Xenoblade Chronicles / DE - Engage The Enemy | Reacting To Video Game Music!

[@MK73DS]

The motif you hear and recognize is because it's consistent across multiple Xenoblade games. The equivalent of this song in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is "Counterattack!", and in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 it's "The weight of Life". You already covered both, so that's why this motif is familiar to you. "Engage the enemy" is the one who introduced it.

[@fatyoahi8612]

The weight of life has actually a remixed part of engage the enemy for like 5 seconds, and for counterattack too

[@AHylianWarrior]

@@fatyoahi8612 It's not really a remixed part, but rather what we call in music a leitmotif. Basically a leitmotif is a section of a song that borrows from another that's in relation to the media the songs are featured in, a recurrent theme if you will. If you hear it in a song, it's usually featured with a person/people or the situation that's happening at the time

[@ia7051]

yup!

[@blackpepper2610]

No

[@Fuzunga]

Has he ever listened to Crossing Swords? That one is underrated.

[@RoyalCrustle]

I will never forget the first time I heard this song. The tragedy that took place and the raw emotion as Shulk shouted "I'LL KILL YOUUUUU!!!" gave me chills and semented Xenoblade Chronicles as a great game in just the first few hours. The pure emotion Adam Howden put into that scene and his whole performance is still second to none when it comes to voice acting in English dubs of Japanese video games in my opinion.

[@Dinklr]

Have u played yakuza like a dragon? Kaiji tang as ichiban is my personal favorite eng dub performance.

[@RoyalCrustle]

@@Dinklr He is 100% up there. I'd say that's probably my second favorite.

[@Dinklr]

@@RoyalCrustle epic. I totally agree that adam howden does a great job as shulk

[@Wylkdracosooth]

"Fiora! Run!"

[@MindJunkPictures]

@@Wylkdracosooth 😭

[@thezoobster2060]

This song is basically Xenoblade's coffin dance. If this song is playing, ESPECIALLY during the whistle note part, prepare for the worst and get ready to sob like a little girl

[@badlatency9979]

@@NuiYabuko yes

[@shootout-shinobi6672]

@@NuiYabuko yea it’s usually played during a part where it’s trying to kick your heart in the balls.

[@brendantjeerdsma492]

@@NuiYabuko Absolutely. Both this song and the similar "Counterattack" from Xenoblade 2 have left me in tears.

[@InsanityReborn]

Unless it's Rex on Cliffs of Morytha in EN, in which case the VA kind of just has it fall flat. But largely speaking, yeah, stuff stings when this kicks in.

[@yotambraunshtein9786]

Xenoblade 2 changed to drifting souls

[@astralshadow7220]

This song makes me wanna tear up because of how beautiful it sounds, and because of the scenes it plays during.

[@blightybog7207]

*cries in shulk screaming Fiora*

[@zacharypeterson7157]

You probably recognize this from XC3’s Weight of Life. It incorporates the melodies of this song and Counter Attack from XC2.

[@krisparker1014]

This is THE SONG I think of when I think of Xenoblade 1. It is the song that plays for the first time during the cutscene that acts as the turning point that sets the whole game in motion. It brings me close to tears and tightens my chest everytime I hear it. It's beautiful, it's moving, and it's a major part of why Xenoblade is my favorite game series ever.

[@donschaero7042]

The first time u hear this song, it's the representation of anger & bottled up pain emotion The second time and after u hear it, it represents sadness grief and despair After hundreds of replays u will finally be able to see hope scattering around those grieves

[@elfilinamie1326]

That's a really cool way of putting it ^^ Thanks for sharing!

[@ShallBePurified]

Xenoblade is definitely underrated outside of its fanbase. Many people probably haven't even heard a Xenoblade song outside of Smash or The Game Awards orchestra last year. What's incredible about the soundtrack is that it has 4+ composers for each game with a lot of variations in genre, and almost every single song is amazing.

[@totalradlad]

Except for X. Only one composer for that one. The music is still good though.

[@kayden2119]

@@totalradlad great songs but made for the wrong content. His type of style is just really not meant for xenoblade imo

[@totalradlad]

@@kayden2119 I think it works just fine for X, but not everything fits and I definitely don't want him to work on a numbered Xenoblade game.

