ReMix:Mega Man X "The Zero Sacrifice" 3:50

By Vig

Arranging the music of 2 songs from 2 games ( view all )...

"Opening", "Sigma Stage 1"

Primary Game: Mega Man X (Capcom , 1993, SNES), music by Makoto Tomozawa, Setsuo Yamamoto, Toshihiko Horiyama, Yuki Iwai, Yuko Takehara

Posted 2003-02-22, evaluated by the judges panel


There's really no denying it - the electric guitar, initially panned hard right, that enters at around the minute mark is definitely the high mark, some might say saving grace, of this Mega Man X arrangement from Vigilante. The rest of the instruments aren't bad, and the ReMixer does an especially good job of muxing with the theme and even bringing in some other earlier Mega melody, but the guitar's on a higher level. I do appreciate the very brave use of the solo trumpet, even if it's not the best patch in the world. The drums are rockin' but do sound, as one judge noted, a little GM-ish (General MIDI) - not the highlight. To round things out, I take some issue with panning decisions and mixing - some elements are cut above or below where it seems like they should be, and panning - while discrete and obviously at play - is sometimes overly polarized. BUT, but, but, there's some mean classic rock electric guitar noodling that blends in really well that truly compensates and turns the ReMix into an overall success, with portions being downright great. In essence, the arrangement is (more than) there, the guitar is definitely there, and while some of the other players may be catching up to varying degrees, this is enough. Also dig the very enigmatic, moody ending quite a bit. As our newest judge Beatdrop summarizes: "Well, about 50% of this song sounds very General MIDI-ish (especially the drums), but the guitar work more than makes up for that. The arrangement also happens to be top-notch, which helps cover up for the samples used." - my sentiments exactly. Mega Man nuts ( . . . as in "fans", yo) need ask no questions, and lovers of rock in general should find this some satisfying, crunchy, driving stuff. Kudos to Vigilante, with the constructive suggestion that improving his sampleset somewhat could yield devastating, downright scary results. Cool.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Vig
on 2010-02-10 17:45:19
eep, attack of the GM. Nice guitar though, but the hard panning of midi and guitar was more than a little distracting.

The guitar playing is nice, but the rest of this was pretty weak. SOrry dude. :-(

No offense taken. This was the first thing I ever produced/recorded/whatever. I didn't know jack shit about...well pretty much anything. But why bother writing a review about it? :-P

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Crulex
on 2010-02-10 16:27:35

Okay, I agree the drums a midi-ish...or however you say it, but I really enjoyed this one. The electric guitar and opening was without a doubt the best part of this mix. I never noticed the slight Megaman tunes, but then again I've only played the X series. Good enough for me.

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OA
on 2009-12-15 17:25:02

eep, attack of the GM. Nice guitar though, but the hard panning of midi and guitar was more than a little distracting.

The guitar playing is nice, but the rest of this was pretty weak. SOrry dude. :-(

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Pachi Risu
on 2009-11-12 20:51:34

I prefer this over the original. 'nuff said.

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Dj Mokram
on 2009-11-12 11:23:34

Megaman X, one of the most beloved game in the franchise, and of course one of the most beloved soundtrack too.

The Zero Sacrifice is faithful to the original, with lots of synth and atmospheric soundscapes, and an almost identical structure.

Now don't get me wrong: this is a good thing, since the source was really great to begin with.

The remix is fairly even in terms of material and arrangement, and adds some interesting elements as well as a straight rock twist that is very fitting.

I was really pleased at how the Megaman 2 intro/end theme was incorporated seamlessly into the mix.

I also loved how the sounds (appart from the guitar of course) were subtly refined to make the remix sound almost like an update of the orignal song, keeping the spirit of the game intact.

Somehow, I couldn't help but notice the sudden change in gain at 3:26 when the end part with the reversed notes rolls in. Sounds a bit like a clip-crop gone bad, but this isn't a big deal.

Overall, it's a satisfying song to hear as a Megaman fan, and all in all, a very cool remix.

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glasfen
on 2008-10-27 15:03:38

I'm resurrecting this ReView because the guitar work is so good. Vigilante really set an example with this one, despite the otherwise synthetic sound.

I am unfamiliar with MMX except for Star Salzman's take on it but I keep coming back to this mix for the amazing guitar. It sounds like Mark Knopfler's grittier soloing and that ranks pretty high in my book. Fantastic!

