This episode is dedicated to three very similar games with very similar names, but all teeming with quality – Pinball Dreams, Pinball Fantasies, and Pinball Illusions! This trio of Amiga classics delivered a ton of banging four-channel tunes courtesy of Olof Gustafsson, bringing some serious early 90s demoscene pedigree to the world of video gaming.

Listen:

Pinball Dreams (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Intro’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Dreams (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Beat Box #1’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Dreams (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Steel Wheels #1’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Dreams (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Nightmare #1’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Dreams (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Ignition #2’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Fantasies (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Billion Dollar Gameshow 3’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Fantasies (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Speed Devils 4’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Fantasies (1992, Commodore Amiga) ‘Stones N Bones 3’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Illusions (1995, Commodore Amiga) ‘Law’n Justice: Main Theme’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Illusions (1995, Commodore Amiga) ‘Extreme Sports: Main Theme’ by Olof Gustafsson

Pinball Illusions (1995, Commodore Amiga) ‘Intro’ by Olof Gustafsson

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

This episode is dedicated to the sexy, flirty, and sometimes naughty side of video games and video game music. Superstar special guest The Diad and I draw from titles on platforms as diverse as Sega Saturn, Commodore Amiga, and PC-FX to make a playlist that I feel is one of the most interesting this podcast has had to date!

Listen:

https://archive.org/download/fsvep69/fsvep69.mp3

Desire (1997, Sega Saturn) ‘Ishtal ‘Desire’ [Main I (Noon)]’ by Ryu Umemoto

Dial Q o Mawase! (1992, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Match Tune’, composer unknown

Pinball Illusions (1995, Commodore Amiga) ‘Babewatch Main Theme’ by Olof Gustafsson

Dragon Knight 4 (1997, PC-FX) ‘Opening : take the offensive’ by Masaki Sugo, Yoichi Shimizu, and Tsuyoshi Fukutomi

Foxy 2 (1991, Sharp X68000) ‘SEN4’ by Manabu Kunieda, Yuki Ushimaru, and Yasuhiro Taguchi

Kizuato (1996, Windows) ‘Scars That Haven’t Healed’ by Kazuhide Nakagami

Leisure Suit Larry III: Passionate Patti in Pursuit of the Pulsating Pectorals (1989, DOS) ‘Nontoonyt Resort’ by Mike Dana

Kekkō Kamen 2: O-Shioki Densetsu no Maki (1995, PC-98) ‘Track 4’ by Akira and Yoshito Hata

Lipstick Adv.EX (1999, Windows) ‘MIND ~closed the past~’ by Doors Music Entertainment

To Heart 2 (2009, Sony PSP) ‘Technical Power’ by Naoya Shimokawa

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

2020 is turning out to be a tough year for a lot of us, so I think that some music which inspires hope for the future is in order. For this episode, I am joined by my good friend The Diad as we seek out some video game tunes that will lift our spirits and keep us groovin’ into the night!

Listen:

https://ia601407.us.archive.org/29/items/fsvep68/fsvep68.mp3

Streets of Rage 4 (2020, PC) ‘Staff Roll’ by Motohiro Kawashima

Fever SOS (1998, Arcade) ‘Dancing Bomber’ by Ryuichi Yabuki, Nanpei Misawa, Ryo Sakai, and Masaharu Yoshida

Battle Pinball (1995, Nintendo Super Famicom) ‘Ultra Table’ by Ryuichi Nitta

Gimmick! (1992, NES) ‘Good Morning [Introduction]’ by Masashi Kageyama

Slipheed (1989, DOS) ‘The Legend of Slipheed’ by Nobuyuki Aoshima, Mecano Associates, Hibiki Godai, Fumihito Kasatani, Hiromi Ohba, and Mark Seibert

R.C. Robot Construction (1993, Sharp X68000) ‘Opening’ by Masashi Kageyama

Golden Axe (1990, PC Engine CD) ‘Ending Credits’ by Shinobu Ogawa, Hiroto Otsubo and Yuonjin

Tsunyan Jaayao (1994, NEC PC-98) ‘Ending’ by Takeshi Abo

Masashi Kageyama here, helping the crops by playing saxophone at them.

