well, the INTRO was really good...(Final Fantasy XIV Shadowbringers)

[@DrumRollTonyReacts]

Thank you PikkleDill for the Patreon request! PATREON 👉👉 www.patreon.com/drumrolltonyreacts

[@Rhaethyn]

Yeah this song is mainly beloved because it's the main theme of an excellent (and I do mean EXCELLENT) story. Also the guitar lick kicks in in an UNBELIEVABLY hype moment, a climactic culmination of 7 years of gameplay and story. But the mixing and filters on the guitar are a little bit muddy. Honestly, there's a lot of truly incredible songs in ff14 but this one is unfortunately overrated purely as a piece of music. The same goes for To the Edge - the song itself has this mythos built up around it, and there's fantastic usage of leitmotif, and the lyrics are incredible, and the fight itself is potentially the hypest moment in any game I've ever played, but... without context it's at best a 9/10 instead of an 11 or 12. (11 is: fucking incredible, like the doom soundtrack or Bury the Light, a true anthem. 12 is: encroaching upon "Great Work of Art" territory - something to be *remembered.* Dancing mad is up there, too. One Day More from Les Miserables. Nearing stuff like A Tale of Two Cities, etc.)

[@hlonghi]

"Let expanse contract, eon become instant! Champions from beyond the rift heed my call!"

[@laveiya3277]

Chills. He has my heart in a chokhold

[@vespermoirai975]

@@laveiya3277 Could say, he Cast Wide Open The Gates? (CWOTG)

[@Brauniersc]

The victor shall write the tale, and the vanquished become its villain.

[@rageofheaven]

Damn you. Damn you all!

[@DMV_Makoto]

This track goes along with the opening cinematic for Shadowbringers. The very beginning of the song borrows the opening vocalist from a track called Tomorrow and Tomorrow. At about 5:18 ish where you hear the violin and cello, that is a call back to FFIII and a song called Eternal Winds. Soken does a lot of call backs to previous FF games. He does this several times for Endwalker - Footfalls where he calls back to the previous expansion for FFXIV. All of the individual tracks that Soken wrote for FFXIV are really dependent on context from the game. They are super well written but each on kinda fits to a specific scene or area.

[@DrumRollTonyReacts]

That makes sense

[@DMV_Makoto]

@@DrumRollTonyReacts Here is a really good example of the other place this track kinda shows up, if you take out the first vocalist and leave the rest it's a track called Who Brings Shadow. "Spoiler alert" That track shows up when you are about to confront the boss of Shadowbringers. Here is a clip where you can see the context of the piece, just fast forward to about 6:10 in the clip if you don't want to see the whole thing. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKayopKaeJeHl80

[@svenstevenson2245]

@@DrumRollTonyReacts To elaborate, "Eternal Winds" IIRC was the overworld theme of FF3, there are various "plot threads" that are "barrowed" from other final fantasy games baked into background lore and side stories but integrated into the world and the story of 14, gives the game an interesting dynamic where there is a "plausible deniability" where all other final fantasy games may have occurred in the world of 14, but the history itself was distorted with time type of explanations. Regardless, FF3 ends up being deeply tied to 14 lore after the crystal tower side story/content tying the ancient allegan empire to the "crystal tower" (the final dungeon of FF3) the Allegan's though an ancient and collapsed empire left many technologically advanced ruins and weapons behind that often pop up as problems through out the game's story, among which is the ancient floating ruins of azy's lla during heavesward, a location where the allegans did a majority of their research. Anyways without getting too much further sidetracked FF3 is deeply relevant to the shadow bringers expansion in that the crystal tower plays a major role during its storyline along side one of the characters introduced as part of the crystal tower storyline/side content, which interestingly was completely option (as is technically any cutscene since some people skip the story all together...) meaning some people went into, and likely still are going into ShB having no idea who that character is, I know some of the cutscenes in the game do check if you have done certain content and slightly modifies the cut scenes to acknowledge the fact that you have/have not been introduced to certain things. Anyways not sure how much of a gamer you are but FF14's storyline has been one of the best rides next to some of my favorite animes...

[@MRorizs2]

@@svenstevenson2245 They fixed the whole thing about CT being optional and made it required to progress into Shadowbringers, but yeah, considering some people still skip story entirely, there are certainly people who have no idea who the hooded figure is

[@Napfkuchen]

@@svenstevenson2245 I played FFI-VI for the first time over the last months and I stumbled over soooo many melodic themes that found a way into FFXIV and noticed that the same goes for story elements. FFXIV is like a musical and lorewise medley that still builds a whole new piece of art but still honoring the whole series. Man I love Final Fantasy so much. Going to "Distant Worlds" in May here in Berlin. So much looking forward to it.