[@kayden2119]

@@totalradlad I think it would work fine with X I really just don't think the cutscenes do his songs justice.

[@totalradlad]

@@kayden2119 Yeah. More of a problem with X's story than with Sawano's music.

[@alexstewart9592]

The series DOES make substantual use of motifs, but not in a way where you would have picked up on them. Each game has its own main theme, and much of that theme is used as a motif that appears in other tracks in the game, but there isn't one single motif that appears everywhere, so you just aren't hearing enough tracks using the same single motif to pick up on them. Also, Engage the Enemy plays primarily during cutscenes, but generally in moments where there is some kind of confrontation with an enemy, including times where it plays over a fight scene.

[@arminarlelt7471]

The only time it plays in battle is the first fight against Metal face after, well, the legendary "I'll kill you" from Shulk. Can't remember if it plays in Future Connected in battle at one point. But I think I'd remember that so I'm gonna go with no. And to be honest it's better that way in my opinion.

[@manon9841]

Yoko Shimomura only composed ~10 tracks (with a few day/night themes) and they were not reorchestrated for Definitive Edition. I'd say, most notably she composed the Title Theme for XC, I can't remember if you already reacted to it or not lol, it's been a while. And for the other composers: ACE+ is ACE (Tomori Kudo & Chico) and Kenji Hiramatsu. Kenji Hiramatsu is often the one behind the most notable battle theme of the series, i believe he's the one that composed Engage the Enemy (and its XC2 and XC3 equivalents) Manami Kiyota is a singer/vocalist and iirc Xenoblade was her first time composing for a game, and she has done a looot of iconic tracks in every Xenoblade game. There is one in particular that i remember being in the list that I can't wait for you to hear :)

[@totalradlad]

Yoko did some gameplay tracks that were arranged. Specifically Time to Fight and the day and night versions of Colony 9 and Hometown. You are right that the main theme and the cutscene tracks weren't arranged though.

[@rhettmitchell]

Yeah Kiyota did ***** the Divine, Fallen Arm, and Egil’s Theme i think, and so many other favorites. I’m hoping one of those is on the list, if he hasn’t done them already anyway. Can’t remember lol

[@Fuzunga]

Also, Mitsuda did the ending theme.

[@lanonyme-vod8090]

​@@rhettmitchell Even Eryth Sea and Satorl Marsh, Kiyota made a looot of Xenoblade tracks and she's responsible for most of my favorite tracks

[@bdk336]

"I feel emotional" understatement of the century when this plays in-game. The title makes you think it would be a battle theme but instead it's one of the most used cutscene tracks and it sure is used to great effect.

[@dugtrioramen]

Yoko Shimomura composed a couple of songs in the original, most notably the title screen song. She also did a few early area songs and like 3 other cutscene tracks. This one was just made by ACE+ though Manami Kiyota was the lead composer for the original, but her songs are typically more peaceful / atmospheric. People usually hype up ACE and Hiramatsu songs before hers. Though I'm sure you'll eventually hear some of hers as she composed "Zanza the divine" and "Satorl Marsh" which are both iconic

[@worstone8125]

The moments where this song plays are some of the most iconic scenes in the series.

[@thenonexistinghero]

Definitely, with some of the best voice acting ever in a videogame the first time it appears. And it's also one of the most iconic songs in the series.

[@finestcustard5647]

@@thenonexistingherothe VAs of XC1 did so well it’s insane

[@kaz7886]

@@finestcustard5647 The VAs of 2 could've done better.. if only the acting direction was not so bad. Lyp sinc is fucked up. The voices are pretty much subjective.. I love Rex's voice but his screams are bad.

[@justinwalker7418]

I remember every scene that this song plays in and I can sync the lines said based on where the song is. This song may be the best track in the whole game. I picked up this game on a whim after my grandma visited for the first time in years and bought it for me at GameStop. I gotta day I’ve never once regretted it

[@ilavain]

Your Grandma is an undercover xenohead

[@WatashiMachineFullCycle]

WOW I've never heard the original before, it's SO DIFFERENT. really loved that you listened to both

[@TheFrostedfirefly]

I originally didn't like the opera vocals that Definitive Edition added when I first heard that version of the track because I loved the original so much, but as soon as I heard it in-game for those same moments, it all suddenly made it so much better for me and it quickly became my preferred version just because it made me picture those moment so much more clearer. This song always makes me tear up without fail, it's legitimately moving.

