" by Motoi Sakuraba and Masafumi Takada

0:25:04 - "Dark Pit" by Motoi Sakuraba

0:33:19 - "The Seafloor Palace" by Motoi Sakuraba

0:40:14 - "Wrath of the Reset Bomb" by Yuzo Koshiro

0:44:16 - "Lunar Sanctum" by Yuzo Koshiro

0:49:02 - "Lightning Battle" by Motoi Sakuraba

0:56:57 - "Mysterious Invaders" by Yuzo Koshiro

1:01:49 - "Dog's Theme" by Masafumi Takada

1:08:41 - "Lightning Chariot Base" by Masafumi Takada

1:18:11 - Music Arcade Now Playing

1:39:43 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander don their best costumes to take a look at the Other Side. That being the side of genre-specific video game fanatics - the spookiest of sides.

Some of us may have donned their costume better than others, be warned.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:55 - Our Masquerade

0:05:39 - Steep - "Hanging on the Mont-Blanc" by Zikali

0:12:36 - Rhythm Heaven - "Karate Man 2 (Struck by the Rain)" by Tsunku

0:18:06 - Gran Turismo 7 - "PIANO-LOGIC" by cargo

0:26:32 - Skate - "Raining Blood" by Slayer

0:34:27 - Super Mario Bros. 3/Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - "Airship Theme" by Koji Kondo (arr. by Motoi Sakuraba)

0:41:58 - Need For Speed: Carbon - "Canyon Race 1: Drift Itsumo" by Trevor Morris

0:51:38 - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater - "Jerry Was A Race Car Driver" by Primus

0:59:03 - Splatoon 3 - "Chaos Carnival" by unknown artists

1:06:28 - Crazy Taxi - "All I Want" by The Offspring

1:15:16 - Now Playing

1:45:41 - Outro

Additional attribution: "Fancy Keys" by panda4wc (freesound.org)

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander stop fooling around with Castlevania and dive deep into Metroidvania. Well, minus the Vania. For the most part.

It's part 2 of our (impromptu) Halloween celebrations!

0:00:00 - Intro

0:00:49 - This isn't about Castlevania clones... mostly

0:04:09 - Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - "Luxurious Overture" by Michiru Yamane

0:11:05 - Super Metroid - "Berinstar" by 8-Bit Instrumental (cover of "Brinstar - Plant Overgrown Area" by Kenji Yamamoto & Minako Himano)

0:22:27 - Metroid Dread - "Artaria III" and "Burenia I" by Soshi Abe and Sayako Doi

0:33:05 - Guacamelee! - "Desierto Caliente" by Peter Chapman and Rom Di Prisco

0:40:15 - Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth: Record of Lodoss War - "Fiamma del Caos - The Cave" by PEPOSOFT

0:47:26 - Blasphemous - "Coplas de Incienso" by Carlos Viola

0:53:09 - Hollow Knight - "Mantis Lords" by Christopher Larkin | Hollow Knight: Gods & Nightmares - "Sisters of Battle" by Christopher Larkin

1:02:11 - Dark Souls II - "Old Dragonslayer" by Yuka Kitamura

1:09:03 - The Mummy: Demastered - "Cryptometrics" by Gavin Allen

1:15:25 - Koumajou Densetsu: Scarlet Symphony - "Scarlet Tears" by Eiichiro Yanagi

1:22:28 - Now Playing

1:43:17 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today- err tonight's episode, Galen "The SoundGuy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander discover what a lovely night it is to have a curse - or maybe even a few - and  discuss all things Belmont-related, and even some that aren't. Join us for our Castlevania special!

Note: No miserable little piles of secrets were harmed in the making of this podcast.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:34 - Children of the night, what music they make!

