Author Topic: The importance of music  (Read 19601 times)

Re: The importance of music
« Reply #30 on: February 06, 2010, 01:59:58 PM »
The music alone isn't that important to me. I don't place any more emphasis on it than I do graphics. These things are nice when they're good and fit well with the action and setting, but ultimately, it's the gameplay that matters: the game must be fun. If either or both the music or graphics are weak, I can tolerate them easily and still enjoy the game, so as long as it's entertaining. If it isn't, then I'm not going to play it; if I happen to just like the music, it's likely that it will wind up on my playlist.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #31 on: February 06, 2010, 05:22:39 PM »
A game without music is very boring. Most of the time I remember games because of their music.

Also what Fightest said.
« Last Edit: February 06, 2010, 07:30:45 PM by Solaiston Beam »

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #32 on: February 06, 2010, 05:54:15 PM »
I probably don't need to mention that each character's theme has a very large part in presenting their personality to me.

No wai. :V I'm pretty much the same way. I honestly don't think i'd like Touhou that much without the music, because that's where a large portion of the "spirit" of the game is held.
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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #33 on: February 06, 2010, 06:56:24 PM »
I love Touhou's music and it's a very important part of the game in my opinion.

Anyway, I always wanted to ask this: does ZUN create all the themes first, then chooses which one fits more to each boss, or does he create themes thinking about a specific boss?

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #34 on: February 06, 2010, 07:16:35 PM »
Touhou's probably one of the etremely few games I've ever played in which I've never muted the music except occasionally to listen to a playlist of doujin arranges that are related to the specific game I'm on. But the originals are really great, so unless I'm super determined mode and decide to switch to IRON ATTACK! and other metal or faster rock arranges, or some other particular mood, I just leave the ingame BGM on~

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #35 on: February 06, 2010, 07:18:07 PM »
create all the themes first, then chooses which one fits more to each boss?
You will always fail at music forever if this is the stance you take.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #36 on: February 06, 2010, 09:28:00 PM »
Like a lot of other people, the music is a big part of what got me into Touhou at first. All the atmosphere it gives and the particular synch with what happens in the stages are really important to me.
And I also like how it sometimes seem to be synched with the dialogues. Like before Remilia with Marisa, the song picks up just at the moment the dialogue finishes and same thing with Marisa-Alice against Reimu; the song seems to really start at the moment Marisa says "It's all Alice's fault". Those small things always get me even more into it.
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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #37 on: February 06, 2010, 09:55:29 PM »
I used to need music while I did pretty much anything, including reading and homework. Now though... I can't concentrate on the task at hand, I have to listen to the music(assuming I like it). I still hate not having music handy when I'm housecleaning or taking my dog out for lengths greater than half hour. It can make the worst things enjoyable... I just wish I could enjoy it while vacuuming. Vacuum is too loud, and I don't want noise canceling headphones because I like to be aware of my surrounds while listening (especially since drivers are CRAZY).

Oh yea, I know exactly what you mean. When I am cleaning my room on a sunday or saturday, the streaming jazz radio goes on. Though homework + music can be sometimes distracting. Depends on what type of homework you are doing though.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #38 on: February 06, 2010, 11:10:24 PM »
DbU's remixes of UFO soundtrack are pretty much the subsided lounge version. Perfect to relax to when doing something else. Especially U 4 R.

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In all seriousness, I feel I need to be more precise: a game or even a movie without a good soundtrack often kills itself in my eyes (or ears, more like). Sound is extremely important in setting the right atmosphere, you can't do without. That's why playing without music to me is heresy, even Oblivion's soundtrack, repetitive as it was because you heard it all by the 5th hour of play, was good in setting the theme, especially for the exploration outside. The gameplay, good as it might be, has never been enough for me.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #39 on: February 06, 2010, 11:15:59 PM »
I seriously find working easier with music. Otherwise I find I get bored and lose attention altogether lol.

especially in our most boring lectures, I pop in headphones to stop me falling asleep. at least half getting something in is better than zonking out on the desk and getting nothing whatsoever lol. Helped loads during revision, people kept telling me it wouldn't work, I'm certain it did.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #40 on: February 07, 2010, 03:58:46 AM »
I will literally go insane in silence - my mind starts to think itself into oblivion. Could be because of my sensitivity to extra-normal stimuli, or maybe I just have an unstable mind.