[@Klikkilikki]

Just recently found your channel but man there are so many great tracks Xenoblade have to offer (although I’m sure you’ve already noticed). Some tracks I’d like for you to hear are the different title screen themes as well as some area themes. Examples: Satorl Marsh (night), Agniratha (night), Letherian archipelago, Kingdom of Tantal and Yggdrasil. Regardless of the tracks you choose you’re in for a treat lol. Also The Decision and The Power of Jin are some great cut scene tracks. Keep up the content man

[@Dash123456789Brawl]

Great recommendations, but I think he’s already listened to a couple of those Edit: I looked through history and changed my mind, thought I remembered a couple like Yggdrasil and Tantal, but it seems I was mistaken.

[@fatyoahi8612]

If there is one song that is better with context, it's this one

[@abbysol5812]

this used to be my favorite Xenoblade song for the longest time, only recently it got dethroned by the Mobius Battle theme from Xenoblade 3, I love bothversions but this is probably one of the few songs where I lean a little towards the DE version of the song, the vocals are just so good.

[@JessesAuditorium]

That one's coming (eventually)

[@Arksimon2k]

Ooh great one! Always plays at a big moment, it's packed with energy.

[@Nobrev]

I'm just a sucker for violin, piano, and opera vocals in rock music. This song bounces around so much but it stays cohesive and really gives off that particular feeling it's going for. "That guy, that's the big bad and we're gonna fight them but we're gonna lose something along the way"

[@T_Man]

Glad you listened to the original version :) It's my favorite version.

[@rodrigobarrera2281]

The DE version is Godlike.

[@LC-134]

I also prefer the original

[@Skallva]

@@rodrigobarrera2281 It's ruined by the vocals for me

[@LC-134]

@@Skallva Right? That part of the shout, it's really loudy for me

[@finestcustard5647]

@@Skallvathose vocals are awesome but I agree that they coulda toned it down just a hair

[@marche800]

The Weight of Life from Xenoblade 3 has this song's melody as a leitmotif.

[@PoyosoDG]

There is a motif here. while the Xenoblade 1 doesn't really do it too much, 2 and 3 do, and since Xenoblade 3 has tons of fan service, the melody of this song was used for a part of Xenoblade 3's "The Weight of Life" :)

[@DisableYT]

This is probably the game's most infamous track. It plays during a lot of different cutscenes, and it's come to be known as the song that plays when shit's going down. Also, once again, thank you for playing the original. This track in particular is a big reason as to why I prefer the original OST as a whole. I have to disagree with you about the vocals. They're higher fidelity, but I think they're a bit over the top in the remaster.

[@VirgoTruck]

Absolutely agree on the vocals being better in the original, especially the most climactic bit of them. Goes too hard for too long and just sounds really harsh to me

[@DisableYT]

@@bluekfc3218 My intention was to say it's famous for its association with bad things happening in the story. But obviously not bad in a "I hate this" sort of way, just the "Oh god, oh no!" kind.

[@thenonexistinghero]

@@bluekfc3218 More like infamous for the amount of tears produced while the song is playing.

[@blightybog7207]

@@thenonexistinghero NGL the scene that sticks with me most for this song is still the first one. can still see the blood on that metal bastards claws.

[@rhettmitchell]

I feel like the vocals help out the song in such a huge way, with the way they’re mixed better and way toward the forefront. Well and they’re re-recorded. I think the original vocals are midi but I really can’t tell since they’re not very loud in the original

[@alk3476]

Love your reactions and your appreciation for music in every genre you have listen! Hope you will play xenoblade series in the future too to see also how magical games they truly are

[@naul2477]

Every time I listen again Engage the enemy I can't help but remember that first one that for those who played xenoblade you will know. Anyway, this OST is very memorable

[@MindJunkPictures]

One of the best Titles in the entire Game. Every time it plays it hits so hard

[@MK73DS]

I found this video through your Xenoblade Chronicles playlist. I don't know why it's unlisted :o

[@JessesAuditorium]

Consider yourself an accidental patron, cause I forgot to hide this one :)

[@MK73DS]

@@JessesAuditorium Oh, I'm very sorry if this was intended for patrons only. I'll try to forget I watched it and watch it again when it gets publicly released 😅

[@JessesAuditorium]

@@MK73DS ~~~never happened~~~ nah its cool, its just scheduled to be released later this weekend. Have a good one.