[@keithfilibeck2390]

RIDING HOME, DON'T LOSE HOPE.

[@keito204]

What’s happening in the game when this plays? Your crying.

[@ShikiRyougi05]

Man i really wanna get into xiv after playing xvi. How long would you reckon it takes to finish the whole game? Primarily single player and story focussed?

[@gn01140328]

@@ShikiRyougi05 The current version may take two to three months.

[@ShikiRyougi05]

@@gn01140328 oh jeez. I'm talking the WHOLE thing.

[@soapflavour7547]

​@@ShikiRyougi05including the raid storylines? 3-5months if your taking your time but can be done in 2 months

[@larskoenig6021]

@@soapflavour7547 but i dont think anyone new should do any pressure at all, after the slow start in arr it (wont say its bad, but its almost completly buildup) receives such an incredible uplift and literally any kind of content is just so good. especially the freakin music

[@OurHereafter]

At the part where you said "let me know whats happening" when that song plays youre staring down your nemesis getting ready for a final battle

[@rageofheaven]

“If you had the strength to take another step. Could you do it? Could you save our worlds?”

[@imspiralsoul]

What? All by myself?

[@lauranichols5549]

This always makes me tear up. And I run with my wind-up Ardbert minion all the time, simply because he holds his axe out to me.

[@xeshirem]

4:12 "let's keep discovering here" is such a good phrase, might use it myself. love the idea that everything's can be a personal discovery

[@nathanieldavis4342]

Regarding the mixing of the male lead vocals in the majority of the song, the sound director and composer of the piece, Masayoshi Soken, is on record that he typically treats vocals as just another instrument in the mix, so songs he composes tend to have vocals that are more "in the mix" than other composers on the music team for FFXIV. Some of this comes from earlier in the game's life when their budgets were smaller, getting a male vocalist meant singing himself, and Soken does not view himself as a strong vocalist, so the use of distortion, vocoding, and other effects to get the sounds he wanted from the vocals was a necessity.

[@gateauxq4604]

And the strong vocalist was often Koji in the beginning which is awesome

[@HaloDJumper]

Every time somebody mentions Shadowbringers I just think about "Do you know La-Hee? I play La-Hee."

[@Goomcie]

Honestly, I need someone to react to "Do you know la-hee?"

[@mikal768]

MUSIC-O! START-O!

[@Goomcie]

@@mikal768

[@Aetheriea]

Shadowbringers will make you cry. It is so sad and so dark. I love this song. I think it is my favorite.

[@broad_cat]

One of the reasons vocals sit a bit lower in the mix is that often characters will have voice acting over top of this music. It plays in the climactic moments and incorporates several themes from throughout the expansion.

[@RunWolfmanRun]

I sorta wish that they'd remaster the tracks for listening rather than just dropping the trailer/in-game mix, Soken's more bombastic pieces tend to produce this wall of sound that would benefit from more nuanced handling of the dynamics

[@OurHereafter]

​@@RunWolfmanRunthe primals did a version of this song that is what you're asking for. Except it doesn't have the tomorrow and tomorrow bit at the beginning and it doesn't have the eternal wind part toward the end

[@RunWolfmanRun]

@@OurHereafter For sure, the Primals stuff is great!

[@garethrogue]

If you like the intro you'll like the song "Tomorrow and Tomorrow". It has the same intro and keeps the same vocalist throughout the song. It's a stunningly beautiful and deep song about preserving the memories of those who've died. If you like "Tomorrow and Tomorrow" you'll really like "Flow" which is about your soul flowing into the afterlife, which is represented as a vast and dark ocean, where you rest until it's time to reincarnate. Each of the memories of your life are like individual rain drops, coming together to form a river, flowing into the afterlife.

[@saltiestsiren]

Both songs never fail to make my eyes well up.

[@sharenone876]

Tomorrow and tomorrow definitely makes me cry. When we’re listening to orchestion rolls in housing though we get confused between which song is starting at first 😂

[@CF7ELL]

Most of the different parts of this theme have their own full song in the ost so this one is sort of a medley of the different themes. Can't really explain what's going on in the game while this plays without major spoilers and a lengthy exposition, but what I can say is that you'll probably be emotionally invested in what's happening and this song will most likely elevate those emotions hhhhh

[@gateauxq4604]

This version is for the Shadowbringers trailer but when the song itself kicks in ingame is the end of the main story and is one of the hypest things Ive ever seen or heard in videogames.