0:05:45 - Castlevania - "Vampire Killer" by Kinuyo Yamashita & Satoe Terashima

0:07:35 - Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest - "Bloody Tears" by Kenichi Matsubara (cover by Master Boot Record)

0:11:33 - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - "Bloody Tears" by Kenichi Matsubara, arr. by Michiru Yamane

0:13:34 - Pachislot Akumajou Dracula: Lords of Shadow - "Bloody Tears" by Kenichi Matsubara, arr. by KPE STUDIO

0:18:22 - Super Castlevania IV - "The Chandeliers" by Masanori Adachi & Taro Kudo

0:23:16 - Castlevania: Bloodlines - "Iron Blue Intention" by Michiru Yamane

0:26:52 - Perfect Selection: Dracula Battle II - "Iron Blue Intention" by Michiru Yamane, arr. by Naoto Shibata (performed by Naoto Shibata Project)

0:31:10 - Castlevania Judgment - "Clock Work" by Hidenori Maezawa, Jun Funahashi & Yukie Morimoto, arr. by Yasushi Asada

0:36:40 - Castlevania (aka Castlevania 64) - "Castle Center" by Masahiko Kimura, Motoaki Furukawa & Mariko Egawa

0:46:18 - Castlevania: Circle of the Moon - "Requiem" by akiropito, Jigokuguruma Nakamura, Sanoppi & Metal Yuhki

0:51:24 - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - "Dracula's Castle" by Michiru Yamane

0:59:37 - Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin - "Hail from the Past" by Michiru Yamane

1:04:18 - Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls - Main Theme (title unknown) by Michiru Yamane

1:11:48 - Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow - "Heart of Fire" by Kinuyo Yamashita & Satoe Terashima, arr. by Michiru Yamane

1:18:40 - Castlevania: Lament of Innocence - "Leon's Theme" by Michiru Yamane (plus Super Smash Bros. Ultimate arrangement)

1:27:24 - Castlevania: Lament of Innocence - "Anti-Soul Mysteries Lab" by Michiru Yamane

1:36:14 - Castlevania: Curse of Darkness - "Abandoned Castle ~Curse of Darkness~" by Michiru Yamane

1:48:22 - Now Playing

2:04:26 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone and Ranakel throw the script out the window and let the podcast fall into a chaotic talk of cool games they've been playing or look forward to. Enjoy this bonus episode!

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:54 - We're professionals, d@mn it!

0:03:16 - Final Fantasy XIV - 6.2 Patch

0:15:06 - Genshin Impact

0:26:12 - Splatoon 3

0:34:18 - Soul Hackers 2

0:41:57 - Groove Coaster

0:49:29 - Before the Storm

0:52:41 - Arknights

0:58:59 - Two Point Campus

1:02:47 - Metal Max

1:16:01 - Live a Live

1:25:42 - Armed Fantasia/Penny Blood Dual Kickstarter

1:35:11 - Outro

Thank you very much for listening. For any inquiries, questions, or feedback, you can reach us at: music.arcade.podcast@gmail.com

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone brings out his inner fanboy to talk about Tactics Ogre with Ranakel and Sam "Zeral" - whether they like it or not. Oh, and some other tactical RPGs too, because they're cool.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:22 - Tactics Ogre Reborn - It's Happening! (insert obvious reaction gif here)

0:04:25 - Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together - "Revolt" by Hitoshi Sakimoto, arr. by Yoshimi Kudo

0:09:34 - Project X Zone: A Ranakel Diatribe

0:13:10 - Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia - "March to Deliverance" by Yuka Tsujiyoko, arr. by Takeru Kanazaki

0:21:17 - Fire Emblem: Three Houses - "The Apex of the World" by Takeru Kanazaki

0:26:56 - Soul Nomad & The World Eaters - "Rock'n Rocks" by Tenpei Sato

0:35:24 - Disgaea - "Hysteric Kingdom" by Tenpei Sato

0:41:03 - Pokémon Conquest - "Fire Battle" by Shinichiro Nakamura

0:48:14 - Front Mission 3 - "Defensive War" by Koji Hayama

0:52:37 - Othercide - "Desperate Battle" by Pierre le Pape

1:00:59 - X-COM: Apocalypse - "Kill Them ALL" by Richard Wells and John Broomhall

