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Pokemon gen 1 & 2 battle music has remarkable intensity

Etrian Oddity

Etrian Oddity

Member
Oct 26, 2017
3,429
So I was going through Birdie's awesome Move List retrospective (seriously, go check it out) and it got me into a Youtube rabbit hole where I watched old gameplay. Something that stuck out to me was the battle music, and how it is not uplifting or jolly (like most Pokemon music post Hoenn), but rather it's very frantic and does not sound like a friendly contest at all. Indeed, it actually puts me more in a mindset that this is a fantasy RPG battle of life-and-death, with how intense the battle themes are.

You can attribute a large part of the end result to the Game Boy's limited sound capabilities, but the minimal noise pollution seems to allow the base battle tune to just really shine. Both R/B/Y and G/S/C all feature battle tracks that make you feel like you're in mortal combat.

This doesn't sound like an official contest, it sounds like an assassination attempt:


And of course we have the classic:


In case you haven't listened to them in a while:

Johto Trainer Battle

Johto Rival (aka best rival) Battle

Johto Team Rocket Battle

Kanto Champion Battle

Johto Champion Battle

Kanto Gym Leader (Gen 2) <-- This sounds like Kanto is in a dark age or something

Now I'm a huge defender of newer Pokemon games and despise the rose-tinted glasses of "every design is downhill after the first 150," but that GB soundchip was cranking. You've got some gorgeous battle tracks in later games like Colress' and Cyrus' battle themes, but the depth and added instruments still have a light-hearted feel.

Is it just the chiptune whore in me? My account is named after the Yuzo Koshiro-composed Etrian Odyssey series, so that could be it. But I definitely think there's something apart from nostalgia that makes those Gen 1 & Gen 2 battle compositions sound like there's an ultimate cost on the line. R/B/Y had some really dark undertones -- like fainting being "near death" in Japanese, all of Lavender Town, Gengar and Clefable representing malice and purity of the same being, etc -- so I think this heavy tone was 100% intentional. Then we got to Hoenn and it lightened up with all the trumpets.

Not just me who thinks this, right? :P
 
Doskoi Panda

Doskoi Panda

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There's something about the music in older Pokemon games that feels a lot more deliberate. Pokemon's composers really knew how to do more with less. And then they were given more to work with, during the DS and 3DS gens, and (beginning with B/W) Pokemon's music, practically overnight, became 'GBA Megaman' as FUCK. For better, and for worse. I feel like X/Y did a lot to return the series' musical style to its more laid-back and less complex roots, but Sun and Moon brought a return to the seemingly-prevailing philosophy among Pokemon's composers: "we can make this song sound more intense, if we just make it sound like we've overlaid two different tracks on top of one another or otherwise just pile on needless flourishes"


say what you want about Hoenn's soundfont, but musical moments which capture the same sense of adventure that R/S/E's OST did are few and far between in this series, nowadays. You get maybe one, per game. + RSE had the coolest gym leader battle theme in the whole series. What it lacks in intensity, it more than makes up for with how it gets you pumped to put up or shut up. It's like the perfect theme for a fight you've been building up toward for the last 10+ hours.
 
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JazzmanZ

JazzmanZ

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Gamefreak really got a lot out of those beeps and boops and its some of the finest gameboy music out there
 
Nightbird

Nightbird

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Considering what they had to work with, I'd agree, it is pretty damn intense. I prefer later songs tough because they get me more pumped up.
 
RecRoulette

RecRoulette

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Solid said:
There's something about the music in older Pokemon games that feels a lot more deliberate. Pokemon's composers really knew how to do more with less. And then they were given more to work with, during the DS and 3DS gens, and Pokemon's music, practically overnight, became 'GBA Megaman' as FUCK. For better, and for worse. I feel like X/Y did a lot to return the series' musical style to its roots, but Sun and Moon brought a return to the seemingly-prevailing philosophy among Pokemon's composers: "we can make this song sound more intense, if we just make it sound like we've overlaid two different tracks on top of one another"
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Yeah, finished Ultra Moon yesterday and was surprised at how much it was a step back from X and Y (really liked the music in that one). Even the Team Skull stuff suffers from this, starts off rad then just turns into the typical modern Pokemon music.
 

Deleted member 419

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I agree 100%. The 8-bit Pokemon battle themes are metal as hell. Most of them could be final boss themes in other games and I wouldn't bat an eye.
 
golguin

golguin

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The Gym Battle theme for the original Pokemon games will always be number one with me.
 