[@nb_nic]

I love the vocalist in DE because they swap the vocalist with the the strings, you can hear them mutedly doing the crossing runs from the original under the vocalist going to those top notes (which I'm confident to say don't even sound like the top of her range). As someone who used to do choral stuff and am friends with some operatic sopranos, I absolutely love hearing those high notes. And I'm glad it made you emotional, it validated me crying over one of the scenes this plays over despite having seen it for almost a decade lol

[@AiZm8]

FINALYLYYYYYY let's gooooooo :DDD (I'm Charles) so excited to watch this! edit: so glad you liked it :) it is definitely emotional! After I played the game it's one of those songs that really hit different.

[@VirgoTruck]

Yoko was much more of a driving force than Mitsuda for the first game, he actually only composed the one track. (Beyond The Sky, the end credits theme that you reacted to) He became far more involved from XC2 onwards 😊

[@VirgoTruck]

Also, Kenji deserves so much more credit on all the games. He flies under the radar being the + in Ace+, but his work is by far the most defining on all the mainline soundtracks

[@Nobrev]

Yoko Shimomura is actually a woman

[@VirgoTruck]

@@Nobrev I'm well aware of that, I was referring to Mitsuda

[@Nobrev]

Ah ok. I misread the comment there

[@VirgoTruck]

@@Nobrev no worries, it wasn't the clearest grammar on my part. No harm done!

[@leftymu]

I do actually appreciate you listening to original versions. I feel like sometimes the original and remastered versions of VGM soundtracks can offer very different vibes, and the way I see it, usually the original is coming from a place of being made when the game was, with specific intent going into the meaning of it and how it sounds, whereas a remaster's job, several years down the line, is to just sort of to copy the original with better hardware. So arguably, sometimes to me it loses its spark.

[@TimothyGod]

Did you say SPARK?

[@aylinilya.]

i mean the remasters were done by the same people who composed the original versions in 2010 so…

[@scubajho]

It helps that all scenes related to this song are choreographed to the song. That's almost the worst part of just listening to the song by itself. I'm not sure which came first at times. The music and the story work together throughout Xenoblade, but this song in particular is crafted with certain scenes in mind, and those scenes are crafted to this song, with matching highs and lows.

[@Fuzunga]

Hats off to you (pun intended) for using A Hat in Time as background music. The windmill is one of my favorite songs from that game, too.

[@michael4408]

He needs to hear the xenoblade Chronicles 3 moebius battle theme. I think he would go crazy listening to that song.

[@rhettmitchell]

Yessss, and the Moebius Interlink Battle and Climax of that one

[@evanwilliams8185]

Hey man, been playing Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and was listening to the OST on youtube when I came across your channel. I really dig how you appreciate the music. Definitely subscribed.

[@finestcustard5647]

This song is such a journey jeez. This gives me goosebumps. All the cutscenes with this shift between big monologues to crazy hype action back and forth. The song conveys that so well omg

[@donschaero7042]

18:20 You can think "Engage the Enemy" as an opening before you start fighting, it serve you as motivation, sometimes telling you about an event that are inevitably grim, other time for an event that you start thinking this is worth fighting for

[@Malacite]

Glad you're enjoying these man. There is a good reason I include Xenoblade in the top 10 greatest RPGs of all time (along with Persona 5) the music alone warrants it, to say nothing of it just generally being a phenomenal game and IMO an absolute must play (it is very lengthy - not quite P5 long but pretty long) It was initially released as a trio of rare western prints for the Wii way back - the other 2 games were The Last Story (sucked) and Pandora's Tower, which was a 3D mix of Castlevania and Majora's Mask (also very good and even harder to find) I am a proud owner of an original copy of all 3 :)

[@oneish7454]

Man opinions are a bitch huh? I thought The Last Story was great

[@OmegaMetroid93]

The Last Story was amazing. I'd recommend giving it another chance sometime

[@milktoast9140]

@@OmegaMetroid93 I'm going to jump in out of nowhere and say that I've seen you in the comment section of Xenoblade videos since pre-launch Xenoblade X LOL. Good seeing you're still around! I haven't played either of the other Operainfall games but I've generally heard great things about The Last Story. Would you say its emulator friendly?