1:09:24 - Final Fantasy Tactics - "Trisection" by Hitoshi Sakimoto

1:17:52 - Final Fantasy Tactics - "Run Past Through the Plain" by Masaharu Iwata, cover by Ferdk

1:21:17 - Now Playing

1:33:49 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone shares why he's been stuck in hotels for over a month as he shows Ranakel and Edie Alexsander the wondrous Hawaiian weather and its beauiful... thunderstorms. We recommend bringing your own umbrellas.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:55 - Where the @#%& has Galen been?!

0:06:11 - Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remaster - "Slam Shuffle" by Nobuo Uematsu, rearranged by Shingo Kataoka (for copyright reasons, our playlist includes only the original version, composed by Nobuo Uematsu for Final Fantasy VI's original release)

0:10:27 - Minecraft - "Aria Math" by C418

0:15:42 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - "The Stains of Time" by Logan Mader and Jamie Christopherson

0:24:18 - Mega Man X6 - "Commander Yanmark Stage" by Naoto Tanaka

0:27:14 - Tales of Zestiria - "The Melody of Water Will Lead the Way" by Go Shiina

0:34:43 - Persona 5 - "Beneath the Mask -Rain-" by Shoji Meguro

0:40:45 - Suikoden II - "Reminiscence" by Miki Higashino

0:46:26 - Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater - "Takin' On The Shagohod" by Norihiko Hibino

0:54:59 - Risk of Rain - "Coalescence" by Chris Christodoulou

1:08:50 - Now Playing

Additional attributions:
Heavy Rain Sound by Inu Etc. (Freesound.org)
Thunder, Very Close, Rain, A by InspectorJ (Freesound.org)

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Ranakel and Edie Alexsander get together to discuss when bands who are already established names decide to compose music for games. Would be great if we had a sound engineer available for this discussion, but alas, we couldn't find anyone. Such a shame, really.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:03:48 - Poets of the Fall/Old Gods of Asgard and Control, featuring the track "Take Control"

0:11:24 - M.O.O.N. and Hotline Miami, featuring the track "Paris"

0:20:50 - The Hu and Jedi: Fallen Order, featuring the track "Sugaan Essena"

0:26:16 - Doujah Raze and MadWorld, featuring the track "Come With It"

0:33:21 - Kalandra and Kingdom: Two Crowns - Norse Lands, featuring the track "Mørke Skoger" 

0:40:23 - Machine Girl and Neon White, featuring the track "Vainglorious Chorus"

0:52:30 - Hot Dad/Chowder Man and Hypnospace Outlaw, featuring the track "Chowder Man" 

0:59:33 - Now Playing 

1:21:04 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone fights against the evils of hotel internet as he's joined by Ranakel and Edie Alexsander to talk about the new hotness in gaming: Roguelites. Oh, and a little indie band called The Primals, you might've heard of them.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:49 - Into the Breach - "Old War Machines" by Ben Prunty

0:08:05 -RoboQuest - "Connect" by NoiseCream

0:13:19 - Peglin - "World 1 Level" by Adam (full name unknown)

0:19:21 - Hades - "The Unseen Ones" by Darren Korb (feat. Masahiro Aoki and Daisuke Kurosawa)

0:24:02 - One Step from Eden - "Neverending Song" by HAGANE

0:31:29 - Arknights: Crimson Solitaire - soundtrack composed by BaoUner and Sterling Maffe

0:40:52 - Monster Train: Friends & Foes - "Archus, Darkness Incarnate" by Jordan Chin

0:47:48 - Dicey Dungeons - "Step RIght Up" by Chipzel

0:55:43 - Now Playing Pt. 1 - The Primals: Beyond the Shadow live concert

1:51:31 - Now Playing Pt. 2 - No, for real this time

2:03:31 - Soon Playing

2:12:28 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

On today's episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone and Ranakel, once again finding themselves without Edie, decide to take it to the next level - by literally talking about music that evolves as you reach new levels.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:21 - The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening - "Ballad of the Wind Fish" and its multiple variations, by Ryo Nagamatsu, Minako Hamano, and Kazumi Totaka