Lord Azrael

Lord Azrael

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Oct 25, 2017
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Yeah I really like the battle music in the first two generations. Especially the Kanto gym leader theme from GSC. Starting with the third generation these themes started to doing a bit more upbeat.
 
The Shadow Knight

The Shadow Knight

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Oct 26, 2017
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This topic reminds me of this video I saw a while back:



It takes a look at gen 2 Battle music from a music theory perspective.
 
Dr. Caroll

Dr. Caroll

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Pokemon G/S/C was a remarkable technical achievement on the GB/GBC, and its music and graphics are simply outstanding. And yes, the early Pokemon titles had very bold, melodic music that stands out. The simplicity does help the music feel more intense to some extent because "modern" Pokemon music sounds more crowded.
 
qq more

qq more

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HyperFerret

HyperFerret

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Most gameboy games had bad or mediocre soundtracks and were grating on the ears in my opinion, so the fact that Game Freak was able to make some iconic and intense songs from that sound card alone is proof of talent. I think the only Gameboy soundtrack that tops Pokemon is Castlevania and if I recall correctly Konami added extra hardware for their music. It just proves that the gameboy was made to rock out.
 
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Rand a. Thor

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A lot of what made Pokemon's music is not actually Masuda. I mean yeah, he composed the majority of it, and still did up to ORAS, but the main issue with the 3DS era is not that his compositions are flawed, in fact his style has evolved quite a bit and I love some of the concepts behind his newer tracks, but the fact that the series has lost the soul behind the music. Masuda has made some banging tracks, but without Go Ichinose to arrange his works, the series has taken a hit in terms of music. I mention the 3DS era because B2W2 was the last set of games he worked on, and afterwards you have:
1. XY which has NONE of his apparent style and felt like it belonged to a different RPG series
and
2. SM and USUM have Ichinose style arrangements, yet they are pale imitations of his works, with none of his expertise on what tempo to use in which scenario, and what instruments work with others.

This is also why I have to disagree that only gen 1 and 2 and to and extent from my understanding of your post gen 3 have the best battle music, because none of it gets particularly lighthearted up to gen 5, and the few exceptions that ARE more lighthearted fit like a glove to the occasion. On mobile right now, so when I get to my PC I will follow up with examples of light hearted and serious music from later gens that show what I mean.
 

Deleted member 29464

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Best music in the series in my opinion though SM did a good job. Also, am I mad or does some of the Johto music sound...Celtic or something, in particular, the trainer battle theme?
 
Rand a. Thor

Rand a. Thor

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Halfling said:
Best music in the series in my opinion though SM did a good job. Also, am I mad or does some of the Johto music sound...Celtic or something, in particular, the trainer battle theme?
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The older games tend to have music fit the games thematically, so you are not entirely wrong. Gen 1 feels a lot more urban and technological, gen 2 sways towards the rustic and a more traditional feel, then gens 3, 4, and 5 crank it up with like 4-5 thematical tones behind the music.

Slamtastic said:
I also felt the S/M Elite 4 music captured the intensity of older music well too.

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Its one of the rare instances in SM's soundtrack where it sounds like Ichinose was behind the wheel, so of course it does. One of the best tracks in the games, let alone the series.
 
Fuchsia

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Great thread, OP! Music is an area I really feel that the later games lost something in. It's almost like more technological capability, allowing for greater orchestration to the tunes, was a hinderance more than an aide. This isn't true for every track, obviously. But I do feel that especially for the battle music, the first two gens are top of the pack in terms of general mood, intensity, progression throughout the songs in terms of how the tracks get to a B section and what that B section entails in terms of change, arrangement, melody and harmony.

Some of the harmony going on in gens 1 and 2's battle music was just gorgeous even though it was designed to be intense and feel like a battle. Newer gens' battle music just feels like a kids game compared to what it sounded like earlier in Pokemon's career. This appears, of course, a somewhat silly thing to say upon first inspection, yet the thing with the early two gens was that the battle music felt like it existed in a game meant for more than just kids.

I'm not a fan of the cheery vibe of the newer battle themes. And I especially not a fan of what they started to do for boss battles and gym battles where it can sometimes just sound like driving synthesizer basses holding down a few ostenato patterns throughout the tune. I know people really enjoyed tunes like the ones for gym leaders in black and white but it's just not my cup of tea. I just prefer the more melodic tunes in Pokemon, always.

Whoever helmed the music for gen's 1 and 2 really needs to come back as the main composer again. That could really help the next gen! Gen 2's town and route themes were incredibly beautiful. I hope we get more of that feeling soon. But I digress, that could be a whole other thread...
 