[@Malacite]

@@milktoast9140 I'm not really familiar with emulators for anything above SNES lol, but seeing as it's only a Wii game ya I doubt you'd have problems

[@Malacite]

@@oneish7454 Really? I have nothing but respect for Sakaguchi but I honestly thought Last Story and Lost Odyssey both sucked - the latter was mostly fine until the big plot twist near the end that basically ruined the story. I just found Last Story to be too short, generic, and had a rather lackluster cast. Granted I haven't played it since it released but I remember feeling a tonne of disappointment by the end. Not as bad as Infinite Undiscovery, but still bad.

[@matfhju]

There is another song with 3 versons that is called drifting soul it has an vokal verson, instrumental version and battle version witch goes absolutly compleatly NUTTS with all the bells and whisles and I mean that litthrearly. There is also another 4th version aswell

[@Ripalaez1909]

I would love to see you play this game, it's a masterpiece!

[@XanderW7381]

Part of the melody was also in weight of life so you could recognize it from that

[@bigmonkey838]

I’ve been waiting for this one for months

[@badlatency9979]

Very emotional battle theme is very, very accurate.

[@jelyse14]

The names you're reading there in the description applies to the entire OST as this is one video in a series of videos. Yoko Shimomura composed the Main Theme, Prologue A, Prologue B, Hometown (day&night), Colony 9 (day&night), Time to Fight! (normal Bionis battle theme), Unfinished Business, Shulk and Fiora, and Epilogue. Engage the Enemy is ACE+ btw

[@orangepotato2112]

Woohoo! I hope you listen to more xenoblade, and thank you for the analysis + reactions.

[@alexandrekayotsu]

Thanks Jesse, I'm playing this game right now and without a doubt the original battle music moved me more than the new ones. There is also an in-game option to change battle and ambient music separately!

[@moomanchu608]

You need to play this damn game already

[@Moody.Smiruai]

Let em do what he wants

[@donschaero7042]

16:25 TRUEEEEE it is underrated, but its getting there, the exposure to this series have gone exponential since nintendo switch era dont worry about it, everyone will KNOW THE NAME, in the near future, i believe....

[@germin9784]

This song plays during a few cutscenes. It involves battles and either all hope is lost, or victory is at hand. Almost everytime the song switches, the conditions change. Suddenly the protagonists are winning, or suddenly more enemies show up. Then it switches again and all hope is lost or regained again. These cutscenes are the most hype and also the most pivotal in the game.

[@manupm9161]

"You'll pay for what you've done to the emperor and Fiora!"

[@laggalot1012]

Originally I wasn't sure, but I think I prefer the DE version now. The original is already fantastic and the change in vocals in DE is a bit jarring at first if you're used to the original. But DE's version gains a lot in its clarity and quality, and the vocals here make it so much more haunting. This song is almost always accompanied by tragedy, this song is bad news every time, so for it to feel haunting is actually perfect. The composers you read there are for the whole OST, pretty sure. One of my favourites in XC1 that I believe Shimomura is responsible for, is "Colony 9" (daytime). I hope you'll get to give that a listen sometime. Both versions are good, but it's another one I think DE wins. (Although I don't believe Shimomura did that particular version. It's pretty faithful, though.)

[@masterlucarion]

There’s a wonderful part of the game where you get this song followed immediately by You Will Know Our Names

[@LillyTensei]

What you're recognizing is part of a previous song you reacted to, The Weight of Life from Xenoblade 3. That song is a sort of mashup of this song (Engage the Enemy), and it's equivalent in 2 (Counterattack). All 3 songs play during emotional and or tragic boss fights.

[@HeroponMan]

"The Weight of Life" from Xenoblade 3 is heavily inspired by this song and has a very similar chorus. You reacted to that one and may make this song sound familiar! Yoko Shimomura composed about 10 of the songs for Xenoblade, including "Unfinished Battle" which you've heard.

[@makkank4479]

I'm excited when you'll hear more chill songs of these games because the diversity is what makes these soundtracks great Engage the ennemy, you'll know your name and others battle themes are great Xenoblade is often remembered by these songs but pretty much every music is great Area themes are stand out for most of the serie too

[@Lyra_dragonal]

I love how much meaning and feeling the song alone can give you, even without the visuals to tell the story.