0:09:42 - Atelier Meruru: The Apprentice of Arland - "Will You Dance With Me?", "Will You Plow With Me?", and "Will You Harvest With Me?" by Kazuki Yanagawa

0:20:34 - NieR Gestalt & Replicant - "The Ultimate Weapon" by Keiichi Okabe, Kakeru Ishihama, and Keigo Hoashi

0:29:20 - Yakuza: Like a Dragon - "tranquilo" and "appassionato" by Chihiro Aoki

0:33:42 - Super Mario World - "Athletic" by Koji Kondo

0:45:27 - NieR Gestalt & Replicant - "Song of the Ancients" and its multiple variations, by Keiichi Okabe, Kakeru Ishihama, and Keigo Hoashi

0:48:07 - Now... Played? - A New World: Intimate Music from Final Fantasy (concert)

1:09:40 - Now Playing

1:23:43 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade!

Fresh out of a weird April Fools episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone, Ranakel, and Edie Alexsander decided that weird is good and normal is overrated. As a result, we've gathered around the mics with some of the weirder tracks we could think of. Spoiler alert: Ranakel won on the weirdness scale.

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:00:47 - What Happened Last Episode?!

0:07:05 - Tales of Legendia - "Short Circuit" by Go Shiina

0:12:46 - Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk - "Seeking Treasures" by Kazuki Yanagawa

0:17:57 - Divinity II: Dragon Knight Saga - "Tides of Battle" by Kirill Pokrovsky

0:26:15 - Chaos Rings III - "Magma Ocean" by Noriyasu Agematsu

0:33:02 - Street Fighter IV - "Theme of Rufus" by Hideyuki Fukasawa

0:39:12 - Secret of Mana - "The Oracle" by Hiroki Kikuta

0:45:05 - Minecraft - "Ballad of the Cats" by C418

0:50:19 - Shin Megami Tensei: Persona - "Battle ~ Tesso" by Kenichi Tsuchiya

0:57:29 - Suikoden II - "One Minute Showdown" by Miki Higashino

1:02:57 - Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy X (ostensibly) - "A-V-O-N-E-J" by Aruz11

1:10:36 - Now Playing 

1:36:43 - Outro

Hello and  welcome to the Music Arcade!

As a one-off gag, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone takes a step back from main hosting duties as we celebrate April Fools with a voyage into an alternate reality where Sam "Zeral" leads Edie Alexsander and Ranakel into an Anime Music Club instead, all the while making some of the most absurd jokes possible.

We hope you had fun this experiment as much as we did making it!

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:02:01 - Cowboy Bebop - "Tank!" by Yoko Kanno and SEATBELTS

0:06:15 - Hellsing - "Cool, The World Without Logos" by Yasushi Ishii

0:10:58 - Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei - "Kuusou Rumba" by Narasaki

0:15:16 - Attack on Titan - "Crimson Bow and Arrow" by Epica (originally performed by Linked Horizon)

0:25:24 - Guilty Crown - "Bios" by Hiroyuki Sawano

0:30:54 - Fullmetal Alchemist - "Dancing" by Michiru Oshima

0:38:21 - Ben-To - "I Gotta Turn It On" by Taku Iwasaki

0:43:59 - Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie - "Blind" by KoRn

0:51:19 - Symphogear - "Glorious Break" by Nana Mizuki

0:59:35 - GUN x SWORD - "Desert Rose" by Kotaro Nakagawa

1:08:04 - Revolutionary Girl Utena - "When Where Who Which" by Shinkichi Mitsumune

1:17:24 - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure - "Roundabout" by Yes

1:25:24 - Outro

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade! Few games are complete without an almost incomprehensible sense of scale - from bosses, to dungeons, to... Baby Bowser? Well, join Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone, Edie Alexsander, and Ranakel as the trio flees from a menacingly gigantic lizard monster that is not to be confused with a certain licensed character from the movies, exploring the banger soundtracks that come along with such gigantic proportions along the way.

