"I did the music in Soldier Blade"

[SamIAm]

Found the blog of one of the composers. Actually, she put it under construction, so I got this from a cache.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:5-gBn7Sll5cJ:ameblo.jp/makirica-music/entry-10773815637.html+&cd=10&hl=ja&ct=clnk&gl=jp&client=firefox-a

A quick and dirty translation:

Let's reminisce on Soldier Blade.
2011-01-20

This is a story from when I worked at Hudson.
In a mere one and half years, I composed music for 10 games. I was young then.

Of all the games I worked on before I quit, the final and most enjoyable of them all was a game called Soldier Blade.

It was part of the Star Soldier series, which was the official software line of a nation-wide caravan. The top floors of department stores all over Japan had people competing in caravan events to get the highest score. Soldier Blade was one of the games.


My memory of it is pretty hazy. In those days, just like now, I actually had next to no experience playing video games. Exactly how I wound up at Hudson making music is a story I'd like to tell later.

"Caravan? What the heck is that?"
I was the out-of-it girl in the office, but the others at Hudson back then took care of me. Maybe they forgave me because I was young? I just worked there, and that was that.

I actually think the reason why I'm able to recall this somewhat clearly is because I only worked at Hudson for a year and a half. After that, I got a completely different job and went down a completely different path. But now, I'm returning to music...

So, looking back on those days, I understand a few things.

To the managers who I gave so much trouble to, I really want to say thanks.

Anyway...

Soldier Blade was my most fun project at Hudson.

I split the work with another person. His name was Hoshi, and he was an in-house composer.

He was the composer of music in many popular games, both before and after then. PCE fans probably know him. He wrote straightforward melodies and had a heavy sound. His songs were spectacular.

(I wonder if he's still at Hudson?)

Hoshi and I were like a tag-team on that game, and listening to the tracks now, I'm not quite sure whose tracks are whose. Lol.

We were always giving each other rave reviews.

We did every last track in that game. It was a lot of fun.

Getting down to details, I did Stages 4 and 5, the last boss, the ending, the credits, and the 2 and 5 minute caravan modes. Hoshi did everything else. Though there were tracks where we helped each other, so I can't say all this for sure!

Setting aside the sound, Soldier Blade was a game that was produced by a 100% in-house group of the most elite programmers and designers at Hudson.

As the Super Famicom and other next-generation hardware kept coming out, everyone wanted to show the world the capabilities of Hudson's own PC Engine. I remember how that was the fighting spirit everyone had as we moved forward with the project.

What took me back to those days? That would be...Niconico!!

I had a copy of Soldier Blade as part of my work history, but I never even had a PCE system. To me, it was like a phantom project that I would never hear again. It was slipping away from me, but then a year and a half ago, I searched the net and found this:

"Soldier Blade complete sound collection."

It knocks me out that there are people out there who like the Soldier Blade soundtrack.

I feel moved knowing that people out there truly understand the way the staff in those days was trying to keep making things happen on the PCE.

Thanks, you guys. Seriously.

I hope that some of you who uploaded the video and commented on it can see this blog.

I just watched it for the first time in 6 months, and I noticed my name in there as the "female composer". ^^;

People sure know a lot these days. I was surprised!

Yes, that's me, and I'm making music as Maki Rika now.

Some game fans are following me on twitter.

To all of you who played Soldier Blade back in the day, if you care to, give me a shout.

----------------
EDIT: This is her: http://www.facebook.com/maki.rica

[Obfuscate]

Awesome thanks for posting, Soldier Blade is my favorite video game music in history.

[NightWolve]

Nice find, man! It's pretty cool to run into stories like these. I'll have to refresh myself on the soundtrack though, I don't remember liking it as much as SSS' overall (specifically stage 2 and 6). I remember being disappointed with it actually, relative to other shooters that is, but I'll fire it up on MagicEngine to access the sound test and see if that still holds.

[MotherGunner]

I wish someone did a rock instrumental cover of level 1.  That would KICK DICK!

Anyways, thanks for sharing!

[kazekirifx]

Thank you so much for finding this. I read her original version in Japanese, and I'm tempted to comment on it.

Soldier Blade would have to be my favorite hucard soundtrack overall. Nowadays it seems to be the one I remember most and feel most compelled to come back to - for even the music alone. In these days of ubiquitous blogging, it's somehow enlightening to realize that the faceless people who were involved in these old favorites are real live people, and are still around at that.

[ParanoiaDragon]

I wish someone did a rock instrumental cover of level 1.  That would KICK DICK!

Anyways, thanks for sharing!

Hmm, I thought someone did do a really nice cover of Stage 1, I'll have to do some searching!

[CrackTiger]

That is awesome. Thanks for translating and posting it here.