[@LucaS-me5dq]

You should react to "Incoming!" from Xenoblade 2, best battle theme in the series imo.

[@moomanchu608]

Manami kyota helped compose many of the pretty tracks. Eryth Sea 🥰🥰🥰

[@demiurge2763]

The next thing you gotta listen to is Moebius Theme from Xenoblade Chronicles 3. It's arguably the best out from the entire game and easily rivals some of the best songs from XC 1 and 2.

[@tebbtebberton1007]

Jesse, this trend of listening to multiple versions of the same song gets a thumbs up from me. I get if you don't want to do it all the time, but if I have to make a special request: If you cover any Sonic CD or Final Fantasy 6 songs going forward, can you do a double dose on them specifically? For Sonic CD, I ask because there's a Japan soundtrack, and a North American soundtrack. (If they have more official region names, I apologize for not remembering them). Every zone has present, past, bad future and good future variations, both for japanese and american soundtracks, I'm not saying to do all time variations, just the regional versions. So, Stardust Speedway: Bad Future Jpn & Us. For Final Fantasy 6, the pixel Remaster has a completely redone soundtrack, so if you could do the original SNES version and the pixel remaster version together, that would be best case scenario. Also, that means there's another version of Dancing Mad to cover in the future. :3 good luck.

[@nwm4660]

awesome that u did both

[@gufei_ppp9297]

You heard that mofif probably in the weight of life in xc3 because it had a short section where it used a leitmotif of counterattack and this because the songs are equivalents to each other like these 3 songs always play in cutscenes where some big story important fight is happening

[@MtMarshi]

Fairly new to this channel Jesse but Ive been hooked on watching and listening to your reactions to some of my fave OST's! Please keep it up! Also if I can make one request I'd love you to listen to Tie A Link Of Arcus from Trails Of Cold Steel 1 and 2.

[@JessesAuditorium]

Thanks! That has been requested last year so it's coming at some point :D

[@jelyse14]

This song and Counterattack from XB2 are so similar in so many ways that every time I hear the end of this section at 6:42 my brain goes "where's that one part though" and then I keep having to remind myself that the part Im anticipating is 1:25 of Counterattack ->(/watch?v=aElM_uHL00E)

[@lucasl3657]

Every scene this plays in is the best scene in that game

[@cassy7929]

This theme is by far one of my Favorites from Xenoblaid 1.it’s so good I love it.

[@rodrigobarrera2281]

Jesse, just play all the Xenoblade games. What a Trilogy and count Xenoblade X too to the mix.

[@TopCape]

This song is basically this game's version of xenoblade 2's counterattack

[@vincentpey3929]

May i request "Zanza the Divine" from Xenoblade Chronikles Definitive edition.

[@bdk336]

The motifs Xenoblade uses become a lot more obvious when you experience the score in-context. When you're just listening to the big pieces once or twice you don't really pick up on them easily. Xeonblade has tons of much more low key tracks that don't get as much attention too.

[@finalrush7]

my fav song ever. great video!!

[@MK73DS]

16:40 It was true for Xenoblade Chronicles 1, but Nintendo pushed quite hard the advertisement of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. There are two Xenoblade characters in Super Smash Bros, one of their biggest games, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 naturally appeals to a wider audience (sadly for reasons I dislike...). It's still not as popular as Final Fantasy, but it's not just known in the JRPG world, all Nintendo fans know about it. If they release these games on other consoles, or even PC, I'm pretty sure it will catch on quick with a lot of people. But I doubt Nintendo will gladly give Xenoblade to others, it's growing at a very good pace recently. Fun fact, the first game wasn't even supposed to be released in the US. A fan campaign named "Operation Rainfall" managed to push Nintendo to localize Xenoblade Chronicles (and a few other games) in the US. To see how Nintendo is now embracing Xenoblade is really heartwarming for a day one fan! And to see how it's covered (may it be gameplay, story, music, visuals, or anything) by more and more youtubers is even better.

[@HIROSENNPAII]

I can't stop hearing Shulk screaming his lungs off. Nice video!

