LeviR.star's Arrangements - 12th Day of Sheet-Mas ~ "Try, Try Again" (Dream Team)

[LeviR.star]

We're almost finished with the remaining sheets from Mega Man 2!


[NES] Mega Man 2

524th

Crash Man Stage (Replacement) [ZIP]

525th

All Stages Clear [ZIP]

I haven't figured out how to tackle the last sheet, because it's already been completed... at least, partially. You see, composer Takashi Tateishi had to come up with some clever ways to tackle memory constraints, which is why the second Dr. Wily stage theme plays three times (and is essentially the same four-bar pattern transposed eleven times). It's also why the A theme of the iconic first Dr. Wily stage theme repeats throughout, while new countermelodies layer on top of it; pretty clever, if you ask me. But for the credits, the title theme plays, and just when you think it's done, it continues on with previously unheard material, then finally repeats back and wraps everything up. So how do I handle this when the title theme already has an arrangement on-site? Well, the way I see it, there's two routes I could go:

1.) Arrange a sheet that has the second half with material unheard from the title theme and call it "Credits, Part 2" or something. I don't like this option as much, because the more clueless people will go, "where's credits part 1??!?". Not ideal, is it?

OR...

2.) Collaborate with Zeila, the arranger behind the title theme's sheet, and submit a replacement for it that adds in all the material from the second half of the credits. I like this idea more, but ultimately I will have to go with whatever the staff decides.

Expect to get an answer to this when I post my next PA update. For now, let's celebrate, because as of today's post, I've arranged a total of 150 sheets for the Mega Man franchise! There's plenty more where that came, so enjoy, and I'll see you all next time!

[LeviR.star]

You ever feel like time has stopped, even though recent events seem like they happened ages ago?


On the first day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


1st/526th

[PC] Xanadu Scenario II (MSX)- "Field"

[ZIP]

Happy first day of Sheet-Mas, everybody! The rules this time around are the same as last year's: I cannot have two sheets from the same game, console, or franchise. This encourages me to step outside my comfort zone a little, and arrange stuff I wouldn't normally. The subject of today's arrangement is a track from Xanadu's Scenario II expansion, a game that served as a sequel to the original Dragon Slayer. Why did I choose to arrange this, you ask? Because the MSX version of this release is the first project undertaken by legendary game composer Yuzo Koshiro; in fact, some of the music was repurposed from the demo tape he provided when applying to Nihon Falcom. Simplistic as it is, I enjoyed listening to this soundtrack, and it holds up a lot better than, well... the music from some other versions. Of course, you have to remember that games like these having elaborate music was a relative luxury at the time, and not everyone had the same types of home computers (of those that had one at all), no, these ports varied wildly in their presentation. If you're looking for something to listen to, this short soundtrack was surely worth my time, so maybe it'll be worth yours. Enjoy, and I'll see you tomorrow!

[LeviR.star]

What good would this Sheet-Mas be without another compilation sheet?


On the second day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


2nd/527th

[ARCADE] New Rally-X - "Music from Rally-X" (Replacement)

[ZIP]

... and as you can see, I even prepared my own YouTube upload to mark the occasion!


Choosing which arcade title to represent for this year's Sheet-Mas was not an easy decision. Among the games I considered were other Namco releases like Xevious and Sky Kid, and other ones like Nintendo's Sheriff or Taito's The Fairyland Story were on my to-do list as well. But ultimately, I choose New Rally-X out of my enduring fascination for Nobuyuki Ohnogi's work. Besides, I've been meaning to get around to this replacement for some time now, not because I think Jegilmer's version is arranged poorly or anything, but because it's missing quite a few tracks. The sound effects' absence doesn't bother me, though there's far more music in the game than what the title suggests. The title of his arrangement for Xevious, "Start Music/In-Game Music," is far more explicit. And yet I don't think anyone would be opposed to me replacing that one in due time, either. There's still quite a few Namco games left to cover, and that's a personal goal of mine that I'm more than willing to see through. Until that's finally achieved, I hope you enjoy!

[LeviR.star]

On the third day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


3rd/528th

[GB] Mole Mania - "Forest"

[ZIP]

I've finished a lot of the games in my backlog this year (62, to be exact), which is something I'm not exactly proud of, but I'm choosing to tout it as a personal accomplishment nonetheless. Mole Mania is a forgotten Game Boy puzzle game that has seen a bit of a resurgence in recent years, thanks to Shigeru Miyamoto's role in producing it. I was enjoying it at first, but eventually that enjoyment turned to exhaustion as I realized just how long the game was. The puzzles became more complex, enemies started to crowd the field, and the sheer number of screens per level skyrocketed—it took a considerable amount of willpower to finish. But if there's one thing that kept me going, it was the delightful soundtrack. The forest theme is just one of the many catchy tunes, and while it would've been more thematically appropriate for winter to arrange the snowy area theme, I eventually settled on the former purely because listening to it just makes me so happy. And I sure hope it makes you happy, happy enough to want to download the PDF and try playing it yourself. Enjoy!