When I was four years old, I was hit by a minivan. Immediately, I had an out-of-body experience, wherein I watched me pull myself halfway out from under the van before collapsing, then my mother ran out of our house and pulled me the rest of the way out. I didn't re-enter my body until Mom had brought me all the way inside and laid me down on some towels; from this, I had a broken arm, knee, and a fractured skull.
Later in life - around five or six - I was attacked by a dog and had my ear nearly torn off. In the 'excitement', I fell and struck my head - that, or the dog rocked my hard enough to trigger it again, and I was watching myself from an outside point-of-view. To describe it simply, I was suddenly in third-person view. I lacked absolute control over myself while this was happening, though - I was guided from where I'd been bitten to get my ear cleaned up and bandaged, then sent with my parents to our family physician. Sometime during the trip to get back to my parents did I regain complete control.

Now, in life, if it's silent, I slowly start to seep away from myself. I can't turn about and look at me, though - not that I've tried, honestly. I don't like the sensation - I can't focus on anything, and pretty much everything around me pulls my attention. It's like having twenty people stand in front of you, each with something in their hands, all telling you to look at their object first.

For me, music gives me something to absolutely focus on. I can tune out all the distractions and the headaches and what have you, and turn my focus to any task at hand much more smoothly than just trying to lock onto the work and go at it.

I got into Touhou first because a friend of mine - probably the closest thing to a girlfriend I had at the time - was just as wildly obsessed with it as I am now. Never one to pass up new experiences, she'd tell me about it alllllll the time, and I'd do my best to get all the weird names straight in my head. Eventually, I got ahold of a copy of PCB and then IN. Played them, failed miserably. Loved the music.

Looked on YouTube for copies of the music to add to my favorites, found doujin remixes and arranges, and fell instantly in love. Now, I try my hand at writing in the Gensokyo universe (as well as having like a gig of Toujin on my other laptop). Imagine that, most of the time I do the writing while listening to Touhou music, and the energy and emotion that's conveyed through them help me craft my writing to match the emotion I want to express. In Everlasting Wanderers, Sara is currently going through lots of confusion and some jealousy. Listen to C-CLAYS 'Legend of Green Eyes' (three guesses whos theme that's an arrange of, and the first two don't count) - can you tell that's what I listened to when writing up Sara's confusion?

I'd just discovered THIS arrange when I decided to start Everlasting Wanderers. It made sense to have them come across the Human Village, and of course Keine would have to be involved. Her stage music alone got me interested enough to look up more info about her accepted abilities and personality traits.

TL;DR - Near death experience screwed up my head, makes me out of tune with myself in silence - discovered that Touhou music kicks ass and works wonders at keeping me grounded.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #41 on: February 07, 2010, 10:59:55 AM »
DbU's remixes of UFO soundtrack are pretty much the subsided lounge version. Perfect to relax to when doing something else. Especially U 4 R.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOW3gig9vdg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARt4RBz9zJo


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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #42 on: February 07, 2010, 06:03:59 PM »
Music is like 90% of the inspiration for me to Danmakufu something. When a character has a good theme, it makes them that much more interesting to me.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #43 on: February 07, 2010, 06:18:48 PM »
/delurk

Music is, without a doubt, the main reason why I've stuck with Touhou so long, despite not putting a lot of effort nor getting a lot of success out of it. The soundtrack for this series has had it's ups and downs, but more often than not I love the arranges Zun puts out, and the fan arranges are nothing short of spectacular at times. There are so many original tracks and remixes that it's impossible to get bored.

In fact, this series went a long ways to reminding me how much I enjoyed music when I was younger, I was too bogged down in bad high-school memories to remember how much I just enjoyed playing itself. Now I have a guitar (my first instrument in 4 years) and am helping with the Tab project when I have the time, and am truly enjoying it.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #44 on: February 08, 2010, 01:38:47 AM »
The music alone isn't that important to me. I don't place any more emphasis on it than I do graphics. These things are nice when they're good and fit well with the action and setting, but ultimately, it's the gameplay that matters: the game must be fun. If either or both the music or graphics are weak, I can tolerate them easily and still enjoy the game, so as long as it's entertaining. If it isn't, then I'm not going to play it; if I happen to just like the music, it's likely that it will wind up on my playlist.

I agree. Triggerheart Exelica has the shittiest video game music I've heard in recent memory, and I still enjoy it more than the later Touhou games. >_>

Re: The importance of music
« Reply #45 on: February 08, 2010, 01:57:59 AM »
I haven't listened to anything other than touhou music for many months now..I fear I may have become addicted to the music. Anyway I tend to like a character almost exclusively based on their theme. If I can't find an original I can always find a remix I like. the only exception to this is suwako, who is great just because of that hat.

There was this one time I was watching classmates evade the policei n need for speed while various touhou songs played in my mp3. Needless to say it got quite funny.

Touhou songs have a strange way of popping up in my life.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #46 on: February 08, 2010, 03:42:22 AM »
Music in any game helps set the emotion.
When It comes to touhou having some up beat Midi,
get's me really in the zone and it allows me to focus on the game.

