LogFAQs > #968409895

*Ranking the VGMC Champions (With Commentary)*

Warning: the following commentary are all my opinions. I tried to be nice, but if I came across as too harsh, let me know. I have some somewhat strong opinions on certain songs that may or may not be positive. I will be listing them off starting from my least favorite to my favorite to add a sense of suspense. This lists commentary is meant to be read from top to bottom.

Note: I normally do not rate songs as scores can change on a whim, and there is no strict rubric on how to rate songs besides this is how I feel about it at the moment. What made one rank a song a 7.6 as opposed to a 7.7 for instance other than I liked it less? However, I will make an exception and will proceed with ratings this time because I want to compare the average rating I gave to the champions to the average rating I will give to the runner-ups at a later time to see which group I like better. With that all being said, enjoy the commentary. Or dont.

16. VGMC 13 Ar nosurge: Ode to an Unborn Star | Class:: EXSPHERE_NOSURGE; Starting off with the bad luck number itself13. Im sorry to anyone who likes this song, but I genuinely dont hear the appeal. The singing is okay, but the instrumentation is completely annoying and obnoxious. Usually its the opposite for me; the singing is usually much worse than the instrumentation while the instrumentation is usually fantastic. Here, neither the singing nor instrumentation are particularly appealing to me. This is just an irritating song that is extremely hard for me to get through. I do not hate this song, but I strongly dislike it. Easily the worst of the champions by a long shot in my opinion. There are a few good aspects to the song, like the brief music box lullaby just before the 5 minute mark or especially how the lyrics (?) on screen look like a literal coding language, which is a unique aspect to this song that Ive never seen present in any other song before. Other than that though, this is a very disappointing winner in my eyes (or ears?). Again, please do not feel bad if you like this song! If you like this, all the more power to you. I am sure someone could argue this is a fantastic piece. I just don't hear what's so great about it personally. Rating: 3.1/10 (strongly dislike)

15. VGMC 7Ar tonelico II: Melody of Metafalica | EXEC_SPHILIA\ --This song is significantly better than the last place one, but its still a very disappointing winner to me. The singing sounds like a more annoying version of Vocaloid singing, but at least the instrumentation is okay (the guitar solo before the 3 minute mark and again before the 5 minute mark is sick though!). The melody and guitar solos are probably the best parts about the song, and I have to wonder just how much more Id like it if it were purely instrumental (I would probably like it a lot more). Rating: 5/10 (neutral)

14. VGMC 14Idola Phantasy Star Saga | EndeavourThe singing is meh to me, but I love the use of strings in this song. Just like the 15th place, this has strong instrumentation with somewhat annoying singing. The singing is more tolerable in this one however. Also, to reference the lyrics (Never say never), this song is better than the Justin Bieber song of the same name at least, but neither are particularly that good. I suppose I do like this song slightly more than dislike it, but its still somewhat mediocre. Rating: 5.1/10 (positive neutral; borderline like)

13. VGMC 8 Boku no Te no Naka no Rakuen | Papiliones The singing actually is nice for once, and so is the instrumentation. The melody isnt that good though, especially starting at the two minute mark. The melody just doesnt do it for me, and Im not sure why. Overall, nice piece leading up to the two minute mark, and some nice string solos throughout, but most of the song after the two minute mark is somewhat annoying to me (except for the very last note. Nice ending). Pre-two minute mark is around an 8 rating while the rest of the song (except the ending) is around a 4.5. Since the song is around 4 minutes long, two minutes is around half the song. This means I like the first half and dislike the second half. (8+ 4.5)/2 = 6.25, rounds up to 6.3. Therefore, my rating is 6.3 (somewhat like)

12 . VGMC 12 YS VIII: Lacrimosa of DANA | SUNSHINE COASTLINEHa! The 12th winner at 12th place. How fitting. This really reminds of of Sonic music if Im being honest. I think its pretty catchy, and I especially like the strings at the beginning of the piece. It's not that remarkable, but it's still pretty good I guess. I dont have much else to say about it other than that. Mozart did the whole Lacrimosa thing better though. Rating: 7.9 (like it a decent amount)

11. VGMC 10beatmania IIDX 22 PENDUAL | Despair of Elferia (Long ver.)Usually songs with a strong beat lack a good melody, but not so in this case. I think the beat is incredibly catchy, and the melody is actually decent for once. This certainly isnt my style of music, but I can definitely hear the appeal. Far from the best that Ive heard, but still a great piece. This is the first song on this list so far that I actually am glad retired (though I'm not sure how to feel about it being literally the champion). This level in the list is where where the champions actually start getting pretty good in my opinion. Rating: 8.0 (like a lot)

10. VGMC 15Umineko: When They CryAnswer Arcs | resurrectedplayerOh, an Umineko retiree. How original, lol! Okay, light jabbing aside, this has a pretty catchy beat. What I absolutely ADORE is the harpsichord solo starting at 1:10 (well, at least it sounds like a harpsichord). The harpsichord fits with the gothic theming of the background photo (keep in mind I can only base it off the background picture since I dont know the story or context of the game itself). I dislike the part at 2:44 though since its just annoying noise that doesnt add anything to the piece except serve to be irritating at least to me. Aside from the occasional weird noises added to the piece, this is a very catchy pice with that harpsichord solo alone bringing the pieces overall score up at least 0.5 points haha (that all being said, I still think ID Purpose shouldve won. Oh well :/ ). Rating: 8.3 (like a lot)

9. VGMC 9The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure Evolution | Seize the Truth!Very catchy piece, great beat and instrumentation, and pretty decent melody too. This is nearly tied with vgmc 15, but I feel like what makes this one slightly better is that it doesnt have any annoying sounds in it. Its not mind-blowing amazing, but still pretty cool. Rating: 8.31 (like it a lot)normally I dont rate beyond the tenth place, but Im making an exception to show that I like this song a hairline better that resurrectedplayer

8. VGMC 4When They Cry - Question Arcs | hopeThis is a very beautiful piano piece. The irksome seagull cries at the end ruin it a little (yes, I know umineko is supposed to mean seagull, but that doesnt change the fact that I dont like those noises at the end) and prevent this piece from being A tier (9+), but its still great overall. Rating: 8.4 (like it a lot)

(end of part 1)