[@gateauxq4604]

Also the male vocalist is Jason Charles Miller who was the lead singer of Godhead if you’ve ever heard of them.

[@Senriam]

@@gateauxq4604WE STAND TOGETHER!

[@arielr4570]

He kept talking about how the vocals sounded below the guitar and asked what was happening here. I reflected back on the Shadowbringers expansion and it kind of hit me. I wonder if they were trying to convey the old heroes from the first. Like they are a whisper trying to come thru to save their world. I freaking love Final Fantasy music. It feels like every main song is crafted in a way that it tells the whole story of the expansion. The composer is so freaking talented.

[@Teslo_In_FinalFantasy]

This music was designed to be the backdrop to the trailer for Shadowbringers. I think it would be worth it to watch that to get a recontextualization for the music. It really is one half to the whole.

[@lorzon]

Not just the trailer. This song reappears in different forms throughout the expansion, such that when this version plays during the finale, it's triumphant.

[@uncleclaps44]

The full song plays along with the games cinematic trailer for the expansion also named Shadowbringers. However the song is combination of 2 others, one being called Tomorrow And Tomorrow and Eternal Wind (which this song itself is a montage of Final Fantasy IV) with the remaining being Shadowbringers itself. As you play the expansion, you will often hear smaller motifs of the song in the background music but the song itself wont play until the characters encounters the boss of the main expansions story.

[@danielbatres9922]

This plays at the end of the expansion during one of the coolest scenes in the game, I get chills every time I watch it.

[@mar5362]

The song is used as the background music for the expansion trailer of Shadowbringers. My theory is that the song isn't so overpowering because it has to make room for dialogue, sound effects and visuals. It is by that reason I think it might be difficult to get the full experience with the track alone. Expansion themes also incorporates several songs to give the full breadth of the content included so it can sound segmented. Hope this helps! (also excuse my english as it isn't my first language)

[@kurimasu]

It's fair not feeling that extra bit that gives you the feeling of not hitting the high for all the build up. Not having that context is important too. Like everyone else is saying, its a medley used for the trailer. Basically sets up the leitmotifs we'd be hearing for the next 2 years.

[@cwongplus4639]

This is actually trailer music that is a "mash-up" of multiple songs in Shadowbringers. The songs that I know in this intro are: Tomorrow and Tomorrow, To The Edge, and Eternal Wind

[@scotty110]

To The Edge wasn't written yet as Soken composed that while he was being treated for cancer during the covid lockdown.

[@Author_Gamer]

Not to the edge, it is “who brings shadow” you are thinking of.

[@bloodknyte]

Not quite a mash up, the trailer songs are essentially deliverers of leitmotifs through an expansion. It's a big part of why all the music throughout a single expansion will sound so cohesive, even if the style of various pieces differs from others. It's because of leitmotifs.

[@ROFLWAFFLELAWL4]

Definitely worth watching it with the trailer for the visuals. Feel like its one of those packaged with either the ideologies of the story it's a part of or by the footage that accompanies it.

[@Xagzan]

This is the just the music to the intro trailer of Shadowbringers. First part is only a small portion of the full song Tomorrow and Tomorrow (there's another version called Knowledge Never Sleeps which is also nice). Now if you want some cataclysmic, brain melting arrangement of the thematic material on hand here, I highly recommend listening to the track called Invincible. Haven't been able to stop listening to it since I did that part of the game.

[@frostaegis8653]

when specifically the part you talked about is playing you are fighting a precursor of mortal kind, a near godlike entity older than recorded history and a paragon among his people who's perview was the use of magic itself. In another lifetime he was one of your closest friends and before the battle he pleaded with you to see his point of view before your irreconsileable ideologies forced a confrontation, casting off his mortal guise and revealing his true name as Hades. With the aid of heroes from other dimensions, your own reflections and shards of your own original self, you kill Hades and he only asks that you remember that all the people who put their trust in him at the end of their world once lived in a final farewell to a friend who now is but a shadow of what they once were in his eyes and wears the face of a stranger. ... then some timetravel bullshit happens, even after he literally comes back from the dead briefly to help you out of a jam, and then even later he briefly comes back from the dead with another friend of yours, having regained an erased part of his memory where he specifically said he would never do anything as cringe as try to restore the original world after a desperate godcreating ritual backfired and act out a moody reminder of what was lost, recreating the capital city of their doomed society, only to have literally done all of that... the character is a really well written and likeable antagonist.

