Soundtrack Review: Final Fantasy X

It's one of my all time favorite games and it just so happens to have some of the best music in the franchise. Final Fantasy 10 takes you on a roller coaster of emotions with its incredible story and likable cast of characters from the energetic Tidus, the hardened warrior Auron to the stoic Kimahri. I remember playing through it and the tracks accompanying the various events were just SO GOOD. I purchased the soundtrack myself a few years back and I love showcasing it in my room. It comes packed with 4 CD's as do most Final Fantasy Soundtracks with cool interior art in the packaging. The music was composed by veteran Nobuo Uematsu along with Junya Nakano and Masashi Hamauzu (who later on went to compose the soundtrack to Final Fantasy 13!)

I figured I would highlight some personal favorite tracks of mine, there are alot so I'll try not to add too much! "To Zanarkand" is the game's opening and the overall main theme. The piano opens up beautifully and it certainly gave me chills. The staple track "Prelude" is given its own spin by being alot more upbeat. "Auron's Theme" captures the characters mysterious and is overall a very cool tune. "Mt. Gagazet" has a steady beat and utilizes instruments to capture the mountain feel, plus the area in the game is snowing which makes it all the better. In terms of battle themes, the Normal Battle theme sounds very triumphant with its use of trumpets whereas the Boss music shows the tension. More personal favorites include "Raid" (the entire scene that this plays over is EPIC) "Seymour Battle" (very catchy, I recommend checking out the rock version done by The Black Mages), "Where Dreams Come to End" (has that final area feel to it even though at the point in the game you are very close to the end), and "Rikku's Theme" (very cheerful and happy. Puts a smile on my face every time).

There are many more tunes that I could go more into but it would just turn into a giant list. Final Fantasy 10's music is high up there for me with other favorites from 7, 13, 8, and 4. Obviously I wouldn't recommend buying this soundtrack if you've never played the game before (WHY HAVEN'T YOU?!?) but if you want to expand your gaming music variety and enjoyed the music in FF10, definitely pick this up. I'm jealous of those that are able to play the HD remasters that will soon be released because the music got an update as it's now more orchestral.

Should you give this a listen?
Yes, the variety of tracks FF10 is a great addition to any lover of the Final Fantasy franchise and its music!