Mendel Palace

Meow

Every time I joke about most people who "only listen to video game music" being instrumental jazz fans who don't know it, I get somebody in the notes going "what if I only listen to Super Mario soundtracks – what non-video-game genre of music is that referencing, buddy?", and, well, I'm afraid the answer is still instrumental jazz.

So even if you have some hyper specific VGM preferences, there's probably something else out there that's in the same musical space, whether it was a direct influence or not. Being able to recognize those connections have made me appreciate the music more AND helped me find more music I like. A win all around!

From: Rising Zan: The Samurai Gunman

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The Maxx Art by Sam Kieth R.I.P.

Final Fantasy Tactics – The Ivalice Chronicles" special illustration by Dungeon Menshi creator Ryoko Kui !!!

(via Soul Coughing - Super Bon Bon (1996)

One may retort that I’m being pedantic, and that I should not expect an op-ed to make affordances for the inventory of an entire genre, but one would hardly expect a comprehensive discussion of Japanese literature or cinema to solely discuss works which were fortunate enough to be localized, and while I understand the difficulty that the language barrier presents, video games should be no different.

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse (2026) Key art by Katsuya Terada

1997.