[@andyjkal]

@DrumRollTony To answer the question of context, it's during a bit of slow-paced dialogue between the sympathetic villain (Emet-Selch) and the hero (you). An ideological battle that leads into the physical battle. Kind of a, "I understand your loss, but we will defy this despair with hope, and walk the dark path" thing. It's meant to build a sense of tension, uncertainty, and courage. Hundreds of hours of story build to the moment, and it's a climax, but still not a resolution. So it's appropriate that the music would not behave as one expects.

[@takahiromorimoto3169]

One thing to note is that a group of the developers of the game including the composer Soken play these songs as a band called the "Primals" live at the fan events and live concerts which is awesome.

[@bloodbought6809]

So initially this is during an opening cinematic but at one of the very last fights of the expansion a huge high point emotions high... this song starts playing and plays throughout the fight... evokes such emotions as LETS GOOOO!!! but also tears... of yes! We are gonna do the thing! lets finish this!

[@laveiya3277]

So many tears

[@kahoshi]

This piece was written to fit the Shadowbringers trailer, and honestly listening to it without watching the trailer is only experiencing part of the music. Every part of the song has a cinematic purpose that cannot be understood otherwise.

[@dillangibbons4939]

The composer Soken is a fan of Rage Against the Machine, that's why despite being a Japanese composer the lyrics for the game are all in english and he tends to take inspiration from them in his works.

[@shadenox8164]

But it also makes things interesting when it is in Japanese, because you know there's a reason for that. Like with Wayward Daughter where it's used to represent Yotsuyu's duality between the west and the east.

[@lornelthaltmer]

The shadow ringer opening video really brings out the song even more. It's pacing when played together really sets it above conventional method

[@HakaishinCat]

Wow wow wow whoever recommended this knows the good stuff :)

[@maik5201]

what you heard was the trailer version, basically a mix of various songs. the beginning has a extended version. the rock part its the "leit motiv" of the expansion, almost on the end with the chello its a reference to an old ff game and the last part is again the leit motiv

[@REIL2LYFE]

Answers is still my favorite FFXIV opening theme. It's so impactful and emotional.

[@chrys_stone8716]

Opening theme? When did they make an anime?!

[@ExaltedUriel]

​@@chrys_stone8716If you wait on the title screen, or click "Title & Movies" they play in-game.

[@lillycullen2235]

We call it Feelsbringers for a reason. Also all hail our beloved Amanda Archen!

[@Reshapable]

I realized the first time I played this song for my sister in the car how important context is for it. It's not bad on it's own but it definitely has a lot of negative space when you're not watching (or thinking about) the trailer or contents it's tied to. So your conflict makes a lot of sense.

[@Zraknul]

Soken is priming the emotions you're going to experience in the plot of the expansion. It's actually right there in the name. Shadowbringers.

[@MattyKatos]

You're hearing a bunch in this that not having played you're going to miss out on. It's worth nothing that many of the parts your hearing are actually multiple pieces that have been mixed together to tell the story of the full expansion. This isn't the first time we've heard these motifs though and it wont be the last. These pieces include: "Tomorrow and Tomorrow" (The opening) "Who Brings the Shadow" (The part where the guitar comes in) "Four-Fold Knowing" (The ooh-ah choir) The team that got these songs ready to go on an album said they struggled to get the songs to work that way, because the music was always intended to loop and be condition based, but I'd say they did a damn fine job. When we hear the closest to this version of the song in the game ("Who Brings the Shadow") we're actually in what I would consider to be the highest climax moment of the entire game thus far. The rest of the comment will describe where we were in the story as if you asked where we were when that plays in game as we never actually hear "Shadowbringers" During the story. The "Big bad" has just exposed his true face after playing his full hand. You're just now emerging from an ethical dilemma having being given the story of your enemy you're realizing that this whole time you've been playing (In game we're talking days of real life play at this point) you've not been fully aware of the full truth and though you're not "the bad guy" the big bad isn't either. Your both fighting to save the world and all your friends and family, but for one to win the other must lose. You're both in a moral gray area. As the song starts you've just been defeated by him, and you're at deaths door, your friends defeated and are laying on the ground behind you after trying to defend you. You are the last remaining hope for your own world and everyone and everything in it, and things are looking grim, in the moment it looks like you've lost. A familiar face you met last expansion (if you're slamming through the story still probably a day or so ago) shows up and you come to the realization that the reason you're not strong enough to defeat the big bad is because you're not whole and the familiar face is your other half. You fuse with your other half and gain the strength to fight once more. With your newly found strength and the help of your last standing friend (surprise, it was for us too) you summon your real life friends (or random people you've never met before but they are still real people) and you walk into what in my opinion is the most story important fight in the entire game. Upon defeating the big bad you're able to summon the power of light that you've tried to do many times before but you've never been able to accomplish to defeat him. The light takes the shape of the weapon of your other half. In your foe's dying breath you're met with a request by the person you've just defeated "Remember us. Remember we once lived" as by killing him you've wiped out the last of his people with the sanity to still remember them, and if you forget, then the memory is gone. The final more whimsical motif you hear (the part where you mentioned the drums under the violin) is from the Old Sharla theme, a city that at the time of this expansion we had not yet visited and was only teased to us. From beginning to end this song truly captures the entirety of the story delivered in the 4th part of this 5 part story. Having have played through it all and listening, I still get chills every time. The time we're given this song truly matters as well, the lyrics beautifully retell the history of the entire expansion as you're standing at the door to the fight to bring it all to a close. I have thousands of hours in this game, I'm fascinated in the story, but their music really is what sends them over the edge from good to great. And if you haven't already played it, did you know that the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV has a free trial, and includes the entirety of A Realm Reborn AND the award-winning Heavensward expansion up to level 60 with no restrictions on playtime?

