Iβve gotten a chance to listen to a lot of Phantasy Star music in my time. Aside from playing all four main series games, Online, Universe, and the handheld titles, Iβve heard remixes and arrangements in the form of SEGA Rock and the arranged albums, Phantasy Star Collection Volume I and Volume II, Iβve even dabbled in learning some tunes on the piano. Iβve always enjoyed the music, more for nostalgic reasons than anything else, but there are some great compositions in there that stand on their own, such as βEnd of the Millenniumβ from Phantasy Star IV, the βMain Themeβ for Phantasy Star III, and βDeath of Placeβ from Phantasy Star II. Well, if youβve ever wanted to go back to the source material, you now have your chance with Phantasy Star 1st Series Complete Album, a collection of all the in-game music from the first four games in the series.
Itβs all here, in a nice, neat package, along with some extras. Included in disc I is all of the music from the FM version release of Phantasy Star I, along with the extra music from the galleries in Phantasy Star Collection for Saturn. Honestly, while the FM tunes are higher quality sound than the original cart version, I actually prefer the original Phantasy Star music to that of its FM doppelganger. I figure, if youβre going to go old school, go old school all the way. The Phantasy Star Collection music, on the other hand, was quite good. Each track is an arrangement from one of the games; the βIllustration Gallery ~ Menuβ is a delicate little space synth remix of the Phantasy Star I town theme, while βIllustration Gallery ~ PSIβ is a fast-paced happy hardcore remix of the PSI dungeon theme. The βIllustration Gallery ~ PSIIβ is a rocking synth version of the PSII town theme, while βIllustration Gallery ~ PSIIIβ is a tribal-ish rendition of the overworld theme. Finally, there is βIllustration Gallery ~ PSIV,β which remixes the gameβs Landmaster theme in a very β80s synth style, and βThe end of the millennium (1993 Arrange Version)β which is, well, an arrangement of PSIVβs βThe end of the millennium.β All of it is tasty and catchy and a real treat for fans of the seriesβ music, such as myself.
Disc 2 is not without its extras, however, as it contains the entire collection of tracks from both the Japanese and American releases of PSII. Honestly, the only difference is the type of snare drum synth thatβs used, with the Japanese being fuller and louder than the American one. Apparently American sensibilities couldnβt handle the crazy immorality of heavy snare synths, but now that weβve progressed as a culture, we might be able to listen without being driven into the waiting arms of Satanβ¦or Dark Force.
The remaining discs are just straightforward collections of the tracks to Phantasy Star III and Phantasy Star IV, and while thereβs nothing wrong with that, itβs somewhat of a letdown after discs 1 and 2. Still, gotta love some of the best nostalgia this side of Algol.
Overall, Iβd recommend this album for any fan of the Phantasy Star series. Otherwise, thereβs really no reason to get this album.
Editorβs note (3/25/2013): Unfortunately, this album is no longer in print and thus unavailable from outlets like Play-Asia or CDJapan.