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

To many, the FM synth-driven sound of the Sega Mega Drive simply is the sound of video games, as its run of success in the early 1990s delivered countless brilliant original titles in addition to some very convincing arcade ports. In this episode, I share some of my favourite tunes from this beautiful little slab of black plastic, including tracks from ToeJam & Earl, Columns, and Ecco the Dolphin!

Listen:

https://archive.org/download/fsvep67/fsvep67.mp3

Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master (1993, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Whirlwind’ by Morihiko Akiyama, Hirofumi Murasaki and Masayuki Nagao

ToeJam & Earl (1991, Sega Mega Drive) ‘ToeJam Jammin’’ by John Baker

Road Rash (1991, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Pacific Coast’ by Rob Hubbard

Gynoug (1991, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Round 2-1’ by Noriyuki Iwadare

Columns (1990, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Lathesis’ by Tokuhiko Uwabo

CrossFire (1991, Sega Mega Drive) ‘In the Air’ by Tsukasa Masuko

Ecco the Dolphin (1992, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Jurassic Beach’ by András Magyari, Spencer Nilsen and Brian Coburn

Golden Axe II (1991, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Credits’ by Naofumi Hataya

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

In a first for Forever Sound Version, John and I get into what we consider to be the best game soundtracks of the year! 2019 has yielded lots of very interesting titles, which in turn have given us some very interesting tunes. Thanks a lot for supporting the podcast this year; enjoy the holidays and see you in 2020!

Listen:

https://ia601404.us.archive.org/24/items/fsvep66/fsvep66.mp3

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (2019, Sony Playstation 4) ‘In the Doldrums’ by Hitoshi Sakimoto

Samurai Shodown (2019, Sony Playstation 4) ‘The Crow’ by Hori_Hori, Hideki Asanaka, Mayuko Hino, Naoki Kita, Minori Sasaki, Akihiro Nakazawa, Daisuke Mori, Kensuke Inage and Jun Hoshina

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (2019, Sony Playstation 4) ‘In the Doldrums’ by Michiru Yamane

Nono Pixie (2019, Commodore 64) ‘Nono Pixie’ by Marcin Majdzik

Astral Chain (2019, Nintendo Switch) ‘Task Force Neuron’ by Satoshi Igarashi

Hypnospace Outlaw (2019, PC) ‘I Am the Chowder’ by Erik Helwig

Persona 5: The Royal (2019, Sony Playstation 4) ‘Take Over’ by Shoji Meguro

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

Coming at you faster than a blue shell on the final lap of Koopa Troopa Beach, Forever Sound Version is back with a focus on music from kart racing titles! This hugely popular subgenre of racing games was introduced – and some would say perfected – by Nintendo’s Mario Kart series, but which other characters have gotten in on the action over the years?

Listen:

https://archive.org/download/fsvep65/fsvep65.mp3

Super Mario Kart (1992, SNES) ‘Mario Circuit’ by Soyo Oka

Diddy Kong Racing (1997, Nintendo 64) ‘Jungle Falls’ by David Wise and Graeme Norgate

Doraemon Kart (1998, Nintendo Game Boy) ‘BGM #03’, composer unknown

Crash Team Racing (1999, Sony Playstation) ‘Mystery Caves’ by Mark Mothersbaugh and Josh Mancell

Mario Kart Super Circuit (2001, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘Yoshi Desert’ by Kenichi Nishimaki, Masanobu Matsunaga and Minako Hamano

Sonic Drift (1994, Sega Game Gear) ‘Star Light’ by Masayuki Nagao

Chocobo Racing (1999, Sony Playstation) ‘Gurugu Volcano’ by Nobuo Uematsu and Kenji Ito

Mario Kart 64 (1996, Nintendo 64) ‘Toad’s Turnpike’ by Kenta Nagata

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

Forever Sound Version returns with a focus on one of Nintendo’s massive success stories – the Game Boy Advance. This system’s sound quality may leave a lot to be desired at times, but there is still a great abundance of interesting and exciting music to be heard throughout its software library, so lock in and enjoy these seven cuts from games like Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, and Astro Boy: Omega Factor!

