Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack [Regular Edition] Customer Reviews

The Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack is a masterclass in modern symphonic composition, showcasing Masashi Hamauzu’s unique blend of classical theory and electronic textures. The presentation is exceptionally polished, featuring crisp, intricate arrangements that utilize a full live orchestra to bring the world of Cocoon to life. Sonically, this 4-CD set is a standout; the production is vibrant and expansive, offering a wide, detailed soundstage that perfectly captures the soaring violins and rhythmic complexity of tracks like "Blinded by Light." It is an essential, high-fidelity experience that remains one of the most sophisticated and aurally rewarding scores in the entire series.

The FFXIII series soundtracks are my fave by far in the series, and XIII in particular stands out to me amongst the trilogy. I love orchestra style music, and XIII hits that part just right. A lot of the songs have a sort of distant, chiming noise to them, likely to reflect the importance of "crystal" to this chapter of the series.

It been 2 years, since Final Fantasy XIII released. Even now, I'm still very enjoy the game and the soundtrack. Final Fantasy XIII is absolutely an epic, and also a new chapter for the new gaming generation! Final Fantasy XIII influence is no trivial matter. Followed by the transformation of the era, it also brought us the strongest in the history of the game experience. Gorgeous scenes, vivid characters, beautiful music, touching story. Sensational come in a new era, Final Fantasy XIII, gave me great memories. About the game soundtrack, it combines different styles of music with the soundtrack, I was impressed by the absolute "Blinded By Light". There are many, many songs worth to listen it again, and again, and again! I Shared this Soundtrack's music with my good friend, However, in order to commemorate the perfect Final Fantasy XIII, I cannot miss this album, I missed out on the limited edition, so even if this regular edition, I still love it the same! I've just submitted my order for this soundtrack. I would consider myself one of the lucky person who able to own this amazing soundtrack. I love Final Fantasy XIII ^^. (P/S: My original reviews was written in Chinese.)

Un Magnifique OST ! Du Grand Masashi Hamauzu ! Les Musiques sont Splendides !

The Final Fantasy XIII soundtrack is audibly reflected on how the game itself looks. It made use of wonderful orchestrations, few with the help of Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, for the game's high-quality visuals. Most of the overall score is mesmerizing and full of energy. Although it is a very good soundtrack, it is not quite as profound as the past Final Fantasy scores. While I do like the orchestrations, they play too big of a role in the score. Everything is loud and epic, with plenty of event pieces used for underscores. It's as if I am listening to a score for a Hollywood blockbuster film, but this is a game. There a lack of musical diversity in the soundtrack, with so much action in the content that there's not much in the way of earthly tunes like the whimsical "Gapra Whitewood" and the beautifully-melancholy aura that is "Dust to Dust". The character themes were rather disappointing. "Lightning's Theme" sounds too much like every other epic score, the same goes for "Fang's Theme", and "Hope's Theme" reminds me too much like Chrono Cross. Themes for Sazh, Snow, and Vanille are the only ones I considered actual themes, and they're just good enough. I am only complaining about the oversaturation of orchestrated scores, as there are some brilliant pieces. Warsaw conducted the tracks with ominous choirs, and one choir track in particular, "Ragnarok", is nothing short of amazing; the chants where haunting yet divine, definitely the best of its kind in the franchise. "Nautilus" was a brilliant tune for a masterful parade, and "Fabula Nova Crystallis" arranges the motif of "Serah's Theme" to be a complete moving experience. One technical issue that bothers me with most of the songs is that they do not loop. Much like a Hollywood soundtrack, tracks like "Dust to Dust" and "Yaschas Massif" were only played once; past soundtracks had the majority of the songs looped once, so this is bothersome. It's also rather bothersome that the tradition Final Fantasy preludes and prologues are nonexistent here, but as much, since I do love the ones being used in this game. At least the Chocobo themes are there, my favorite being "Chocobos of Pulse". Still, this soundtrack has plenty of great songs that my issues with it are inconsequential. Masashi Hamauzu has been one of my favorite game composers, and he didn't let me down in this one. A worthy recommendation.