#METROID SAMUS RETURNS OST NORFAIR FULL#

Jason states this album was based off the concept of taking the ambience of the original Super Metroid and seeing how lush it he could make it: “The album came from a desire to build a song off the sparse Space Colony ambient piece.”Īnd let me just say that this album is incredibly ambient, the long tracks wearing you down in the crushing, ominous undertones of Super Metroid’s atmosphere. His first VGM remix was of Wood Man’s Theme from Mega Man 2, in 2001. Jason has been doing videogame music (VGM) covers for the past three years through Dwelling of Duels under such names as Amaranthine Skies, Concrete Mutant, Forfallen, and Kodiak Attack. The Dark Side of Zebes, composed by Jason Vincion (aka Amaranthine Skies), is an incredibly ambient album consisting of two 20+ minute tracks chronicling Samus’s exploration of the darkest reaches of Zebes. The total exclusion of Metroid II music is something of a disappointment, but what is on the Sound In Action CD is definitely a testament to the aural brilliance that accompanied us on our first and third adventures with Samus Aran. Of course the BGM music is great stuff, but the first five arranged tracks are really what make this disc stand out. Track 16 - “Theme of Super Metroid,” which is heard in the game as Samus is recounting her adventures leading up to Super Metroid - even omits the “typing text” sound so you can listen to the music in all its pure glory. (I always thought it was part of the music until I heard the Japanese version and realized that it was actually the alarm!)Īs for the Super Metroid BGM, they sound just like what you’re used to hearing from playing the game itself. The US version of the game does have this alarm sound as well, but it was changed to a much softer sound - so similar to the tones in the music that it actually sounds like it’s part of the escape theme. Finally, track 13 - the escape sequence theme - illustrates a notable difference between the Japanese and American versions of Metroid: the Japanese version had a harsh “alarm” sound effect which not only obscured the music, but is just no fun to listen to on CD. Also, some gameplay sound effects (jumps, shots, etc.) sneaked their way into track 12, and they’re a little harsh and distracting. The decisions made with regard to track length seem a bit careless, with a number of tracks ending abruptly rather than fading out. Regarding the Metroid BGM tracks, although the sound quality is fine (with a little reverb added), there are a few issues that need addressing.

#METROID SAMUS RETURNS OST NORFAIR FULL#

Still, the four Super Metroid themes and the original Metroid ending theme never sounded so full and energetic. The arranged tracks are very well done, although they are performed on keyboards with an orchestral arrangement rather than with an actual orchestra.

This CD contains 38 tracks (see list to the right): Five arranged tracks (“arranged” meaning performed on instruments rather than taken from the game itself), nine BGM (background music) tracks from the Famicom version of Metroid, and the remainder are BGM tracks directly from the Super Metroid game. Mercifully, they have, as of this writing, announced that they are closing down.) And finally, I cannot fulfill requests to make copies of my SIA CD for anyone - I’ve been asked countless times and if I complied, I’d be spending far too much time burning CDs and sending them to people. (Previously, I had recommended The Place as a source for SIA, since that’s where I found my copy around 1996 or ’97 however, not only does The Place no longer have any copies of the CD, but they have since proven to be the absolute WORST mail-order service I have ever had the severe displeasure of dealing with. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend any place to order or purchase an original copy of SIA, unless you have access to CD shops in Japan - and even then it’ll probably require a search. And when Japanese CDs go out of print, they become extremely difficult to obtain. Secondly, SIA has been out of print since 1996. First, it’s a Japanese item, and was not available in a North American or European version (in fact, some Nintendo of America employees are not even aware of the CD’s existence, so I’ve been told). Super Metroid – Sound In Action Soundtrack CD : by TJīefore the review proper, I’d like to take a moment to clear up a few things about the Super Metroid – Sound In Action soundtrack CD.

Metroid samus returns ost norfair