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:01:34 - Genshin Impact - "Ode to Azhdaha" by Yu Peng Chen

0:11:17 - The Elder Scrolls Online - "Tonal Architecture" by Brad Derrick

0:20:35 - Tales of Legendia - "Delkes - Black Wings" by Go Shiina

0:28:55 - Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward - "Solid" by Masayoshi Soken

0:34:54 - Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward - "Order Yet Undeciphered" by Masayoshi Soken

0:43:12 - Super Metroid - "Kraid/Crocomire/Phantoon Boss Theme" (also known as "Big Boss Confrontation 2") by Kenji Yamamoto & Minako Hamano

0:49:44 - Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island - "Baby Bowser" by Koji Kondo

0:48:07 - NieR Gestalt - "The Dark Colossus Destroys All" by Keichii Okabe

1:07:07 - God of War II - "The End Begins" by Gerard Marino

1:15:28 - Shadow of the Colossus - "Grotesque Figures" by Kow Otani

1:23:58 - Now Playing

Hello  and welcome to the Music Arcade! In a celebration of Ranakel's return and our fraternal love for him, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone and Edie Alexsander decide to show their love by... letting him read the intro to an episode about fights. We swear it makes more sense in context. At least slightly.

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:05:29 - The King of Fighters XIV - "Soy Sauce for Geese" by Rio "88" Hashikawa and Naoki Kita

0:13:22 - Guilty Gear X - "Awe of She" by Daisuke Ishiwatari

0:19:46 - Dead or Alive 2 - "Hirohita ~ Reminiscent of Ketsui No Toki ~" by Shigekiyo Okuda, Makoto Hosoi, and Shouichi Koike

0:31:13 - Killer Instinct (2013, Xbox) - "I'm Back (To Rise)" by Mick Gordon, featuring Omega Sparx

0:39:20 - Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden 2 - "Gohan's Theme" by Kenji Yamamoto

0:46:03 - Street FIghter II - "Ken's Theme" by Yoko Shimomura

0:55:20 - Street Fighter III: Third Strike - "Character Select Theme" by Hideki Okugawa

1:02:36 - Killer Instinct (1995, SNES) - "Main Theme" by Robin Beanland (plus cover by Anton Norling)

1:10:12 - Dark Savior - "HEAT BATTLE ~Fight~" by Hiroshi Kondo

1:21:10 - Tekken 6 - "Yodeling in Meadow Hill (Hidden Retreat)" by Keiichi Okabe

1:29:30 - Xenoblade Chronicles & Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - "Mechanical Rhythm" by ACE+

1:36:18 - Soul Blade - "Bravely Folk Song" by Takayuki Aihara

1:45:57 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to the Music Arcade! As Ranakel is faced with internet woes, join Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestore and Edie Alexsander in a heavy metal adventure where the two resident metalheads find an excuse to gush about metal bands as we explore the beautiful phenomenon of surprise metal tracks in gaming.

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:02:33 - Guilty Gear XX - "Holy Orders (Be Just or Be Dead)" by Daisuke Ishiwatari and Koichi Seiyama

0:07:39 - Dynasty Warriors 3 - "Yellow Storm" by MASA

0:13:49 - Why we haven't talked about licensed music before (and why we're doing it now)

0:15:08 - The Sims 3 - "Kill the Light" by Lacuna Coil

0:20:13 - Saints Row 2 - "Runes to my Memory" by Amon Amarth

0:27:40 - ASCAP and Music Licensing for Content Creators

0:29:39 - Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage - "Carnage Rules" by Green Jellÿ