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Bummer
on 2006-01-07 07:24:37

First remix, eh? Wouldn't be able to tell, cause this is GREAT!

Ok, some constructive thoughts then. The opening was nice, sounds like a trumpet of some sort, and over the time more instruments are pasted on top of it. I liked the samples of what that sounds like a female choir, gave it a very beautiful touch. And then the guitars came, nothing that i really can complain on. The drums are okay, maybe isn't sounding real, but that was also the problem with it. :wink:.

The tunes from MM2 was a nice add since that game also has some real good music. Overall I thought that this was a good remix, but considering this was your first then it's great. Awesome Vig.

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DKnight2066
on 2005-08-26 16:19:29

Greetings All,

Not being a remixer myself, and not knowing the names of instruments and such, my comments will sound generic at best.

This is a good example of a remix which takes a good song, adds something to it, but doesn't take away from the original. It sets a somber mood that befits it's title, and the part of the game from which it was taken. I really liked the ending with the original megaman theme excerpt thrown in. A VERY nice and "old school" touch, one I won't soon forget.

If your looking to relive how you felt sieging the first Sigma Fortress stage...and seeing "zero's sacrifice" for the first time...then this is the song for you.

Remix on my friend....

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HumpteeFree
on 2005-08-26 00:42:06

Well I know Vig's an established remixer and this tune is old, but I just have to say, it's my favorite of his. Although the sound quality isn't tops, the weaker samples make the guitar sound so hot in contrast that the overrall side-effect is dramatic. It actually ends up as a good thing. I don't know how it would have sounded with better samples, but probably less naked. And naked can be good. To me this sounds like the mix that got the most heart poured into.

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Clockwork Dolphin
on 2005-06-16 05:00:59

Why it rocks: It's a solid song. The guitars are the stars. I like the one that opens with the light flanger on it. Tight arrangement.

What it needs: It suffers from fancy synth syndrome: with hundreds of factory patches, you gotta use them all. The synth textures could be focused a bit more. One of the guitars cuts out in mono! (Just moved, haven't set up *real* sound yet.)

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Nathsazar
on 2004-10-22 14:29:37

Yes i like this remix It has a nice touch but I want more Zero Remixes He is them man of Megaman Cuz he helps mega out of everything and he is so powerful, but i dont want to start an agrument so Just make more Zero Remixes plz. well later

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Brim
on 2004-08-04 05:21:21

First song I downloaded when I found out about the OCRemix! It is very emotional and captures the feeling of a hollow victory. Forever I shall love this song.

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Gnam
on 2003-07-12 01:40:48

Yeah, the guitars really do make this song. The trumpet used in the begining is nice also, as well as some of the "waw" sounds that fade in and out of the background. But, other than those three elements elements, everything sounds very synthy and GM-ish especially the short notes you hear in the MM2 bit at the end. Luckily, the few good elements, especially the guitar, drown out that stuff, so you don't notice it as much, but it still sours the overall experience a bit. Were you to redo those elements that didn't sound so great, I would give it easily a 9 out of 10, it would truly be a complete and excellent mix.

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AXNJAXN
on 2003-02-26 20:17:42

An excellent contribution to ocr, i especially liked the subtle vocals and the synth sounds playing below the great bass and beat playing the forte. Just plain cool.

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lefty
on 2003-02-25 21:33:24

all this song needs is geddy lee singing about tom sawyer over it....

heh heh :vomit:

good guitar playing makes me jealous... i must make something better!! gyahhh hahahahahahahaha :nicework:

this one coulda used a bit of eq'ing in my opinion...

Sources Arranged (2 Songs, 2 Games)


Primary Game:
Mega Man X (Capcom , 1993, SNES)
Music by Makoto Tomozawa,Setsuo Yamamoto,Toshihiko Horiyama,Yuki Iwai,Yuko Takehara
Songs:
"Sigma Stage 1"
Additional Game:
Mega Man 2 (Capcom , 1988, NES)
Music by Manami Matsumae,Takashi Tateishi
Songs:
"Opening"

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File Information


Name:
Mega_Man_X_The_Zero_Sacrifice_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,147,971 bytes
MD5:
d8d172cac83e3a7f0e0f9b2efdbb4d7b
Bitrate:
175Kbps
Duration:
3:50

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