Soulsborne Sound Fx Sse

[Roxine Denison]

For some background, Kitamura departed the heavyweight development studio following 12 years of incredible work to "continue to express myself in game music through various genres." She's now trading those oppressive ambient sounds and grandiose strings for something entirely different: The Touhou Empires.

"Touhou meets real-time warfare," the storefront description explains. "Pick your favorite faction, set up bases, and gather resources. Build up your forces toward the ultimate goal, defeating every other faction." The spin-off also includes over 40 fan-favorite characters from the main games, so you can play with familiar faces.

The Touhou Empires has a free playable demo available now via Steam - sneaking in through the Steam Next Fest doors a couple of days early - meaning you can trial the strategic battles and epic music ahead of time.

Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that's vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he'll soon forget.

True to FromSoft form, Elden Ring's soundtrack is phenomenal, bursting forth during boss fights to capture all the majesty and madness of the foes you face. The choral elements of these tracks are a big part of what makes them special, though I have to confess to not having known the actual words to any of them since the Tower Knight in Demons' Souls (and his banger of a track, HA-HAHA-HA-HA).

But thanks to the excellent work of Daniel Olmos, we're starting to get some more insight into some of Elden Ring's most intriguing characters, as he's begun translating the boss music lyrics from Latin to English on his YouTube channel.

And, unsurprisingly, the lyrics add some depth to these encounters. For the Godrick boss battle, for example, we hear the deeply insecure runt of the divine litter arguing with his inner demons, insisting that he's of Godly blood while mocking voices scream him down. Here's a snippet:

There are some big feelings in those lyrics, and lore-gatherers will surely start turning to Mr. Olmos' channel (who only started uploading these videos a few days ago) as a vital source of information. Interestingly, he says in the comments to one of the videos that many of these lyrics are a little bit off grammatically, following an English rather than a Latin sentence structure. Could it be that FromSoft cut a little corner here and wrote these lyrics without consulting a Latin expert?

Olmos' channel also features translations for Starscourge Radahn and the Deacons of the Deep battle from Dark Souls 3, which gives us hope that this he'll continue translating music from across the Soulsborne series, unearthing lore that's been lying in plain sight (or, well, singing in not-so-plain sound) for years.

Robert is a freelance writer and chronic game tinkerer who spends many hours modding games then not playing them, and hiding behind doors with a shotgun in Hunt: Showdown. Wishes to spend his dying moments on Earth scrolling through his games library on a TV-friendly frontend that unifies all PC game launchers.

Dark Souls's soundtrack, composed by Motoi Sakuraba, is home to a plethora of awe-inspiring, often sinister, boss themes, despite the obvious lack of music for most of your trip throughout the world, something which is repeated to great effect in the sequels, with Sakuraba joined by Yuka Kitamura, who handled most of the III's boss themes, and Tsukasa Saitoh. Unmarked spoilers ahead.