0:39:03 - Arknights - "Captain's Battle Theme" by  BLYETMEISTER42069

0:48:06 - Paper Mario: The Origami King - "Origami Castle" by Yoshito Sekigawa, Shoh Murakami, Yoshiaki Kimura, Hiroki Morishita, and Fumihiro Isobe

0:52:41 - Final Fantasy X - "Otherworld" by Nobuo Uematsu

0:59:30 - Pokémon Black 2 & White 2 - "Battle! Team Plasma" by Junichi Masuda and Go Ichinose

1:07:23 - Now Playing

Hello and welcome to Music Arcade! Here comes an episode over a year in the making, as we considered how much the world was going to open back up. and we hoped and hoped still, but at the end of the day, while things are still progressing apiece, overworld themes are an interesting staple that, at the end of the day, might not need to wait for the perfect occasion to be a great topic! So join Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone, Ranakel and Edie as we discuss these wide and open themes, and things that are... Close enough.

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:06:01 - Final Fantasy VIII - Blue Fields (by Nobuo Uematsu)

0:13:56 - Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals - North Land (by Yasunori Shiono)

0:19:25 - Suikoden Terkreis - To the World (by a broad and talented cast of composers)

0:29:25 - Adventure of Mana - Endless Battlefield (by Kenji Ito)

0:36:51 - Final Fantasy VI -  The Veldt, Wild West Orchestrated (by Nobuo Uematsu, arrangement by ChrystalChameleon)

0:45:43 - Valheim - The Meadows - A Place to Rest (by Patrik Jarlestam)

0:57:03 - Valkyrie Profile - Requiem to a Predicament ~ Sky Gate (arrange album version) (by Motoi Sakuraba)

1:07:24 - Assassin's Creed Syndicate - Peace and I Are Strangers Grown (by Austin Wintory)

1:15:43 - Super Mario Bros. 2 - Overworld (by Koji Kondo)

1:21:00 - NieR Gestalt/Replicant - Hills of Radiant Winds (Concert & Talk Life version) (by Keichii Okabe)

1:31:13 - Now Playing

Hello everyone and welcome to Music Arcade! In this episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone, Edie and Ranakel are covering a set of recent occurrences in the video game music world, some joyful, some concerning, but all deserving attention.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:02:07 - Skyrim 10th anniversary Concert with the London Philharmonic Orchestra

0:45:56 - Materia Collective's payment pains

1:04:32 - Rez's 20th anniversary, with a focus on Fear (by Adam Freeland)

1:23:44 - What Are We Playing?

1:34:51 - Outro

Hello and welcome to Music Arcade! In this episode, Galen "The Sound Beholder" Firestone, Count Van Ediela and the shambling Ranabomination rise from two meters under to discuss the gothicest, spookiest songs video game has to offer. Not just because halloween was some ten days ago or anything, turns out, that's a very prolific subject as illustrated by the following discussion points:

0:00:00 - Introduction

0:02:30 - Let us frame the discussion on what we mean when saying "gothic tracks"

0:09:13 - Killer Instinct - Lycanthropy (by Mick Gordon)

0:15:05 - Demon's Crest - Beyond the Colosseum (by Toshihiko Horiyama)

0:23:10 - Grim Dawn - Lonely Moon (by Steve Pardo)

0:26:25 - Diablo - Tristram (by Matt Uelmen)

0:30:00 - Assassin's Creed Syndicate - Cobblestone and Fog (by Bear McCreary)

0:32:53 - Suikoden 2 - Gothic Neclord (by Miki Higashino)

0:38:09 - Castlevania Lords of Shadow 2 - Dying for a Drop of Blood (by Óscar Araujo)

0:41:31 - Castlevania Lament of Innocence - Ghostly Theater (by Michiru Yamane)

0:45:50 - Castlevania Symphony of the Night - Waltz of the Pearls (by Michiru Yamane)

0:54:13 - Bloodstained Ritual of the Night - Holy Wisdom (by Michiru Yamane)

1:01:43 - Dark Souls - Ornstein & Smough (by Motoi Sakuraba)

1:10:06 - Bloodborne - The Night Unfurls (by Ryan Amon)

1:14:58 - Final Fantasy VI  - Dancing Mad (by Nobuo Uematsu)

Welcome to Music Arcade! In this episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone and Ranakel go over a track, a track selection, and an entire soundtrack to think on why things didn't quite hit home that time. What might have been, what in some respects should have been, and what could have happened.

