Level 3 recently did an interview with Simon Viklund, the composer who remixed all of the Third Strike character themes in Online Edition. In it he reveals some of the background behind the development of the new music and some changes that had to be done to satisfy release requirements. A snip of the interview has been posted below and you can catch the rest on Level 3's website.
Dyoshii: 3rd Strike had a very unique music style compared to the other Street Fighter games and had music that you'd expect from nightclubs of that time. That said, the 'Features' 3rd Strike Online trailer had a rather prominent dubstep sound to it. What direction has the music in 3rd Strike Online gone, have you stuck with the original style or created something more of a "spirital successor" to the original music?
Viklund: It's a little bit of everything - sometimes I've stuck with the original style but sometimes I've gone more experimental and done something entirely different. It's been a case of looking at each arena's visuals and listening to its music, and determining how I could bring something new to the music that would still fit with the old graphics.
The tracks that were drum'n'bass in the original game are kept as drum'n'bass - although I've toned down the jazz elements and made it a harder style of drum'n'bass. The house stuff is, as you say, club style music of its time - in my interpretation I just toned down the "nu soul" elements and made it a harder style of house to make the tracks go more in line with my style of music and today's club music in general.
The interesting stuff was the tracks that I felt challenged me to reinterpret them completely and do something experimental - like "Theme of Q" and "The Longshoreman". You'll have to play the game to see what I did with those.
Sent in by EX_Ein.
I will forever hate this man for what he has done to Elena
Remixed or not, 3rd Strike had a pretty bad sound track. The only songs that were even slightly memorable were Elena, Dudley, and maybe Makoto. Yun and Yang's gets by only because the bass is stolen from James Bond...
But... JAZZY NYC!! A lot of the remixes are crap except Ibuki's.
Dudley's new mix is the only one I liked. The others are bland or crappy. His take on Jazzy NYC in particular is worthy of a trial at the Hague.
Thankfully, Capcom was merciful enough to leave the original music in.
This guy is terrible. These remixes are god awful. Could they have went with OC Remix for FREE and gotten actually good tracks? Or better yet - keep the old music, which was great?
I went and listened to the original sound track to Urien, Ryu, and Elena just to wash this crap away.
Simon Viklund - trash composer.
remixes that took the feeling out the songs and then further butchers it by some of them not sounding near the original, COUGH URIEN ELENA COUGH. I usually play middle man in threads but there is no excusing these nasty remixes.
i can agree on most of the tracks not being on par with the originals..(he shouldn't have experiment so much and at least TRIED to retain the original essence/melody of each theme =/ ) but some of the tracks actually came out good,imo.
Specifically Ibuki,Akuma,Elena, and Remy's and in this special case,remy's actually sounds a bit better than the original.but that's my opinion of course.
They should have hired UniversalVGMusicians to do it. They've got amazing remixes.
Oro and Sean's stage is one of the very few that's better than the original.
@31
that is it son-guy that it is
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOOaPG...
@28 Yes UVGM would do these songs justice
I am a part of them and im one of the Sages of UVGM and its nice to know people from all over know about us on youtube.
I main as Hugo and I kinda like the new one. But I'm glad you don't have to use the new remixes. They are garbage. I would say somthing along the lines of "I hope capcom is listening to us about blah blah blah" but it doesnt matter. they'll mess up anything they get their fans hyped over.
@34
Yeah man I love you guys' stuff, it's extremely well done, best videogame remixes and samples I've ever heard TBH. I produce music myself, so I know talent when I hear it. I've got one of y'alls albums on my iPod right now lol, the one with the Gill remix on it. Props to you guys, keep up the good music :)
my problem with the songs is that they dont make you want to..i dont know...FIGHT!!! they start off too low and then start pick up after 30-60 seconds(which the fight would be over with by then).
I mean the originals songs made me couldn't wait to kick the other guy's Butt as soon as that booming track started to play. these songs dont have enough ummmm...Hype! yea thats it, Hype in them.
but thats just my I.M.O
Remixes I like more then originals:
Longshoremen-makes it sound more epic
Snowland- Makes the fact both Necro and 12 are physically modded sound right
Theme of Q- It sounds so retro due to the fact Q's design just like Robot Detective K which is a very Retro character
Twilight- it sounds MYSTERIOUS LIKE A NINJA SHOULD BE!
The Beep- The original sounds so generic 90s rock
The Circuit- I always misunderstood the original for saying "Circus" and this one just sounds kinda harder rock with mixing some techno qualities
Remixes I'm liking on the level of the origins:
Blow my mind- I have an affinity toward the synth that he uses
Kobu- Even with the dubstep-ish edge to it(which I can barely hear unless I try and focus on hearing it) it doesn't detract from the original to me also is just getting back to the "Street fighter 1/Fighting Street" days
Beats in my Head-Very different take and less repetitive and can be actually understood unlike the original which could be misunderstood for "Cheese no cheese no chee cheese no cheese no cheese cheese no cheese ON MY BREAD!" which is one of the top rated on the original tracks comment page, and fits her fun nature just like the original.