[@iSailorBoat]

when the guitar comes in at the beginning, after having played FFXIV, i still get teary eyed. It's actually insane. Like my body's just natural reaction to the freaking Hype and PTSD of the game.

[@OriginalMiqote]

Shadowbringers was a complete mindfudge when it was coming out, all the theories going on and a universal love for the trailer and this song.

[@BloodTrinity]

Just wondering Tony, did you check out the lyrics for this when you reacted to it? P.S: The male vocals is also the vocals for "Rules of Nature" from the Metal Gear Rising OST if I remember correctly edit: Oh yeah, to answer your question on when this song plays, it's the opening for the Shadowbringers expansion and it also plays at a pretty climatic moment in the story, I've got spoilers here so avert thy eyes if thine wish not to see. But it also plays where you're facing down the big bad, your friends are all down and out, it's just him and you, but you're also on the verge of imploding and turning into one of the strongest monsters called a lightwarden to exist, since you kind of slew all the other lightwardens and absorbed their aether (think mana from usual fantasy games). My explanation doesn't really go the scene or the build up to that point of the story justice though, so someone else can probably do it better.

[@demonkindx]

Ironically enough, he reacted to "rules of nature" without the vocals so he wouldn't recognize the voice.

[@marcelor.m4108]

The feeling of this music have in the context is strong: Countless battles after years we were "spreading" the light for defeating the darkness followers (the slowpart in the beginning), then we go to a place where the same light almost devoured everything having no night anymore (the guitar moment is when we explore and discover light's corrupting people turning them into monsters and no real solution in sight) and the part of "riding home, finding hope" we have to assume the mantle of warrior of darkness for defeating that light and bring back the night and then the equilibrium of light and darkness there. (we are the only one ingame with the capability to absorb that light of the "sources") But i never payed attention in the melody like now after hearing your comments, awesome work =D

[@sandnoodles]

I still get goosebumps listening to this track. Bit of a shame you didn't get to hear it in context, but still glad you got the chance to listen!

[@MadnessRealm]

It's a bit disjointed because it's a trailer music, so the music changes a lot based on what the video is trying to represent. Like at 7:39 in this video, this section is a modern rendition of Eternal Wind from Final Fantasy 4.

[@ExaltedUriel]

*3

[@joeymatt4079]

One thing about these trailer pieces is that they are basically a medley, which can be confusing when deconstructing them like this thinking that the piece is localized to a specific part or scene in the game proper, which it isn't.

[@swordcoheir9186]

I caught something watching this video that I didn't catch before the previous times I've heard this song. Towards the back half of the song there was a remastered version of Final Fantasy 6's theme called "Searching for Friends", which in context of the expansion you actually do spend some time looking for your friends who were dragged into another world at the end of the previous expansion making this song alot more thematic than I previously gave it credit for.

[@sgr_sean]

the intro is a different vibe because it belongs to an entierly different song, called tomorrow and tomorrow thats entirely sung by the female vocalist and has that same intro, its used here to be an introductory piece that then leads into the main song TBH shadow bringers pairs well with the actual trailer, than by itself, as the entire song is paced to accentuate the trailer, and moments there in.

