Haha totally right man, this guy should be writing symphonies not using 4-bit DSP chips from the 80s! But good music doesn't care what medium it's on, this tune rocks even in 4bit!
@@DailyCorvid Tim Follin had difficulties with making music that wasn't from this erra. You can tell from his work on Ecco The Dolphin Defender Of The Future and how it's alot more one specific genre than multiple like his does with his older music. Fantastic learning curve he had nonetheless.
My mental image is of the wizard (Tim in his rave gear) with fireworks going off behind him like a mix of Mickey Mouse in Fantasia, and the light show in Fantasia.
He's basically the equivalent of that picture of the guy playing the flaming piano, but with the computer you'd see in the background of a Wendy Davis album.
You should know what it was to play it back in the game. " _What is this game? Looks interesting._ " Later " _I CAN'T DECIDE IF THIS IS SHIT OR GREAT BUT IT'S FREAKING ME OUT! IT'S KINDA COOL!_ " ( _referring to the death sound, I owned this as a kid_ )
Tim Follin makes it sound like there are many more channels than the NES could handle. Also, I've never seen anyone produce such amazing sounds in limited chips like the NES and Sega Genesis (listen to his Timetrax OST), even the SNES (listen to his Plok OST).
Director: Could you complete this, Tim? (0:00) Tim: Sure. Give me one day, sir. NEXT DAY: (0:08 plays) Director: *ARE YOU INSANE???* Tim: Like, yes, kinda. Didn't you like it? Director: *YOU'RE HIRED!!! DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!!*
I feel this is one of Tim Follin's most iconic and most memorable music and just rocked me when I put this cartridge in the NES. Less is more in 8-bit music.
The music for this game is amazing; it stayed with me years after I had played the it. Unfortunately, the game was hard as fuck and I never really got anywhere with it.
That's Tim Follin! He's one of the best retro music composers. He's known for pushing sound chips to their absolute limit, and for making music that doesn't match its console lol. Tim's the best 🤟
The opening song stays with me to this day. As a little kid I could not get very far in this, but I would listen to the music and watch my mom play. I was 4... I love all these tracks.
Surprised no one has mentioned that this NTSC version is played at the wrong speed (too fast). I believe that the PAL version is played at the slower speed intended by the UK composer which gives the intro piece more gravity.
I'm pretty sure it's the other way around. I live in Europe and I grew up with the faster version. Was surprised when I watched let's plays and heard a slower soundtrack, I was never aware that versions could even change the speed of the music that drastically. Unless our cartridge came from the NTSC region, which was really improbable at that time. Now it's more common.
@@DUSKvsDAWN it wouldn't have run from the NTSC region anyway, that's all determined in your console so it matches what your TV is expecting. But, uh, the composer has actually commented on another upload of one of their soundtracks about this! He wrote the pieces to be heard at both speeds, so the PAL music is a bit slower and NTSC is a bit faster than he'd probably have intended, a speed between them would probably be the ideal intention.
@@DUSKvsDAWN No. The PAL version is the official/correct speed for Solstice, and other Software Creations titles. This has been confirmed numerous times. Follin and others also stated that British/PAL games were developed with PAL hardware, but not usually adjusted for American/Japanese machines. Former RARE staff have also explained this in regards to the US version of Battletoads been harder than they designed.
@@Gfors85 Not only does Shadax scream like a tiny girl, but he melts like the Wicked Witch of the West when he dies! AND he dies instantly when he gets hurt!
It genuinely amazes me, the ways in which Tim Follin was able to push the NES' audio capabilities to the limit. His progressive rock OSTs are some of the best I've ever heard in a video game.
0:00 title screen 2:56 intro theme 3:22 'doge'ne theme 7:11 you're winner (victory fanfare(did you get my refrense?) 7:23 end game theme (the end theme) tim follin is the god of chip tune songs.
I remember this vividly from my youth and have always liked it. That bassline was crazy, especially since it's pretty much the ONLY nes title with such an effect. 11/10 Tim did things with this chip nobody else seemed to do.
I somehow managed to finish 100% the game without any cheat this year, I am 19 and I remember, when I was a kid, trying so hard to finish the game without ever going over 20%. This year I tried again and managed to learn by memory the whole map and locations, jumps and tricks. When I finally reached the end screen I was so happy and satisfied!!!
It's a great little game. You should also give Equinox on SNES a go if you haven't already. Another brilliant OST, more pixel-perfect isometric platforming and even some bosses thrown in for good measure!
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!??¿¿¡?! There's a sequel? That's news to me!! I never finished this game either. Came very close! I was stoked when I found the last piece of staff but wasn't able to get it. I have the emulator and ROM I should finish it soon.
It's weird how long that opening title song is... I mean I only ever let it play for like 5 seconds before pressing start. And of course that main theme that runs the entire game ends up being pretty hypnotic after a few hours.
This was great. No doubt in my mind. (or what what is left of it. 8-bit system in stereo.) Put head sets on and listen to a masterful piece of music architecture in stereo. I dont hear this quality often but when i do I mean it. Headphones on.
So glad I asked my mum to buy this game just because i thought the cover art was cool as a kid. Still one of my all time favourite game soundtracks. Shame that there wasnt more tracks as bgm while actually playing the game, my least favourite track looped throughout the whole game.
Sure, the music is amazing, but after about 3:30 I just feel trauma from the insane difficulty this game posed. Never finished it but we damn sure tried.
It's a great game, except for the isometric view, yet is still enjoyable, full of secrets, the OST is superb. I finished it, simply great.Bad luck that Equinox didn't have anything to do with this.
Solstice is supposed to be isometric. It is part of an old British genre of isometric puzzle/platform games which began in the early 80's and died out in the early-mid 90's. The first game in this genre was Knight Lore for the ZX Spectrum.
