Game: Rygar
Song: Caverns of Sagila
Composer: Unknown artist
Above: Caverns of Sagila from Rygar
Like Ninja Gaiden, Rygar began in the arcades as a fairly straightforward action game, then morphed into a more robust offering when Tecmo ported it over to the NES. Despite a reasonable fan base and prominent coverage in Nintendo Power, Rygar never attained franchise status and was left alone until a fairly competent PS2 reboot (that was latershittily portedto Wii) spiced up the action with bigger bosses and a grand orchestral soundtrack. Looking back to the original NES title, which obviously lacks the Moscow International Symphony Orchestra's classy flair, you can still pick out some choice tracks that have held up over time.
Honestly, the game was so goddamn confusing and baffilingly difficult that most people who played it never heard much beyond the opening area's tune. The above song, which plays in a cave area, likely eluded thousands of mystified players, so take a second and soak it in. Rygar's compositional complexity is nowhere near Mega Man or Castlevania level, but it's still solid 8-bit stuff.
Above: The "Overhead Area" song is another favorite
Above: OverClocked ReMix submitterK. Praslowiczdefinitely knew the Caves song, which he expertly remixed back in 2001
You may have noticed the "Unknown artist" entry up there next to Composer. I always try to dig around and find the actual composers and give them long-due credit for these songs that burned their way into our brains, but sometimes it's just not possible. The ending lacks credits of any kind, so it's not just the musician that gets the shaft:
Above: That grueling slog through an impossible game was totally worth it. What an ending!
If by some miraculous chance YOU know the composer, post it in the comments! Otherwise, let's just assume it was someone that never recieved any credit or thanks for their contribution. So, more than 20 years later, we salute you, unknown NES composer!
Get happy with this upbeat intro song from Kazumi Totaka
Rockin' battle theme by Sasai and Kawakami
The MOST INSANE 8-bit music ever constructed, by Tim Follin