[Tatsujin]

Great find thanks. I am also always amazed when finding out that many of my fav. gamescores
were actually composed by females.

[shubibiman]

One of the best PCE game soundtracks!

[Bardoly]

Very interesting!

Thanks for sharing.

[Obfuscate]

Soldier Blade Operation 4: Counterattack on Terrain Forces on hard rock guitar

[majors]

+1, Thumbs up, soldier!

[Opethian]

legendary!

[ccovell]

Great find thanks. I am also always amazed when finding out that many of my fav. gamescores
were actually composed by females.

You'd be surprised.  Several of the oldskool Capcom musicians were of the feminine... genre.

[seieienbu]

Does she say what other games she wrote the music for?  Also, thanks for the translation, interesting read.

[OldRover]

If I remember correctly, the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music/sound design was also done by a female... maybe this same lady?

[kazekirifx]

Women composing video game music? Pssshh! Don't be silly. Hormonal fluctuations wouldn't allow for that. Obviously these people are men posing as women for extra bonus points. Now excuse me, I am late for my misogynists anonymous meeting.

[turbokon]

Thanks for sharing, stage 4 & 5 is one of my favorites.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Women composing video game music? Pssshh! Don't be silly. Hormonal fluctuations wouldn't allow for that. Obviously these people are men posing as women for extra bonus points. Now excuse me, I am late for my misogynists anonymous meeting.

Haha, yeah!  No but seriously, some of my favorite composer's are of the female type.  Castlevania, Suikoden, & Wild Arms all come to mind for female composers.

[Tatsujin]

If I remember correctly, the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music/sound design was also done by a female... maybe this same lady?

If that lady who did the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music, must be the same lady that did the final soldier music then.

[kazekirifx]

If that lady who did the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music, must be the same lady that did the final soldier music then.

Yeah. There's no way there could be more than one female composer at Hudson. Must be the same lady.

[Tatsujin]

Lol, you don't get the point. Lissen to both BGMs and you may get the point

[CrackTiger]

If that lady who did the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music, must be the same lady that did the final soldier music then.

Yeah. There's no way there could be more than one female composer at Hudson. Must be the same lady.     

Although today's Japan may be at the forefront of women's rights and overall equality, as hard as it is to believe, there was once a time when the country was partially sexist.

[kazekirifx]

Lol, you don't get the point. Lissen to both BGMs and you may get the point

Come to think of it, those two games do sound a bit similar. You may have a point there.

[ParanoiaDragon]

If that lady who did the Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu music, must be the same lady that did the final soldier music then.

Yeah. There's no way there could be more than one female composer at Hudson. Must be the same lady.   

Although today's Japan may be at the forefront of women's rights and overall equality, as hard as it is to believe, there was once a time when the country was partially sexist.

Only partially?

[Joe Redifer]

Hoshi and I were like a tag-team on that game, and listening to the tracks now, I'm not quite sure whose tracks are whose. Lol.

_____________________

Getting down to details, I did Stages 4 and 5, the last boss, the ending, the credits, and the 2 and 5 minute caravan modes. Hoshi did everything else.

LOLz.

[Tatsujin]

Volle kanne hoshi.

[esteban]

Found the blog of one of the composers. Actually, she put it under construction, so I got this from a cache.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:5-gBn7Sll5cJ:ameblo.jp/makirica-music/entry-10773815637.html+&cd=10&hl=ja&ct=clnk&gl=jp&client=firefox-a

A quick and dirty translation:

Let's reminisce on Soldier Blade.
2011-01-20

This is a story from when I worked at Hudson.

...

He was the composer of music in many popular games, both before and after then. PCE fans probably know him. He wrote straightforward
Setting aside the sound, Soldier Blade was a game that was produced by a 100% in-house group of the most elite programmers and designers at Hudson.

As the Super Famicom and other next-generation hardware kept coming out, everyone wanted to show the world the capabilities of Hudson's own PC Engine. I remember how that was the fighting spirit everyone had as we moved forward with the project.

...

It knocks me out that there are people out there who like the Soldier Blade soundtrack.

FIRST, thanks for doing this! It was fantastic to read.

I love how the PCE developers wanted to squeeze every molecule of awesome out of the PCE hardware! Take that SFC and MD!

I wonder if she knows she has fans outside of Japan, too

[roflmao]

Very good read.  Thank you.

[SamIAm]

I left a nice little note on her blog saying we love her and hinting not to hesitate to tell any other Hudson stories. I don't think she checks her blog very much anymore, though. Her facebook isn't open to private messages either. Hmmm.

Anyway, glad you all enjoyed reading.

She did say that she also did music editing/compilation for the Momotaro Dentetsu series on all consoles. I bet that was her first job. She made a whole blog post about it, actually, but it's really long and rambles a lot, so I'd rather not go through all of it. ;)