[@thetacticianmusician4603]

You probably heard the motif in Counterattack from Xenoblade 2... technically not the same motif, but some of the major points of both songs are similar, and Counterattack is essentially Xenobalde 2's version of Engage the enemy

[@jpegwarrior5431]

I guess it makes sense that people would mainly suggest a lot of the more metal/rock battle themes, but the Xenoblade games do have a lot of more orchestral tracks like this actually. In the first game, I believe Manami Kiyota is responsible for a lot of those kinds of tracks (Shimomura and Mitsuda only contributed a couple tracks to the first game), although Engage the Enemy is by ACE+ I believe.

[@Kitkatblue989]

I dunno if this is what they intended, but I feel like the name Engage the Enemy (or Confrontation with the Enemy) refers to a specific aspect of the usage of the song. A big part of the game's story is about disparate people seeing past differences and coming together even despite past conflicts, but when Engage the Enemy plays in a cutscene, it's always against an enemy that there's no peaceful resolution for - whether because the enemy simply lacks sentience, because they didn't have enough time to ever learn more, or simply because the enemy refused to change.

[@icecreamorc]

She did work on a lot of songs for the first Xenoblade game but not on that song in particular. I think the only song you've heard from her is Time to Fight and that was the standard battle theme for the first half of the game.

[@zetashackle9600]

Honestly having the instrumental from DE and vocals from the original would make the perfect blend.

[@alejo0121]

If you won't play this trilogy on Switch you definitely should watch a playthrough of them. You will be in for quite a ride, the gameplay, cinematics, story and music complement each other so nice

[@desmontpaisley9194]

Still waiting for The Main theme

[@TheNintendoWizrad]

My favorite song from the first game.

[@aegislight98]

Please The Tomorrow With You from Xenoblade 2. It's the favourite theme of the composer, Yasunori Mitsuda. Shimomura was only composer for Xenoblade 1, that's why you didn't see him before.

[@franciscolorena7609]

People, give him Moebius theme!🙏

[@Everything-mh4bp]

7:45 5th octave???!! More like 6th lol

[@Orthodoctus]

💃Engage the enemy💃

[@andrewwilliams8951]

If you hear this song, it means someone is dying. *IMMEDIATELY*

[@itsasecrettoeverybody]

This song plays... Pain and suffering are released upon the characters.

[@lukemoonwalker8444]

Can't wait for Prologue B.

[@GuiltyKit]

I really want to like this track. I really really do. But without hearing his reaction yet, my thought throughout most of the song is that it feels like it's relying too much on one single instrument at a time. It feels like it's waiting for the song to actually start? It feels like the most epic intro to a song that never actually begins. Maybe it's different if you've played the game and your brain is associating what's going on with the events of the game. There's a lot to like here! It just feels like it never gets to the point and starts an actual song.

[@royal422]

Dunno if you'll see this but if you somehow find extra time, I'd like to see you react to the original Mechanical Rhythm too! Maybe a relisten to the Definitive Edition along with it? I wonder if its been requested already?

[@frostingorb2181]

Mitsuda only did one track in Xenoblade 1 and it was "Beyond the Sky;" Shimomura, yeah she did quite a lot in this. Listen to "Time to Fight!" and you'll know for sure lol.

[@coolopotomus556]

As a guitar fan, I feel like you'd really enjoy "Doom Castle" from Final Fantasy Mystic Quest. Not the greatest game but the soundtrack rocks.

[@LAnite430]

You should listen to the original Mechanical Rhythm off camera! I don’t think you covered that back in the day

[@URFTBOUND4LIFE]

May I suggest North Froststreet from Kirby and the Forgotten Land

[@Promethe3u5]

This is one of the the few times where I felt the remaster actually made something worse. It’s not bad by any means but the high pitched screams kinda hurt my head. Lol

[@JessesAuditorium]

I could see that happening on repeated listenings.

[@mmosm]

Fiora!!!!!

[@koj30]

In this case i prefer the DE version, mostly because of the singer and that in the original i can hear the synth parts and it bothers me. Also yeah i think too that xenoblade ost is underrated yet everybody knows it but i guess it's just the fandom and people that are into niche rpgs

[@gormottigrebel9978]

Engage the Enemy and YWKON are probably the only two songs that fans often prefer the originals over, something about the original audio just feels a bit idk rawer I guess?