3 Choume No Tama - Tama And Friends - 3 Choume Obake Panic!! was a Japanese game based off of the anime series "Tama of Third Street". The game itself has relatively little information online, but I was able to figure out that it was published by Bandai and developed by Tom Create, a company that does a lot of Gundam games and is often hired by studios of other entertainment mediums to do game adaptations. I liked the soundtrack a lot, so here's a review of some of the tracks from the game.
Track 1.
This track sounds very nostalgic. I don't know if it's an 8 bit version of one of the songs from the original series, as many games based off of other works tend to go that way, but it's a very nice track. It's very nostalgic sounding and pleasant. It makes me very sad to think that this game and Tama and Friends in general will go largely forgotten save for a few archiving services, in which case all that will exist of the game and the series at some point will be trivial information- not even anything valuable about the series or the game- and the bare minimum of their content. Nevertheless, perhaps if this game or the series can go on to change the life of any person, it will have done more than most things accomplish. It certainly has affected my life, in however small a way.
Track 2.
This track is very upbeat. It further brings emphasis to how well produced the music for this game is. This piece reminds me of a game show that would happen in some tall Japanese tower late at night on a nighttime broadcast.
Track 3.
This is a really fast and crazy track. There are a lot of really crazy arpeggios that honestly seem like they would have been really hard to make. Overall, this just seems like a song that would be very good for a crazy chase part of a game. It sounds a bit like something from Getsu Fuuma Den.
Track 4.
This is a very sad and nostalgic sounding song too. There's actually a lot of very complex layering going on in the background parts of this track which is strange considering the fact that the rest of it is very minimalistic. The melody at the end of the cadences which goes downward and finishes the sections of the song is especially sad and reminiscent of something that I feel like I've heard before.
Track 5.
This song starts off with a kind of minor melody, but has a chromatic part right after it which then leads into a second minor part. The chromatic part sounds pretty sad, but also musically satisfying. I don't really know which part of a game this part would be used for but it reminds me of something from Scooby Doo.
Track 6.
This track also starts off with a minor arpeggio part but quickly goes into a B section that is also in the minor. The C section is really what is satisfying about this song though. It is way lighter than the other parts of the song. It reminds me of driving home from my grandparents house when I was younger.
Track 7.
This track starts out with a repeating bassline and nice arpeggios. However, once the introduction ends, the melody shifts to a kind of delayed harmonic part and the chords shift to something similar the ending of Arkista's Ring.
Track 8.
This piece is very minor. It's pretty basic, so there's not a lot I find very interesting about it. However, at the end before it repeats, the cadences get very interesting rhythmically. This one definitely has that similar Scooby Doo vibe too.
Track 9.
This continuing trend of almost spook sounding minor pieces makes me really want to play the game to see what kind of sinister problems the main characters face. This one sounds less Scooby Doo-ish, but the vibe is definitely still there.
Track 10.
This track is, to be honest, just really strange. I honestly don't know a huge instance in any game or form of media where a song like this would be expected. I guess that's kind of cool though. When we listen to video game music, we have very predetermined positions about what that piece is supposed to represent, either through having played the game itself or through just plain experience with different aspects of games. It's kind of nice to be surprised by something that overturns both these expectations.
Track 11.
This is a very nice jazzy song that somehow made it onto a gameboy game. The song itself really reminds me of a kind of cross between Fly Me to the Moon and It's Only a Paper Moon, the former usurping the latter in terms of world renown and recognition. The end especially reminds me of It's Only a Paper Moon however, almost to the point that I'd consider it an homage. The solo section and bassline of this piece are both really amazing. It sounds really great overall.
Track 12.
This is another one of the fast pieces from this OST. While it doesn't really have any specific part that I'd consider to be very appealing, I guess it's good to have tracks like this. It gives the other tracks that have more flavor more character and uniqueness.
Track 13.
This track has a lot of crazy arpeggios and the different sections are all really cool. There's higher melodies and then a lower bass part in the song. It seems like the downward arpeggios that play constantly connect the two parts and give the song a lot of substance. Also, the B section sounds very familiar, but I can't put my finger on what I recognize it from.
Track 14.