Crowded Street- Has some traditional Chinese elements but still sounds like that golden-eye theme
Jazzy NYC- I know I'm the odd man out on this song entirely but for some reason the original was never my favorite and this version sounds good to me.
Crazy Chilli Dog-to me fits better since it perfectly gives off the opposite feeling of Psych out(a very composed and contained song) while the new CCD makes me feel like this is very in your face song.
Killing moon- while different it doesn't stick out, also the howl in the first round makes it for me
Only ones I didn't overall like:
Spunky, it just sounds off
China Vox,Mainly cause I don't like the original song.
@fraudsquad2
the plan was never to rebalance simply put it online, Seth has said this but Balance tweaking may happen in the form of DLC.
Also, Elena's decent she's not great but she's way above Sean who's consider bottom of bottoms, you may need more Forward Jumping Roundhouse(beastly 2 hit air to air/1 hit air to ground) in your diet with her. her match up listings have her going 7/3s agaisnt Alex, Hugo and Oro, her only truly bad match up is Chun who she's 3/7.
(Props to dude, Capcom asked for remixes for this RERELEASE and he delivered, let the haters hate dawg!)
I like the orginal music! I love the 3s OST/AST. I'm cool on this guy's remix work. I just wish they would've stuck with the original intro/menu music. This "Never Back Down" theme song is crap! And whoever's rappin' needs to take notes from infinite...
(ITT people need to read this quote from the interview:
""OK, Capcom wouldn't hire me if they didn't want me to do my thing" - plus I was informed that the original tracks would also be in the game so people could always choose to listen to the original music if the remixes weren't in their taste."
CHECKMATE!)
Man you losers are annoying, almost as annoying as PavySRK. New themes are decent.
nah ppl are upset because 3S ost was a classic as far as gaming goes hands down best music in a fighting games ever(imo) but this sh*t he did is garbage straight garbage
For my tastes the original 3s soundtrack is the best fighting game music out there. I like the remixes too. Good stuff to this guy on landing the job!
People are very upset over remixing the music (which you don't even have to use if you don't want to). Imagine the rage if they would have remixed the balance!
fraudsquad2
GGPO doesn't profit capcom nor dose it allow for a training mode(which on GGPO you just get owned, with no idea of what the moves for characters are and can learn nothing, I know from personal experience) that they made also not everyone has an idea wtf GGPO is, but they know it's the netcode third strike online runs on.
I don't know why Capcom even bothered to hire this hack in the first place. Overclocked Remix did a fantastic job with SF2:HD Remix, and just about every other remix they have up on that site is better than what this guy was able to put together for SF3: Online Edition. As soon as I saw these were up on Youtube I listened to the Jazzy NYC 99 remix and was absolutely devastated. He ruined what I consider to be one of the best themes in SF history, and the other tracks weren't any better.
I mean, he didn't even bother to stay faithful to the tracks, and what he did come up with doesn't even sound good. I don't know who this guy is or where he came from, but I hope he doesn't get to work on anything Street Fighter related in the future.
You should have stuck with not making the remixes because they are all awful. The only one that is tolerable is the Yun/Yang remix, barely at that. They should have had the New Generation and Second Impact themes for characters be unlocks in the vault instead of these.
Anyone bitching about Simon Viklund hasnt played Bionic Commando Rearmed. Amazing soundtrack.
Next you idiots will try to tell me that MVC2 has a good soundtrack...
@EX Ein
I know it's still there. It's just odd they didn't have someone more skilled compose these remixes - they have the staff. I seriously believe Capcom could have gotten better remixes for almost free by going to the OC Remix community again. HDR had (overall) great remixes.
I don't know, I think everyone is just jumping on the band wagon because they feel it's the right position to take but I find nothing wrong with the remixes.
Remixes were never designed to replace the themes only add to the layer of the game being designed. It's not even the default setting. Everyone here so far is acting like a bunch of girls.
I understand it's a classic, it is to me and yes I don't like quite a few of the remixes, but You guys are blowing it way out of proportion. I mean if your gonna say it's crap and move on, thats fine but writing three page documentation on how one man ruined your life by remixing your favorite song!? C'mon dude.
And yes, before you toll I DO write three page documents too :P
It's not the fact that there are remixes, but more that these bad remixes took the place of stuff that a lot of players would have liked more (The New Generation and Second Impact themes).
Your remixes SUCK real talk