

The music of Galaxy Force II is a lavishly funky, jazzy and surprisingly energetic creation from members of S.S.T. I was a regular to video game music by that point, but I never would have expected to find music resembling The Rippingtons in a Genesis game. It was also the year that Galaxy Force II was released for the Sega Genesis. Of course, falling into Nirvana and Soundgarden was a formative experience, but that year also brought my first exposure to contemporary jazz fusion. Grant ‘Stemage’ Henry (Composed for and featured on Steven Universe, Ikenfell, Card of Darkness, Metroid Metal)ġ991 was a big year for musical introductions. Mega Man was undeniably back, maybe better than ever! At once wistful and heroic, with unstoppable forward momentum, it represents everything the fans hold dear about the franchise with the Blue Bomber. Ryo Kawakami understood the benchmark by which he would be judged, and somehow contributed a track that immediately entered the Mega Man music hall of fame.

But Flash in the Dark achieved the impossible. For a track to reach the heights of the legendary Wily themes from the 80s, composed by Manami Matsumae and Takashi Tateishi, seemed unthinkable.

It’s a dramatic chapter in each game, steeped in an eerie, sometimes melancholy atmosphere. This final stretch of stages typically precedes the ultimate battle against Dr Wily, an evil scientist with an insatiable appetite for world domination.
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Virtually every entry in the classic series had its standout track somewhere in the Wily Castle levels. But none of that indicated what a bombastic, unforgettable and thoroughly authentic 8-bit soundtrack the two would craft for Mega Man 9. Ippo Yamada cut his teeth on Mega Man 7, whose 16-bit sound deviated somewhat from that of the classic series, and together with Ryo Kawakami he later worked on the Mega Man Zero series. The series is known for its excellent music, but after all this time no one knew what to expect from the composers at Inti Creates. To say that the announcement took its fans by surprise would be an understatement. The ninth entry in the classic series released after a painful hiatus of 12 years. I’m sure many longtime Mega Man fans will understand why.

The soundtrack for each entry in the classic Mega Man series is iconic and notable in its own way, but one track immediately springs to mind when I think of my personal favourites: Flash in the Dark from Mega Man 9. It fills my heart with joy to be able to say that many of them work with us at Brave Wave today. Mega Man, a Capcom franchise with one of the most towering musical legacies in video game history, has helped launch the career of a whole range of legendary composers. Mohammed Taher (President and Director of Brave Wave Productions) Scroll down for the unranked list, and be sure to check out Overlapping Spiral by Saitone too – an extra bonus pick from Keiji Yamagishi, who composed the soundtracks for Ninja Gaiden and Tecmo Bowl. The label’s in-house composers took part, each choosing the best tracks from their favourite releases. We asked Brave Wave to compile a list of the top 10 chiptune soundtracks ever made, ranging from contemporary albums to beloved releases from the NES and Famicom era. The label’s back catalogue features releases such as Art of Fighting: The Definitive Soundtrack (2017), Sonic Adventure 2 (2017) and Streets of Rage 4 (2020). The label’s focus is to bridge the gap between western and Japanese composers through its sound, Brave Wave explores the intersection of chiptune music and video game nostalgia. Founded in 2013 by Mohammed Taher, the label has a roster of in-house composers that include Keiji Yamagishi, Lena Raine, Tee Lopes and more. One of the most prominent labels operating in video game music today is Japan’s Brave Wave Productions.
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Since its inception, the sound has appeared throughout several genres, such as grime and hip-hop.īuilt using programmable sound generator (PSG) sound chips or synthesisers, some of the earliest examples of popular artists sampling chiptune sounds include Yellow Magic Orchestra’s self-titled LP, released in 1978, and Haruomi Hosono’s Video Game Music album in 1984. Last year, the likes of SOPHIE, Grimes and Gazelle Twin contributed to the soundtrack for Cyberpunk 2077. But if we look at the impact of retro video game music on popular culture, we can find that one particular type of sound – chiptune – influenced popular music throughout the 80s and had a resurgence in the mid-noughties. In correlation to the rise of video games, however, are the soundtracks. It’s not hard to see why we’re staying inside, locked down, and living inside virtual worlds is either a welcome distraction, or a source of connection. Video games have exploded in popularity during the Covid-19 pandemic.