This song seems a little bit of a thematic variation on track 14 to me, but maybe that's just cause I think they start on the same note and have similar instrumentation. This seems like it would be something that would play at the end. It sounds a lot like Always With Me from Spirited Away. It also makes funny use of secondary dominants.
Track 15.
This one also sounds like it would be something that would play at the end of the game. I like how the melody gets more drawn out and less detailed as the song goes on, almost like it's running out of breath. This song makes me sad that this analysis is coming to an end, as I've worked on this for a really long time actually.
Track 16.
This is also a pretty cool song that also sounds like an ending song. It sounds like something that would play during morning though, maybe in a situation similar to Manchester By the Sea if that makes any sense at all. I'm also pretty sure that I hear a lot of references to earlier songs in the game from time to time. Also, what is it with ending songs and stepwise descending baselines. It's in literally everything.
Track 17.
Oh wait there is no track 17. For some reason I thought this went on longer than it did. :( Oh well.
Conclusion:
Well, that's the end of this review. I hope you liked it. I've found the end of reviewing this game to be a kind of bittersweet thing, just like the game itself. Although the game isn't popular at all, it still creates a poignant emotional impact among the huge sea of information that is life. Having immersed myself in and grown emotionally attached to this game's soundtrack, I hope to never forget it.
Links
Game Soundtrack
Track 8.
This piece is very minor. It's pretty basic, so there's not a lot I find very interesting about it. However, at the end before it repeats, the cadences get very interesting rhythmically. This one definitely has that similar Scooby Doo vibe too.
Track 9.
This continuing trend of almost spook sounding minor pieces makes me really want to play the game to see what kind of sinister problems the main characters face. This one sounds less Scooby Doo-ish, but the vibe is definitely still there.
Track 10.
This track is, to be honest, just really strange. I honestly don't know a huge instance in any game or form of media where a song like this would be expected. I guess that's kind of cool though. When we listen to video game music, we have very predetermined positions about what that piece is supposed to represent, either through having played the game itself or through just plain experience with different aspects of games. It's kind of nice to be surprised by something that overturns both these expectations.
Track 11.
This is a very nice jazzy song that somehow made it onto a gameboy game. The song itself really reminds me of a kind of cross between Fly Me to the Moon and It's Only a Paper Moon, the former usurping the latter in terms of world renown and recognition. The end especially reminds me of It's Only a Paper Moon however, almost to the point that I'd consider it an homage. The solo section and bassline of this piece are both really amazing. It sounds really great overall.
Track 12.
This is another one of the fast pieces from this OST. While it doesn't really have any specific part that I'd consider to be very appealing, I guess it's good to have tracks like this. It gives the other tracks that have more flavor more character and uniqueness.
Track 13.
This track has a lot of crazy arpeggios and the different sections are all really cool. There's higher melodies and then a lower bass part in the song. It seems like the downward arpeggios that play constantly connect the two parts and give the song a lot of substance. Also, the B section sounds very familiar, but I can't put my finger on what I recognize it from.
Track 14.
This song seems a little bit of a thematic variation on track 14 to me, but maybe that's just cause I think they start on the same note and have similar instrumentation. This seems like it would be something that would play at the end. It sounds a lot like Always With Me from Spirited Away. It also makes funny use of secondary dominants.
Track 15.
This one also sounds like it would be something that would play at the end of the game. I like how the melody gets more drawn out and less detailed as the song goes on, almost like it's running out of breath. This song makes me sad that this analysis is coming to an end, as I've worked on this for a really long time actually.
Track 16.
This is also a pretty cool song that also sounds like an ending song. It sounds like something that would play during morning though, maybe in a situation similar to Manchester By the Sea if that makes any sense at all. I'm also pretty sure that I hear a lot of references to earlier songs in the game from time to time. Also, what is it with ending songs and stepwise descending baselines. It's in literally everything.
Track 17.
Oh wait there is no track 17. For some reason I thought this went on longer than it did. :( Oh well.
Conclusion:
Well, that's the end of this review. I hope you liked it. I've found the end of reviewing this game to be a kind of bittersweet thing, just like the game itself. Although the game isn't popular at all, it still creates a poignant emotional impact among the huge sea of information that is life. Having immersed myself in and grown emotionally attached to this game's soundtrack, I hope to never forget it.
Links
Game Soundtrack
No comments:
Post a Comment