Re: The importance of music
« Reply #47 on: February 08, 2010, 04:53:07 AM »
Didn't ZUN begin creating the games because he wanted to make music at first?

I don't think anyone is stating that music is the most important factor, but it is still very important.
Imagine if all the boss/stage themes became generic crap that you were forced to listen to through and through.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #48 on: February 09, 2010, 08:28:04 PM »
I find that the music in a game, Touhou or not, is extremely important to me. I can enjoy a game if the music is sub-par, provided that the gameplay is good enough, but amazing music to go with it... THAT is what truly will make it amazing. One of the things that I will always remember about a game is when the music comes on, and I think it's freaking awesome.

Actually, my favorite video games do tend to have awesome music. Games made by Gust all have the most amazing soundtracks EVER, and they are my favorite games that aren't Touhou...

As far as music in Touhou, I found the games because of the music. I was searching around on youtube, found a song called "Fate of Sixty Years" though to be specific, it was the SSH remix... I listened to other remixes, found other songs, and eventually discovered the games.

On a side note, I am ALWAYS listening to music when I can be. When the music stops, and the silence comes, it just... Doesn't feel right. At all.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #49 on: February 13, 2010, 04:34:11 AM »
Music is important in games, since it influences the current psyche of the player.

I.E, fast-paced music gives energy to the player while long-drawn out BGMs almost always makes the player feel stressed and worn out.

That's why the Stage 6 Music of EoSD makes you feel tense, but when Septette kicks in, you suddenly feel alive.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #50 on: February 13, 2010, 10:06:36 AM »
Septette is a strange BGM. To me, it has a feeling of despair, of being faced with someone invincible, then it feels like it's throwing everything it has at you. Problem is, it feels like Remilia is the one facing this invincible enemy and throwing everything she has out of despair.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #51 on: February 15, 2010, 03:15:04 AM »
When Septette's bridge part kicks in, I always feel so happy in contrast to the release effect of the Septette's chorus.

Pretty much how the transition from verse -> chorus in Ghostly Band~Phantom Ensemble feels. And the 2 beat rest even emphasizes it. :D


I really hate the dissonance-inducing tracks like Youmu's and Sakuya's Lunar Clock dial. It makes me feel so helpless. :/

I prefer songs with build-up intros like Princess Inada is Scolding Me and Dark Side of Fate.

Or the emotional discrepancy in Candid Friend. It feels like it's trying to project a different emotion than what it really feels. In a song, I could even call it a 'tsundere', but that would be wrong...
« Last Edit: February 15, 2010, 03:21:47 AM by Coin Spire »

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #52 on: February 15, 2010, 03:36:44 AM »
Music will influence how you play a little bit. But, interpretation is personal. It will affect everyone differently. Only up to a certain point caone be affected the same as others. Just a theory: Touhou music is always pretty fast in some way. It probably wants to get people nervous. If it were slow, you would realize that the bullets are slower than you thought, but you would just go slower, also.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #53 on: February 15, 2010, 04:36:29 AM »
I feel relaxed on most themes though. It's mostly the Stage 5 themes that gets on my nerves.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #54 on: February 15, 2010, 05:48:27 AM »
Music is narrowly beaten by characters and setting as the most important thing I take into consideration when deciding to play a game or watch a show.  For any game with a great soundtrack (Modern Warfare 2, Mass Effect, Final Fantasy, etc) I probably spend more time just listening than I do actually playing the game.  Touhou even more so, I remember the first time I played PCB I immediately put Hiroari Shoots a Strange Bird ~ Till When? on my MP3 players and listened to just that for more than an hour.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #55 on: February 15, 2010, 01:53:03 PM »
I really hate the dissonance-inducing tracks like Youmu's

I prefer songs with build-up intros like Princess Inada is Scolding Me and Dark Side of Fate.
Seconded, but in part. I love Luna Dial: it's dark, ominous and yet not depressing, and depicts a really dangerous Sakuya, as opposed to Flowering Night. Who knows, maybe she got soft over time.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #56 on: February 15, 2010, 02:43:53 PM »
We figured out Sakuya was mostly fronting and she's actually a big pussycat~

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #57 on: February 16, 2010, 01:23:01 AM »
We figured out Sakuya was mostly fronting and she's actually a big pussycat~

Wasn't she a dog? *is shot*


Seriously, I like Flowering Night since I associate knife throwing with the grace needed for the legato movements of the track.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #58 on: February 16, 2010, 01:29:35 AM »
Music is a fundamental factor in helping me endure the violent and painful journey that is Touhou games.
If the music was your average video game stuff, or there was none at all, I probably would've seen little more than a really, really hard game not worth my time.

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Re: The importance of music
« Reply #59 on: February 16, 2010, 02:45:25 AM »
Aside from the music, I also like the pretty patte--*dies*

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