Best arranged soundtracks for games that have dozens?

[Erik_Twice]

This is not about just a good soundtrack, this is about good arrangements. Games like Gradius do not have just the in-game sounds, no, they have classical arrangements, metal arrangements and even digeridoo arrangements. Facing so many choices, it's often hard to choose!

I'm going to start this topic asking about Megaman, specifically 3. Which arrange albums are there and which do you think I should check out?

[Xeogred]

Not sure about Megaman 3, gonna throw out some recommendations though:

There's a Turrican orchestrated release out there that has to be heard.
F-Zero X Guitar Arrangement is really good.
The Japanese Orchestral Game Concerts are incredible.
Resident Evil Orchestra is incredible.
Technosoft has a lot of great arrangements, especially for the Thunder Force games. Lost Technology, Renaissance, etc.
Sonic CD Boom is essentially the US soundtrack, except the tracks are extended. Pretty interesting to hear.

[Anapan]

I have a few favorites (mix albums):

Chip Tuned Rockman
Konami Battle the Best
Konami Shooting Battle
Konami Shooting Battle II

[TheyCallMeTheSwede]

of all the arrange soundtracks, I really do like is "Samurai Spirits Image Album" it is the soundtrack to the original Samurai Shodown game with Japanese traditional sound with a few exceptions (example Galford sounds more Metal) my favorite is Kyoshiro's Stage.

I also like ActRaiser's Symphonic Suite album, just hearing the main theme with a full symphony orchestra is like bread and butter.

Any OCRemix albums will do, but I am sure you are looking for official releases.

[Erik_Twice]

Konami Shooting Battle
Konami Shooting Battle II

The first is probably among the best albums I have heard, truly amazing. The second volume sounds shallow in comparison but it's also very good.

Those albums also have the benefit of covering many Konami shooters that you aren't going to buy a whole soundtrack of like Xexex, so you have a very good compilation.

Konami's battle the Best is very good but given that I want the Konami Shooting Battle album and a Castlevania album, most of the tracks would be repeats.

Any OCRemix albums will do, but I am sure you are looking for official releases.

Doesn't need to be. I'm just looking for a definitive start on soundtracks. Really, some games have so many albums, many made in the same style that I have a really hard time just cherry picking a "top tier".

For example, I want a Gradius soundtrack but it's hard to choose between, say, the metal arrangements, the one with the London Philarmonic or the great chiptune original. Or the Sota Fujimori album. Hell, almost every Konami game has several albums on the same styles!

And I want to cut everything down and get only a couple of albums. Not every game will have the privilege OutRun has!


So far I have these albums in my list:

Konami Perfect Shooting Battle I
OutRun 20th Anniversary
Music from SImcity 3000
Music from Simcity 4
Music from Railroad Tycoon 2 "Blues compilation"
Evil Genius (Download only)

But there's a lot more I haven't made my mind on:

Megaman 3
Gradius (Classic? Metal? Electro?)
Castlevania (Same question)
Doom and Doom II (Complete albums?)
Super Hang On 20th Anniversary Collection
Monkey Island SE (not sure if it's download only)
Pokemon (So far I lean for the original chiptune)
Fire Emblem (lots of albums)
Live Sega music from the SST band (There are two albums, one called "best" and another "live history")
Or just Sega music in general

The amount of good stuff is simply fascinating, I wish I were rich to get them all!

[ExedExes]

I don't know if it counts here, but I only have one (1) game soundtrack album and I got it from an Ebay seller in Japan --



Scud Race (us Americans might know it as Sega Super GT)

some of the greatest racing music ever each track fits the music so well

[Anapan]

For Doom & Doom 2, the best arranged soundtrack I've heard is the one by Ashley Carr.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2BERuoZeEI

[TheyCallMeTheSwede]

Oh, you get the chance, give the Double Dragon II Arrange album a try, its kind of a mix bag of sound like they would mix Jazz and Hard Rock together, its kind of a guilty pleasure but I liked the vocal version of the Double Dragon Theme

[Godot102]

Here are some of my favorites:

-F-zero jazz

^^Tell me that does not sound amazing!

-Gyakten meets jazz/orchestra
^^Either one is good

-We are Rockmen
^^The newest mega man soundtrack, there are not 1, not 2 but THREE remixes of darkman's stage(protoman's castle) from mega man 5. There are also songs from the X series and one from the legends

-Gradius house remix
^^Gradius sound effects and music mixed with a dance/house beat! EPIC

[Xeogred]

For Doom & Doom 2, the best arranged soundtrack I've heard is the one by Ashley Carr.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2BERuoZeEI

Pretty good, not sure if tops the 3DO version though!