[@rfactor1502]

Late to the party for this one, but this song is part of the cinematic trailer for the expansion, so some of the vocal weirdness is in part because there are spoken lines with this song. If you haven't already gone down that rabbit hole, it is very worth seeing how this song handles along side the spoken vocals and animations that were all being designed together. Also the other thing going on is the joke that this expansion was the lead composer's rock album. There is a lot of rock and orchestral rock throughout this expansion as a musical theme.

[@shiburu]

this song is the main theme of shadowbringers and is a mix of different songs from the expansion, but the vocal/rock section is mainly from the "finale" boss fight of the expansion! the people who work on the music spoke in the past about how they chose english vocals for their boss themes so that the japanese audience dont get too distracted, so my thoughts is that they muffle the vocals a bit so that the english audience too doesnt get too distracted during the boss fights, which i think is pretty cool! In terms of not having much of a thematic change, this game often uses different songs that are strung together in sequence as you click through dialogue. this way no matter how slow you are, when you get to the part when the music is suppose to kick in it can happen as the devs intended. During the story you have a more suspenseful almost atmospheric BGM before this song (just the rock section, not the beautiful vocals at the start) kicks in the moment a character hands you an item and then you go into the boss battle. it has a lot of emotional weight for the fans of this game :) thank you for checking it out

[@ShiroNekoDen]

Tearbringers and then end feels

[@daeamiralis]

Man. What an expansion.

[@serialeep]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who wishes the mixing placed some more emphasis on the vocals in FFXIV themes! While I get the reasoning behind it and it works well in-game and for cinematics, it'd be nice if there were a separate mix just for listening (or possibly for the game to use dynamic music and tone vocals back a bit when cinematics or gameplay need attention?). Wishful thinking but I definitely understand both the reasoning and the common frustrations towards it.

[@Zraknul]

Thanks for pointing out that Soungarden connection. I didn't recognize it until you mentioned it and it absolutely clicked.

[@lvminxsce]

Suddenly realizing just how much more exciting the song is with the cinematic lol

[@mobscene23ks]

FFXVI - 'Find the Flame' That's it. That's the comment.

[@Dracounguis]

Yes the music is in service of the visuals of the Shadowbringers game trailer. Why it can seem disjointed without context.

[@DrumRollTonyReacts]

It didn't have any depth past the start. That's not disjointed to me.

[@maxrevive592]

@@DrumRollTonyReactsyikes.

[@DrumRollTonyReacts]

@@maxrevive592 Tf are you on here "yikes"ing for?

[@maxrevive592]

@@DrumRollTonyReacts your lack of musical taste.

[@DrumRollTonyReacts]

@@maxrevive592 I don't think you watched the video for my actual conclusion. I also highly doubt that you and I are comparable when it comes to musical taste or assessment of composition.

[@ElenisCZ]

the intro is about introduction to the new stuff but without fully revealing whats going on, then if u want to have full story music that focus on exact one part, then its not the Intro for new Expansion, but rather look for a soundtrack from some boss fight, which solely focus on it, instead of combining multiple layers

[@shirophoenix01]

Man, Id love to go through this expansion for the first time again, experience all the emotions and feelings for the first time. I hadn't cried that hard in a game since Suikoden 1, FF6 and FF7 back in the late 90's.

[@lisascarbrough75]

This particular version of the composition was used for the theatrical trailer for the Shadowbringers game expansion, that's why you hear so many transitions in the song. It's kind of following along with the action in the trailer. There are bits of these themes, though, that play in different scenes in the expansion. Listen to Tomorrow and Tomorrow.

[@euugato12]

Bruh when eternal wind kicks in I lose it everytime xD

[@cactusisez3505]

Just reached the shadowbringers story and yeah this slaps

[@vellron]

Shadowbringers takes place on the First, a parallel dimension on the brink of collapse, where the player character is summoned to rescue and restore the world. Several comrades accidentally trapped there join them, as well as Emet-Selch, an immortal villain who seeks to harness the First's apocalypse to restore his deity, Zodiark. Emet-Selch accompanies and tests the player character, confident despite their meddling. Basically this world is being swallowed by light and creatures of light (that look more like angelic hellspawn) have overun the world. You arrive with few remaining cities left to save

[@Squall4Rinoa]

This was basically trailer music and used in the Intro to get you hyped for the content, if you want the full version of the intro of this "intro" you'll want tomorrow and tomorrow kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5fKc2aDZ95nrbs

[@owanobi]

This is easily my favorite track from FFXIV. I would say what makes it so good is the pairing of the trailer. Combined with the story happening in the trailer, it can really give you chills. especially at the end.

