Still, it is certainly the weakest of the four areas of the game, musically speaking. The only exception is “Bandit Gang Monoculus”, which is quite good with its cool guitar and loose feel.
After the largely excellent vocal themes from Final Fantasy XIII-2, I also found “Desert’s Lullaby” unappealing the composition is inherently quite dreary, but these problems are emphasised by a bizarre choice of vocalist and the excessive nine minute playtime. Particular low-points are “Graveyard of Dreams”, a melancholic ambient piece that fails to leave an impression for most of its playtime, and “Fang’s Theme – The Boss”, a particularly odd piece amidst a sea of mediocrity. While most tracks are rich and melodic enough, they didn’t particularly engage me. Most of these tracks, for example “Desert Awakening” and “The Dead Dunes”, capture the exotic scenery and scope of the area by blending Middle Eastern instruments with orchestral elements and moderately paced drums. The first half of the second disc covers what is heard in the Dead Dunes, and was primarily written by Mitsuto Suzuki. Each of the these tracks is fairly different stylistically, but there is some interesting repetition, rhythmic work, and added sound effects which unite Luxerion’s tracks and bring the listener’s mind back to the countdown timer ever-present in the game. For the more melodic tracks, “Sunset Prism” is an effective slow melancholic piece, “Midnight Eternal” brings in some tasteful noir jazz, and “Luxerion” really draws in the listener with its bustling strings and piano over an interesting progression, standing out as the greatest of Hamauzu’s contributions here. “The Sleeping City” and “Reverent Souls” are effective in context, but a tad overlong on the soundtrack release given their sparse content, the latter spanning over eight minutes and never really going anywhere. “The Cathedral” creates a striking atmosphere with its sweeping strings over the foreboding organ, as does “The Warren” with its high improvised piano line contrasting with the active bass. Written by Masashi Hamauzu, the tracks dedicated to Lightning exploring Luxerion are mostly ambient. This sets a darker scene for much of the rest of the soundtrack, taking us into the first of the four areas: Luxerion. Showcasing the ethereal sounds the trilogy has become known for, “The Ark” is a pretty, not to mention important, theme written for piano and chorus. Between all these optimistic anthems and gentle reflections, “The Evil Savior” twists things into an unsettling, hopeless cue. “The Final 13 Days” is a varied composition encompassing much of the trilogy’s signature qualities, while “Equilibrium” also gives a sense of going on a new venture despite its slightly stale structure. The production values really shine in this piece, with pulsating beats blending with stand-out solos to create a Final Fantasy piece worthy of modern day. In general, the team maintain much of the sound the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy has become known for, but offer plenty of twists in styles and moods along the way. The soundtrack opens with a bang with “Lightning Returns”, a booming orchestration blending Americana-influenced orchestration with dazzling electronic parts. Overall, a polished, eclectic, but not always cohesive score accompanies the final chapter of the controversial Final Fantasy XIII trilogy. The score itself contains pieces unique to each of the four areas of the world, in addition several battle tracks, a number of character themes, a few event pieces, and several references to songs from the past games throughout. Part of the soundtrack is recorded with the very capable Video Game Orchestra, and across the board there are strong performances. In terms of the soundtrack, it is a departure from the experimental pop that permeated the soundtrack of Final Fantasy XIII-2, returning to orchestral pieces with some new rock, electronic and experimental influences. The game closes the trilogy and follows Lightning as she ventures through the four remaining areas of the world to rescue souls at the request of God before the end of the world in 13 days. Final Fantasy XIII -Lightning Returns- Original Soundtrackįor the third game in the series, the stunning team of Masashi Hamauzu, Naoshi Mizuta, and Mitsuto Suzuki return to provide the score to Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.
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