Dark Souls

• The main menu theme makes selecting and creating your character very worthwhile.
• "Prologue" is obviously used in the game's opening sequence, introducing you to Lordran's backstory and an epic Action Prologue pitting Gwyn and the other Lord Soul bearers against the Everlasting Dragons.
• "Taurus Demon" plays on your encounter with the game's very first boss, the Asylum Demon, the Undead Burg's titular Taurus Demon and the Firesage Demon. Makes you want to run away for dear life.
• "Firelink Shrine", which is about the only place that you can consider as a safe ground in Lordran, aggro-ing NPCs notwithstanding.
• "Bell Gargoyle", making for a climactic fight against giant, fire-breathing gargoyles atop a church's roof. It also gets remastered in Dark Souls II as part of the Bellfry Gargoyle Superboss fight.
• "Centipede Demon" goes in hand with the dread that will build up on players as they die repeatedly against the Capra Demon and Centipede Demon.
• "Gaping Dragon"; fighting a mutant dragon with nightmarish features has never sounded more epic than when this track plays.
• "Chaos Witch Quelaag" is an ominous tune filled with a lot of One-Woman Wail, suiting a hideous drider-like being like the Chaos Witch herself.
• "Daughters of Chaos", a fragile lullaby that whispers to your ears as you discover Quelaag's sister.
• "Iron Golem", featured in the climactic battle atop Sen's Fortress against the boss of the same name, or the Stray Demon upon your return to the Northern Undead Asylum.
• "Ornstein and Smough" incorporates an entire orchestra and makes an Early-Bird Cameo as a Regional Riff when you finally arrive at Anor Londo. If anything, it's what makes this boss fight so damn fun, even if you die repeatedly to these bastards.
• "Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight", an epic orchestral piece that captures the radiance of said character's status as the Big Good. Of course, it's a lie.
• "Dark Sun Gwyndolin", an eerie track which features One-Woman Wail after another, reflecting Gwyndolin's enigmatic presence. It is also shared by the Moonlight Butterfly's boss fight."
• "The Ancient Dragon", a stern, foreboding Ethereal Choir which plays as soon as you set foot in the Ash Lake, perhaps symbolizing the Everlasting Dragons' sorrow in their defeat aeons ago.
• "Ceaseless Discharge" plays as soon as you provoke this fiery abomination, unleashing the might of a volcano in the process.
• "Great Grey Wolf Sif", a tragic piece that resonates within every Dark Souls fan, never forgetting the pain that hurt them while battling this righteous Noble Wolf who protected the grave of his late master Artorias.
• "Crossbreed Priscilla", a mysterious track that blends in with Priscilla's Mystical Waif-ish qualities.
• While leaning towards the creepy side of things, "Pinwheel" perfectly conveys the distress of the necromancer Pinwheel, whom the fandom gave a very tragic background.
• "Gravelord Nito", a haunting piece which features an equally foreboding chorus and and eerie wail that imitates the wind.
• "Seath the Scaleless", a bizarre track which reflects the blind dragon's insane state.
• "Bed of Chaos" is unhinged and strange, but is by all means frighteningly sinister, perfectly encapsulating the player's probable confusion and failure to comprehend what the hell they're even fighting.
• "Four Kings", a nerve-wrecking theme which features a deep male chorus, oppressive brass and panic-inducing violins. It's one of the most nightmarish pieces in the entire soundtrack, which translates into an equally scary boss fight against what are essentially corrupt spectres from beyond.
• "Gwyn, Lord of Cinder", a melancholic piano piece that initially doesn't sound fitting for a Final Boss, but makes sense once you learn about what motivates him still despite his age-long suffering.
• Artorias of the Abyss adds several more boss fights (and they're awesome), all with their unique themes.
• "Sanctuary Guardian" is the first piece you'll hear upon accessing the Downloadable Content. Want to hear the other tracks? Beat this boss first!
• "Knight Artorias", a somber piece alluding to the fallen state you meet the titular knight in.
• "Manus, Father of the Abyss", a chaotic track consisting of oppressive drum beats and chorus, well in tune with his savage nature and Lovecraftian parallels.
• "Black Dragon Kalameet", where the chorus pulls out all the stops and perfectly conveys this boss' nature as The Dreaded.
• Last, but not least, is the "Nameless Song", a soothing One-Woman Wail which congratulates you upon finishing the game.