[LeviR.star]

On the fourth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


4th/529th

[NES] Shadow of the Ninja - "Stage 5"

[ZIP]

I think I first found out about Shadow of the Ninja when it was announced that the game would be added to Nintendo Switch Online, and someone mentioned how good the soundtrack was. I listened to it myself, and sure enough, it's bangin'. It sounds a little bit like something out of Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, and oddly enough, the two games don't have any composers in common. In fact, I liked it so much that I ended up sampling the percussion for my album, Jeff the Delivery Guy. Though, I will admit, the music doesn't translate to piano terribly well, which is why I had to be pretty careful in which track I arranged for this year's Sheet-Mas. Did you know this game got a remake recently? It looks kickass, though I don't think I'll be playing it until I finish some other games in my backlog, so that I don't feel guilty about making a new purchase. Anyway, I hope you enjoy today's sheet!

[LeviR.star]

On the fifth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


5th/530th

[SMS] Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap - "Desert Zone"

[ZIP]

About time I arranged another track from Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap! Even after all the time since I've first talked about Wonder Boy here on this thread, I haven't gotten enough of this game's soundtrack, and the glorious remake's OST is still a part of my all-time favorites. I'd like to arrange the rest of this game's music someday, but I'm not sure how I'll handle some of the tracks, namely "Side-Crawler's Dance," which I'm sure will need one hell of a creative interpretation. I'll worry about that later; for now, enjoy this awesome desert theme, and be sure to check out this version, too!

[LeviR.star]

On the sixth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


6th/531st

[TG16] Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III - "Main Theme"

[ZIP]

I'll keep tonight's message short! I've never played a Bubble Bobble game, and I don't know for sure if I ever will, but the spin-offs and sequels have wonderful music from what I can tell. Remember last Sheet-Mas when I posted that sheet from Puzzle Bobble? Well, since having done so, I've found that the Parasol Stars main theme is even catchier! The minute I heard it after it was announced the game would be ported to Switch, I just knew I had to arrange it, and well, here we are. Enjoy, because this one was a lot more work to put together compared to the others.

By the way, shout-out to Atcero for helping me correct a rhythm in the pick-up! Don't know what I'd do without you.

[LeviR.star]

On the seventh day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


7th/532nd

[MUL] Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age - "Serena's Harp"

[ZIP]

The last time I spoke about Dragon Quest XI, I was still working on 100%-ing the game, and hadn't yet posted any sheets from it. But since having finished it (after around 190 hours' worth of playtime—thanks, unemployment), I've determined it to be the best gaming experience I've had all year, one that completely altered my perception of the importance of story in games. I don't want to get into detail since I'm running out of time this evening, but let's just say I hope the HD-2D remake of Dragon Quest III that finally came out is something I can enjoy to a similar extent. Today's arrangement is for a simple song played by Serena throughout the game, and it probably works better on piano than any other track I've selected for this Sheet-Mas. If you've beaten Dragon Quest XI, you might even get a little emotional listening to this one again. Enjoy, and have a good evening! I'll be looking forward to the next chance I can arrange from this series.

[LeviR.star]

On the eighth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


8th/533rd

[GEN] Mega Man: The Wily Wars - "Dr. Wily Stage 4 (Wily Tower)"

[ZIP]

I finally played Mega Man: The Wily Wars from start to finish this summer, and you know what? It's really not all it's cracked up to be. Sure, the graphics are probably the best classic Mega Man has ever looked, and some of Genesis arrangements are pretty darn good. But beyond that, the whole package is something of a missed opportunity. The staff bothered to remove some of the glitches, but not to rebalance the weapons or damage values, something that's very inconsistent across the first three games. The performance is also god-awful, with the most horrendous frame drops I've ever witnessed in a single-player title. And the Wily Tower mode, well, it's very underwhelming, I can tell you that. Definitely not worth trying to unlock, as much as I love the original trilogy. Ah well, at least the original music can be boppin', and this track right is the perhaps the best one in the whole package; I'm glad I finally had a good reason to arrange it. Enjoy!