[@imjust_a]

5:37 "HAAAAAAALL "DINING HAAAAAAAAAALL" "HIDEY HOOOOOOOOOLE"

[@jaysnatches8005]

Any reaction video to ffxiv soundtrack content is an automatic watch for me.

[@LordPebble2309]

Fun lil context, granted someone may have given it. But the beginning of this song is from "Tomorrow Tomorrow" and then it turns into the song "Shadowbringers" It's to be a subversion of expectation cause in the story you have already heard "Tomorrow Tomorrow" But then it transformers into this piece of beauty. That's why it's so abrupt, it's not expected at all and I love it

[@swiftlol319]

love this! although i think watching it with the trailer hits more, even if the viewer doesnt know whats happening, it all feels so epic. but i understand this is a music channel so its all good!

[@MasterChef5311]

its so much better with the trailer imo

[@tickledpickle5671]

IF you wanted to hear a 'cleaner' version of the theme, instead of the trailer version, and the second part called "Invincible" Look up FF14 Hades. Dudewhereismyspoon has a great video capturing them both in entirety. I think you're enjoy those even more.

[@AnxMa]

Different perspective; I had some experience with Motion Capture and gotta say those recent Final Fantasy games have, aside from the realistic performance capture, a seriously stylish fight and movement choreography. Considering how important the story and dialouges were in this franchise, they really did it justice this time. PS. You almost saw me as Leon in those new Resident Evil Remakes🙂 PS. You have an amazing channel, I'm glad I've found it.

[@spectria.limina]

Love to see someone catch that it's the same chord progression in the opening and later on in the song... But did you catch that both are variations on the melody from Answers?

[@Banana-cc5rx]

I think this piece and in fact Footfalls as well are written with the plot / trailer in mind. Without context you like wouldn't understand why certain tones are used, lyrics wouldn't really make any sense like the climax "home, riding home". The song will just sound redundantly dark for no reason.

[@rexex345]

Best way to put it is its both a theme of all the themes and of the main bosses. We will hear it at the story climax and credits so its a very introspective piece

[@KiwiSenseiYT]

Probably a ton of answers in here already, I'm too lazy to scroll through them all. But what's going on during this piece, is basically that you as a player have spent the past few years growing from "an adventurer" to "The Warrior of Light". It's become the player's identity at this point and you're just so used to it. You then get this trailer seeing a being of light absolutely stomp on your so-called warrior of light, with the final line of the trailer saying "Become the Warrior of Darkness". All in all they're throwing your entire world upside down and you have NO idea what's waiting when the content drops on you. As others have mentioned though, this is absolutely better experienced with the trailer due to the vocal lines delivered by the characters, and the cutscene playing.

[@PROyaegerist]

heavenly delusion op 🙏

[@CSKaras]

I don't know if anyone has said it in your comments, but there is something you need to know about the music from this expansion. Masayoshi Soken--who has been composing music for FFXIV since the original in 2010, and who now leads all music for all the expansions--was battling cancer when he wrote the music for Shadowbringers. This OST was his magnum opus, as well as a testament to his will to live. The only other person who knew about the fight for his life was Naoki Yoshida, the man overseeing everything to do with FFXIV. He poured his heart and soul into Shadowbringers because he didn't think he was going to live to see anything that came after (spoiler alert: he is very much alive and still writing amazing music for the franchise), and it revitalized him.

[@destinyshand2049]

Another great spng to listen to is Endwalker - Footfalls. It has something like 6 different sections to it, the main/opening, Heavensward, Stormblood, main 2, Shadowbringers, and Finale and all are strung together in a way that both reminds you of your journey and prepares you for the journey ahead.

[@FinalReKK]

Id like to add that this expansion "Shadowbringers" took the main character to an '*alternate world*' (for lack of interest in spoiling any story points) so some of these motifs or themes are plays on the original pieces from earlier expansions. Its very well crafted when put into the context of the story and very hard to explain specific parts without spoiling something for some players. lolol

[@Sililos]

Big thing about the FFXIV trailer tracks is just that, they are made to tell a story with the trailer. They mash up other tracks from the game into one and can seem a little jumbled without the on screen context of the trailer.

[@banggugyangu]

Thi track is the main theme for the Shadowbringers expansion. Its written for the purpose of driving the expansion trailer. As such, it benefits greatly by watching the trailer as you listen.