03:22 - Correction on a part episode: the meta "what could have been"

07:12 - Genshin Impact's Raiden Shogun fight phases 1 and 2

19:40 - Final Fantasy 14: Shadowbringers x NieR&NieR Automata: the song selection for the Tower at Paradigm's Breach

44:48 - Satisfactory's sounds of an unfortunately clean future

55:56 - Outro

Hello everyone and welcome to Music Arcade! In this episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone, Edie and Ranakel take off... TO SPAAAAACE! In there, nobody can hear you scream, sing, or beatbox, but this didn't stop many video game composers from giving the vast reaches of outer space a distinct sound over the years. Let's jump in and see what it sounds like:

0:00:00 - Intro

0:01:55 - Correction regarding mistakes in a former episode

0:04:37 - Why this episode?

0:05:36 - Halo 2 - Halo Theme Mjolnir mix / Reclaimer (Martin O'Donnell, Michael Salvatori)

0:22:48 - Destiny 2 - Journey (Skye Lewin, Michael Salvatori)

0:28:15 - Kid Icarus Uprising - In the Space-Pirate Ship (Noriyuki Iwadare)

0:35:57 - Rogue Galaxy - The Relic's Song (Tomohito Nishiura)

0:43:13 - Star Fox (Super Smash Bros. Arranges) - Star Wolf's Theme/Corneria (Hajime Wakai, Koji Kondo. Arrangements by Mahito Yokota/Kentaro Ishizaka)

0:53:36 - Jet Force Gemini - Asteroid (Robin Beanland)

0:58:56 - FTL Faster Than Light - Last Stand (Ben Prunty)

1:08:31 - X3/X4 - Yet to be Discovered/Lances of Light (Alexei Zakharov)

1:18:26 - Star Wars: The Old Republic/Knights of the Old Republic - The End in the Stars/Old Republic Theme (Jesse Harlin/Jeremy Soule)

1:31:24 - Risk of Rain (Chris Christodoulou)

1:33:42 - Galactic Civilizations 2 - Main Theme (Paul Kerchen, Mason Fischer, Eric Heberling)

1:39:39 - Outro

Welcome to Music Arcade! In this episode, Galen "The Sound Guy" Firestone and Ranakel tag team against thousands. Or more accurately, the music accompanying these kind of situations. It's a Warriors/Musou games episode! Does it takes more than very loud, very fast guitar to get in the mindset? Why are some themes so notable? We'll answer these question and more in this episode, talking about the following themes:

0:00:00 - Opening

0:02:20 - Introductions about the start of Warrior games in themselves, and for us.

0:14:24 - Samurai Warriors 2 - Tedorigawa

0:21:00 - Tadakatsu Honda's theme (SW3 mix) vs. Lu Bu's theme (DW7 mix)

0:29:59 - Dynasty Warriors 8 Xtreme Legends Complete - Strength, Weakness

0:36:16 - Warriors Orochi - Incarnation of Evil

0:40:41 - Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage - The Seven Scars

0:44:47 - Hyrule Warriors - Skyloft and Eclipse of the Sun

0:50:43 - Ninety Nine Nights - Defender of Truth and Spiral Maze

1:00:27 - Undead Knights

1:05:21 - Drakengard 2 - Breakthrough

1:20:18 - Drakengard 2 - Fate

1:27:33 - Fate/Extella Link - Holy City and Carolus Patricius Auctoritas

1:33:13 - Drakengard 3 - Final Song

1:39:49 - Recap and Outro

Due to the difficulty to identify composers for individual tracks in this genre, the information has been left out of the description to avoid any misattribution.