[LeviR.star]

Was planning to do the main theme from the mobile release of Q*bert today, but I ran out of time. Here's what I whipped up instead:


On the ninth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


9th/534th

[GBC] Survival Kids - "Opening"

[ZIP]

Ignore the title on cover art and name of this YouTube upload, it's from the PAL localization. Can't say that it's any more imaginative than the NTSC version's...


The change in quality between music from games from the Game Boy era and the Game Boy Color is really bizarre. In late 80s and early 90s, we started with more of a janky, grating sound from even reputable developers of the time, and by the early 2000s, we ended up with masterclasses in chiptune composition from little-known studios that time forgot. Composers assigned to work on games for home console were already writing for full orchestras, while those stuck writing music for handhelds with practically ancient tech had to get mighty creative to make the most of their limitations; just ask Jeremy Soule, who has done both. Konami has always been good with chiptune, even in the face of heavy hardware restrictions, and I couldn't think of a better example on the Game Boy Color than Survival Kids, a game that I admittedly don't know much about, but it does have excellent music. I'm glad I've been keeping record of soundtracks that stuck out to me, because otherwise, I don't know what else I would've come up with for today's Sheet-Mas post. Hope you enjoy it, because boy, did I have to finish it in a hurry!

[LeviR.star]

On the tenth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


10th/535th

[SNES] Final Fantasy VI - "Searching for Friends"

[ZIP]

I felt really strange playing the SNES version of Final Fantasy III (or VI, as we know it as now) this past summer. Here I was, witnessing firsthand what many people hold up as the greatest RPG of all time, and I could not for the life of me enjoy it to the same extent that most Final Fantasy fans do. It wasn't that I didn't understand how to play the game; as a matter of fact, I recruited every character, completed every World of Ruin side quest, and taught every Magicite spell to my entire party, excluding Gogo and Umaro. I just don't get it—what about this game is so engaging to others? I would hope it's not the gameplay, I've come to loathe the Active Time Battle system and will probably avoid the similarly acclaimed Chrono Trigger for that reason alone. Maybe if the script had retained any of its serious tone before the American localization butchered it, I could've appreciated it a little more. Ah well, if there's one thing I can say I loved, it was the excellent soundtrack. "Searching for Friends" was not a terribly complicated track to arrange, but during my many hours of grinding to teach my entire party magic, I came to know it well. Enjoy!

[LeviR.star]

On the eleventh day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


11th/536th

[Wii] Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition - "Distant Traveler"

[ZIP]

Time for my most ambitious sheet of the year, an arrangement of a track I've wanted to do for a very long time now. If I'm to have every Kirby game represented on the site eventually, there'd be no better candidate than "Distant Traveler" for Kirby's Dream Collection, though I'm not even sure that's the best title for it. I've seen "Final Magolor Race" and "Interdimensional Traveler" thrown around, but in the end, I settled on my best bet that I hope can keep everybody happy. Speaking of this collection, this year I finally got around to mastering the New Challenge Stages, meaning that, in addition to earning full completion for each of the six included games, I was done with the entire package. Took me long enough, some 12-ish years, but I feel I owe it to myself as a Kirby fan. So what's a guy to do when there's no more games to complete while I wait for the next announcement from HAL Laboratory? Find another series to play, jackass! Enjoy, and I'll see you all tomorrow for the last day of Sheet-Mas. I think you have an idea of what's in store, but it won't be ready until late because I haven't even started it yet

[LeviR.star]

Would you believe me if I told you this is the first Mario & Luigi sheet I've ever arranged? Neither would I!


On the twelfth day of Sheet-Mas, my true love gave to me...


12th/537th

[3DS] Mario & Luigi: Dream Team - "Try, Try Again"

[ZIP]

When Mario & Luigi: Brothership was announced, I knew I had to make sure I was all caught up on the series before I started the newest entry. I replayed Superstar Saga (it's still peak), and for both Partners in Time and Dream Team, I started new save files so I could finish them for the first time. And you know what? All I learned was that I stopped enjoying this series after Bowser's Inside Story, and that a ten-year wait for a new game isn't gonna change that. Sorry if you liked Brothership, but during my playthrough, I could not wait for it to be over.

At least the music slaps; shout-out to Yoko Shimomura for making "Try, Try Again" her best battle theme yet. I couldn't have picked a better 50th Super Mario franchise sheet!

Thanks for sticking it out with me this Sheet-Mas! There were a few points at which I wasn't sure I could keep up, and I've been feeling especially unmotivated these past couple weeks, but we made it, and I couldn't be happier. I appreciate you all for tuning into these updates, and if you liked what you saw this year, leave a reply detailing which Sheet-Mas arrangement was your favorite.

Enjoy!