Listen:

https://ia601403.us.archive.org/4/items/fsvep64/fsvep64.mp3

Robot Wars: Advanced Destruction (2001, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘BGM #04’ by Steve Rockett

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (2003, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘At the Pub’ by Hitoshi Sakimoto

Astro Boy: Omega Factor (2003, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘Stage Three’ by Kazuo Hanzawa and Tsuyoshi Kaneko

Sonic Advance (2002, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘Secret Base Zone Act 1’ by Tatsuyuki Maeda, Yutaka Minobe, Hironobu Inagaki and Atsuyoshi Isemura

Kappa no Kai-kata: Katan Daibouken! (2005, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘BGM #06’, composer unknown

Mario Kart: Super Circuit (2001, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘Bowser Castle’ by Kenichi Nishimaki, Masanobu Matsunaga and Minako Hamano

Game & Watch Gallery 4 (2002, Nintendo Game Boy Advance) ‘Chef – Modern Mode’ by Riyou Kinugasa and Kengo Hagiwara

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

The four horsemen are back. Michael, Ross, Joe, and John (who brought the trophy along with him – eventually…) fill a fridge with beers and then empty it gradually on a Saturday afternoon while engaging in musical combat. It’s the fifth Forever Sound Version VGM Battle! Who will be the champ this time?

Listen:

https://ia601400.us.archive.org/32/items/fsvep63/fsvep63.mp3

Neon Genesis Evangelion (1999, Nintendo 64) ‘Cruel Angel’s Thesis’ by Shiro Sagisu, Opus Corp. and Jun Enoki

Panorama Cotton (1994, Sega Mega Drive) ‘The Great Gallery’ by Kenichi Hirata

Streets of Rage 2 (1993, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Jungle Base’ by Yuzo Koshiro

Knuckles Chaotix (1995, Sega 32X) ‘Door Into Summer’ by Junko Shiratsu

Metal Masters (1993, Nintendo Game Boy) ‘Metal Beat’ by Alberto Jose González

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (2007, Sony Playstation 3) ‘Nate’s Theme’ by Greg Edmonson

360: Three Sixty (1999, Sony Playstation) ‘Bite Beat’ by Gerard ‘Gez’ Gourley

R-Type Complete CD (1991, NEC PC Engine CD) ‘Level 1 BGM’ by Yasuhiro Kawakami and Takushi Hiyamuta

Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil (2001, Sony Playstation 2) ‘Seaway’ by Go Shiina

Sakura Taisen (1997, Sega Saturn) ‘Declaration! Imperial Floral Assault Group’ by Kohei Tanaka

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (1999, Sega Dreamcast) ‘Makoto Stage Spunky’ by Hideki Okugawa

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018, Nintendo Switch) ‘Vega Stage’ by Yoko Shimomura

Transistor (2014, Sony Playstation 4) ‘We All Become’ by Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

Put the kettle on, because Rhythm and Pixels are coming over and they want some tea! I’m joined by Rob and Pernell to talk about all things tea while listening to some great video game music picks from titles like Zero4 Champ, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time and Suikoden. If you haven’t heard Rhythm and Pixels before, check them out at rhythmandpixels.com – they deliver the VGM goods and a super friendly atmosphere every single week!