Dark Souls II

• For this game's composition, Motoi Sakuraba had assistance from Yuka Kitamura, notable for her Orchestral Bombing in "The Old Dragonslayer" and "Veldstadt, the Royal Aegis". * She later went on to contribute in Bloodborne's haunting soundtrack.
• The game's main menu theme makes for a chillingly good Call-Back to Demon's Souls.
• "Fire Keepers" is a peaceful and cozy serenade befitting a harmless starting area for the game.
• "Majula", the theme of the place you will be often returning to, akin to the Nexus of Demon's Souls and Firelink Shrine from Dark Souls.
• "The Last Giant" is a hell of a start for the boss themes, being imposing and threatening even when the Giant is the Last of His Kind. This theme was so good that you can hear it twice, specifically when you fight his past self known as the Giant Lord later on.
• "The Pursuer". which befits the Terminator-like knight who hunts you relentlessly through Drangleic.
• "The Dragonrider" is a hectic theme filled with many "Psycho" Strings, suiting one of the most physically imposing knights in the whole game.
• "The Old Dragonslayer" heralds the return of a familiar face who proceeds to engage you in an epic church brawl.
• "Ruins Sentinels", the boss theme for the eponymous bosses and the Smelter Demon. You gotta love when the piece picks up at 1:12 with an epic chorus, raising the stakes for an already hard boss fight.
• "Skeleton Lord", a frenzied track fitting with the numerous enemies you'll be facing during the Skeleton Lords boss fight.
• "Executioner's Chariot" keeps you on the edge as you frantically try to avoid getting crushed by the chariot and its two-headed horse.
• "Old Iron King", an intimidating theme for an intimidating Big Red Devil that makes the Balrog blush.
• "Royal Rat Authority". Yes, really - a track for an empire of killer rats is one of the most ominous and sinister themes in the game, complete with choir and a slow drum beat.
• "The Duke's Dear Freja" begins slowly, before turning into a reprise of Dragonrider's theme with extra quiet interludes, sounding even better than last time with how even more menacing it sounds.
• "The Lost Sinner" is a freakishly evil track with a menacing choir and faint "Psycho" Strings, perfectly summing up how wicked this boss' titular sins must have been.
• "Royal Rat Vanguard", a ridiculously epic track for a fight against... giant rats who Zerg Rush you. note This was actually planned to be the Executioner Chariot's theme before it got its own leitmotif.
• "Looking Glass Knight" goes extremely well with the unbelievably awesome Battle in the Rain against King Vendrick's lieutenant.
• "Milfanito" resonates throughout your trip in the Shrine of Amana. It's sung by the eponymous Milfanito shrine maiden, but later in the level you learn it's also a mimicry devised by the Demon of Song, which sports its own creepy theme.
• "Velstadt, the Royal Aegis", a sinister symphonic piece, complete with tragic violin bouts, oppressive brass and a frightful Ethereal Choir; all of these elements lead the player to think Velstadt is protecting an unbelievably dark secret.
• "King Vendrick", an eerie track that goes with the baffling atmosphere when you find what's left of Vendrick, mindlessly strolling around naked and Hollow.
• "Guardian Dragon" is among one of the most threatening tracks in the game, with oppressive drums and blaring horns that are best suited for such a mighty dragon.
• "The Ancient Dragon", otherwise known as Oh, Crap! in musical form. Jumped in scare after unwittingly provoking the godly Ancient Dragon into a fight? We don't blame you.
• "Darklurker", a dissonant Ethereal Choir which fits with the terrifyingly powerful Humanoid Abomination you find in the depths of the Dark Chasm of Old.
• "Throne Defender, Throne Watcher" has an ethereal and tense feel to it, but nonetheless stacks up to other threatening tunes in the game very well and suits the Dual Boss fantastically.
• "Nashandra"; while the 25 first seconds are a gentle piano piece referencing the unused Leitmotif "Queen of Drangleic", it quickly plunges into a sinister chorus worthy of a nightmarish Final Boss.
• Once again, the ending credits reward you with a soothing melody in "Longing". In Scholar of the First Sin, after "Longing", the longer credits are accompanied by a haunting piano piece called "Remains". In regards to "Longing", as one YouTube comment aptly put it: "60 hours of hell for 6 minutes of heaven".
• As the first instalment of the Lost Crown Trilogy Downloadable Content, the Crown of the Sunken King adds three goodies to kick start the DLC frenzy:
• "Elana, Squalid Queen". A degenerate and frantic theme that draws parallels to Nashandra's Boss Remix, indicating that this Child of Dark is someone who is far more powerful than the Final Boss we're presented with in the vanilla game. Dissonant as it is, you can make out infrequent soothing lullabies amidst the rest of the song, which can only be described as savage.
• "Sinh, the Slumbering Dragon", incorporating en entire orchestral suite that embodies the grandeur of Shulva's past glory and the creature that the citizen once worshipped.
• "Graverobber, Varg and Cerah", a fast-paced piece that goes well with your mindset for the boss, which means trying to outsmart the terrifying trio of adventurers.
• What little the Crown of the Old Iron King has to offer makes up for brilliant quality.
• "Raime, the Fume Knight". This boss' haunting darkness takes physical shape as the brass and male choir mercilessly oppress you with a frantic beat while you're on the receiving end of a beatdown by the Fallen Hero that springs forward to defend his beloved dark lady.
• "Sir Alonne" is a straight-up display of pride that imperiously calls you forward to duel with the most badass katana user in the Souls franchise. It's frequently considered the most memorable boss song in the game by players thanks to its grandiose Ethereal Choir.
• Crown of the Ivory King concludes the epic adventure that is the Lost Crowns Trilogy by adding three pieces that simply feel foreign and supernatural to Drangleic, the scale of which is far larger than what we are presented with in the base game.
• "Aava, the King's Pet". Solemn and filled with depressing vocals and melancholic violin bouts that would make Shadow of the Colossus proud, this track represents the ice tiger's duty-bound nature as Alsanna's protector, despite knowing that its master, the Ivory King, is gone. The message of this song is clear: you are not welcome in Eleum Loyce, and Alsanna will warn you one last time.
• "Lud and Zallen, the King's Pets". You've been trekking in the Frigid Outskirts for so long that you lost track of where you are headed, and then suddenly you enter an arena where two vicious shadow tigers come down on you, with this song blaring in the background.
• "Burnt Ivory King". From the gates of the Old Chaos, he, the former ruler of Forossa, emerges, carrying with him the hellish inferno of this track's chorus, with a small respite around the 1:15 minute mark before coming back to a ferocious beat.
• "Aldia, Scholar of the First Sin". A melancholic piece, fitting for the finale of your journey, as Aldia himself becomes your final test of courage, allowing you to decide the fate of Drangleic.

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