Rand a. Thor

Rand a. Thor

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Huh, I was wrong, Ichinose did come back for SM. Well that explains a lot, and kinda makes me confused. I mean SM has some stellar tracks, but it also gets a bit weird in some places, so maybe his influence wasn't a strong as it was in previous entries.
 
lvl 99 Pixel

lvl 99 Pixel

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did they change the wording in Japanese for fainting in later games or just decide that it was fine? seems really out of place
 
Z.C

Z.C

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Was totally blown away when first I played Gold/Silver back in the day, I didn't think they would be able to top off the music in Red/Blue.

They took the music one step further in Gold/Silver and pulled it off beautifully, each battle track pumped me up so much, I would often not make a move in battle so i can just hear more of the music.
 
Rand a. Thor

Rand a. Thor

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Electricb7 said:
I dont skip Pokemon games. But I'm going to start because Gamefreak is trash imo and the only reason I keep coming back is nostalgia.

Gen 1 and 2 has the best music along with designs.
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Eh. 3DS era is easily the worst, but that still means its an above average franchise. Pokemon Design and music is still its strongest suits though, even during the last 5 years we have gotten some great stuff.
 

Deleted member 2793

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Can't agree. All the games have great music and there's a clear identity in Pokémon themes present in games from all generations, probably because Masuda is a director.
 
Crayolan

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It's only since gen 6 that I feel like they've been making battle music less intense, with most of the standouts now being route or town music. Gens 3, 4 and 5 have some pretty intense battle themes, though I'd agree gen 2 is the best (specifically, HGSS versions).
 
Treasure Silvergun

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Yes it does!

I'll admit Gen 2's music left very little trace of itself in my mind, but Gen 1's music is carved into my memory forever. I was 17 when I played Gen 1 too, so it's not exactly childhood nostalgia.
 
JonnyDBrit

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RockmanBN said:
Not much or a music person so I think the GBC games have a rock vibe to them? I agree that the newer games with general battle themes see more happy and upbeat.

I liked tracks more akin to this.
[Tracks]
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I mean, look at how they translated into the anime:



Part of it for me is just how sharp and acute the GBA music is. It's very... punctual, for lack of a better word. The tone it strikes honestly feels like a warning, in the original games, like blaring sirens telling you 'Shit is going down!'
 
XaosWolf

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The Champion battle theme in the original is rad as fuck. You knew this was it by the opening notes calling back to the intro theme - the very first bit of music you hear in Pokémon.


All the official remixes of the theme add too much and ruin that incredible tense startup to the track. I wish all video game composers these days started with a small number of instruments and then added (sparingly!) from there.
And more leitmotif for fuck's sake! Make it memorable and not generic orchestral swells.
 
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Leo

Leo

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Oct 27, 2017
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I love music in Pokemon games, and there is definitely something good to be found in every game, but yeah, gen 1 and 2 are unbeatable.

I don't think there is a single instance of a bad song in these games. Everything worked perfectly, they were melodic and nostalgic when they needed to be (National Park, Ecruteak, Pewter), uplifting and adventurous (every Route music basically), or upbeat and menacing (the battle themes). Later generations still manage to channel this feel sometimes, but it's been very hit and miss.

I consider gen 3 music to be excellent also, with very few pieces I don't like, but in general it fits every situation and sets a specific mood and vibe of Hoenn. But from gen 4 onwards, it was definitely downhill.

I feel like the battle themes, although more childish now, are still pretty consistent (probably because they're all still composed by Masuda), but all of the rest suffered a lot. Route music never sounded as grand and epic as they used to, and city themes don't have those captivating melodies that stick to us anymore.

Even so, the music is probably my favorite part of Pokemon games now. If it went downhill, every other aspect of the games went too, only a much steeper hill.
 

AlsoZ

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Oct 29, 2017
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Really a strong case of less is more. They managed to evoke a lot with those simple tunes.
Aside from a couple of standout pieces like the ruins music in Sun/Moon or the piano intro for Cynthia in Diamond/Pearl, I can't really remember much about the later gens.
The GBA and DS games mostly had those horrible midi brass pieces that I wiped from my memory. Good riddance.
 

Deleted member 4034

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Gen 7 I believe is the closest they've gotten to touching the original 2 gens in terms of quality.

If I were to rank 2,1,7,5,6,4

Thanks for the thread though, I've been listening to that Kanto gym battle music from gen 2 all day. That is the video game equivalent of a banger.
 
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