Listen:

https://ia801407.us.archive.org/3/items/fsvep62/fsvep62.mp3

Zero4 Champ (1991, NEC PC Engine) ‘At Afternoon Tea’ by Tsukushi Sasaki

Sonic: After the Sequel (2013, PC) ‘Tea with Ellie’ by Funk Fiction, Andy Tunstall and Falk

Star Ocean: Till the End of Time (2003, Sony Playstation 2) ‘Pert Girl on the Sandy Beach’ by Yusaburo Shimojo

Goemon: Mononoke Sugoroku (1999, Nintendo 64) ‘Relax and Choose’ by Kozo Nakamura, Tomoaki Hirono, Takeshi Iwakiri and Hajime Takai

Cross Edge (2009, Sony Playstation 3) ‘Desert Rain’ by Kenji Kaneko

Sega GT 2002 (2002, Microsoft Xbox) ‘Time Attack’ by Masanori Takeuchi

Yami no Ketsuzoku (1990, Sharp X68000) ‘Tea Ceremony Dream’ by Haruo Hosoya and Manabu Saito

Suikoden (1996, Sony Playstation) ‘Gorgeous Scarleticia’ by Miki Higashino

You can send me a few £ to help me keep Forever Sound Version going at ko-fi.com/foreversoundversion
Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

In the 1990s, the Strike series was like the video games equivalent of a hit action movie franchise, with bad guys seeking world domination, daring missions, and loads of big explosions. I loved these games when I was a kid (and possibly too young to be playing them!) so here is a playlist made up of tunes from their soundtracks playing on many systems including the Sega Mega Drive, SNES, and Sony Playstation!

Listen:

https://ia601406.us.archive.org/12/items/fsvep61/fsvep61.mp3

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (1992, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Title Theme’ by Rob Hubbard and Brian Schmidt

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (1992, SNES) ‘High Five’ by Rob Hubbard and Brian Schmidt

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (1993, Commodore Amiga) ‘datitle’ by Jason Whitely

Jungle Strike (1993, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Campaign #1 Intro’ by Brian Schmidt

Jungle Strike (1993, SNES) ‘Jungle Strike’ by Neil Biggin

Jungle Strike (1995, Nintendo Game Boy) ‘BGM #02’ by Mark Cooksey

Urban Strike (1994, Sega Mega Drive) ‘Credits’ by Don Veca

Urban Strike (1994, Sega Game Gear) ‘BGM #01’ by Don Veca

Soviet Strike (1996, Sony Playstation) ‘Menu Theme’ by Don Veca and David O’Neal

Nuclear Strike (1999, Nintendo 64) ‘Mission 3’ by Michael Pummell

Nuclear Strike (1997, Sony Playstation) ‘Menu Theme’ by Don Veca and David O’Neal

Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast

It may not have been the most sophisticated of sound chips, but in the right hands, the AY was capable of producing some fantastic 8-bit game music. Join me as I explore some classic tunes – as well as some oddities – from games released on systems as diverse as the ZX Spectrum 128K, MSX2, and the Intellivision!

Listen:

https://ia601500.us.archive.org/7/items/fsvep60/fsvep60.mp3

Crystal Kingdom Dizzy (1992, Sinclair ZX Spectrum) ‘Title’ by David Whittaker

Thunder Castle (1986, Intellivision) ‘Title’ by David Warhol

Thunder Castle (1986, Intellivision) ‘Gameplay’ by David Warhol

OutRun (1987, Amstrad CPC) ‘Splash Wave’ by Jas C. Brooke

Psycho World (1988, MSX2) ‘Stage 4’ by Kenji Yamazaki and Yuko Yamazaki

Psycho World (1988, MSX2) ‘Demo 1’ by Kenji Yamazaki and Yuko Yamazaki

Gyruss (1983, Arcade) ‘Main BGM 1’ by Masahiro Inoue

Gyruss (1983, Arcade) ‘Main BGM 2’ by Masahiro Inoue

Gyruss (1983, Arcade) ‘Main BGM 3’ by Masahiro Inoue

Zynaps (1988, Atari ST) ‘Title’ by Dave Rogers

Get in touch via email on [email protected]
Follow Forever Sound Version on Facebook at facebook.com/foreversoundversion
Follow Forever Sound Version on Twitter at twitter.com/fsvpodcast