[@oomandude]

of the trailer songs/main themes of the expansions, this one is 100% aided the visuals of the trailer itself, so it's a shame he didn't watch it with the trailer, but i also understand not wanting to, since this is a music reaction video lol.

[@dillonjoiner1318]

What's going on when this is happening? The sickest moment of my entire life

[@Acradius]

So one of the reasons I think this seems so different from the other intros is because in the rest of FFXIV your character is the Warrior of Light; but in Shadowbringers there are a lot of things that are inverted, and you must become the Warrior of Darkness. It's all about dualities: one brings shadow, one brings the light.

[@jgamefactory]

The music works a lot better when you see the visuals from the cinematic.

[@syoung_io]

It's worth noting that this is actually a medley of several songs in the game used as the score of the trailer, and doesn't really play the whole way through at any single point in the game.

[@omarzarate8604]

"Find the flame" final fantasy xvi uff epic

[@Kumiko026]

This is the song that got me into FF14. It’s been almost 3 years now, and still playing. ( In a dungeon as I type this). XD

[@BunKingEly]

I would absolutely adore if when there music professionals react to the trailer music, they react to it raw (like this) and then after breaking it down, watching the trailer version (full trailer version, with visuals AND the characters speaking) to see how they feel about the composition when in the place it was meant to be. I'd be interested to see if that ever changes their opinions on the piece, or has them more directly understand how the piece was intended to be used. Nothing negative about this review or any other! I love them! I am just now also interested in seeing something like what I said above!

[@bensingleton7189]

The main themes for each of the Final Fantasy 14 expansions tend to have a couple of stylistically different segments because they're played over the main trailers and have to match the wildly varying visuals. My favorite is Footfalls, the Endwalker theme since it actually revisits the themes from the previous expansions over its entire song.

[@babuababo]

Omg finally you listened FF14’s songs!! 😭😭😭😭😭

[@rafaelmafra2309]

i'm not sure how the process was, but most of the variances of this song its decompose through the OST. when you play the game, this song (the main theme of the expansion) feels like a remix of all the ones you experienced to the climax, but at the same time it doesn't. works both ways, as a combination of all main themes or as a guide of them, a "father" song (for my lack of words to describe this with my restrict music knowledge). apparently, this repetition of themes and accords in different songs its a common thing for Masayoshi Soken in FFXIV and it builds a lot for the storytelling. sorry for bad english and i love your videos!

[@fluffykitten077]

The thing is this expansion brings the biggest twist in FFXIV to date. So while the things are really big the conflict is less good vs evil and more so the new vs the old, conviction vs conviction. There's still a ton of tension in the story but it becomes more about defying expectations and proving your worth to carry a bigger legacy than you've ever carried. It's also about getting home.

[@Araedi]

Remember that we once lived....

[@Mako-zb7cc]

Youve opened pandoras box now by listening to ffxiv music, it is an incredible soundtrack all the way through with some bangers. Soken is an incredible composer.

[@Goomcie]

After rewatching this, I honestly wish he would have reacted to "To the Edge".

[@aimnftri]

The warrior of darkness 💪

[@cnkclark]

BECOME WHAT YOU MUST

[@embrcelica]

Soken is a great composer but because he up until recently composed mostly for an MMORPG, a lot of his music, and music from this game is contextual, experimental, and varied. I honestly don't expect people who haven't played the game or aren't super into this sound to love the song, but I think most who play the game appreciate it more. Not calling Soken a bad composer by any stretch, but even from his score in FFXVI he definitely leans heavily into one type of sound, and when experimenting often goes full rock. People who like that sound are gonna love it, but I can definitely see those who don't like it as much. I hate when people treat Soken like this untouchable god, he's human too, and not every one of his tracks will land.

[@lorzon]

This fair, but all great composers have a signature style. Brahms, Bach, Rocini, John Williams, if you listen to their music enough, you can pick out their songs even if they try something new.

[@FrankHenderson-nd7ih]

The FF online games both 11 and 15 have brought some of the best gaming music ever but I'm not sure the music written for the trailers makes much sense without watching the trailer at the same time.

[@IsonDaya]

Part of the reason why this song "doesn't develop" is the plot of this expansion: There is a world adjacent to the primary one, that is slowly tipping to elemental Light. If darkness is chaos, light is order, and the most rigid order is Stasis. The world is trapped in an inability to change.

[@nydcat]

The violin part is taken from a different composer Nobuo Uematsu, the origina Fina Fantasy composer: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h3S7q6yqbLyoldE