SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - "April Showers Bring May VGMs" Edition

Welcome to the first edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs for the month of May! Last month brought tremendous rain showers, just as the saying goes. Now, instead of just May flowers, SuperPhillip Central is giving you the gift of groovy video game tunes!

We begin with a recent release, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe before speeding onto another kart racer, Pac-Man World Rally. Next up, the much improved Super Bomberman R blasts onto the scene, handing things off to Super Double Dragon for some retro goodness. Finally, Kirby & the Amazing Mirror delivers a charming and rousing ditty to cap things off.

As always, click on the VGM volume name to hear that song via YouTube. And check out the VGM Database for all previously featured VGM volumes. Now, let's get on to the music!

v1386. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NS) - GBA Cheese Land

A remix in both music and track design, it's Cheese Land from Mario Kart: Super Circuit, which makes its grand reappearance in the newly released Mario Kart 8 Deluxe! Cheese Land's once flat Super Circuit self is remixed in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe with great valleys, huge expanses, and tight turns. It's accentuated by this peppy and catchy saxophone-driven theme.

v1387. Pac-Man World Rally (PS2, GCN, PSP, PC) - Arctic Iceberg

We move from one racing game to another, though one that's much less popular, Pac-Man World Rally. Arctic Iceberg's theme sounds more fitting for a surfing safari than an ice cold track, but that's exact what the composition team behind the game delivered. You also get a taste of the Pac-Man leitmotif thrown in for good measure. It's all-around a groovy song.

v1388. Super Bomberman R (NS) - World 2: Planet Timbertree

Super Bomberman R has been getting a steady stream of updates since its initial release that SuperPhillip Central reviewed. This includes patches to improve game performance, AI changes, and many other issues that the original review of mine harped on. It makes for a game that is really well worth buying now. Something that didn't need changing was the awesome soundtrack, as you can hear with this second world theme in a forested world.

v1389. Super Double Dragon (SNES) - Mission 04 (Transport Truck)

We're going back to the 1990's with this Favorite VGM volume. It's for Mission 04 from Super Double Dragon, a synth delight to listen to with its great beat and melody that makes you want to bob your head along with. The mission mostly takes place on a moving transport truck where falling off is a considerable possibility. Hang tough, Billy and Jimmy!

v1390. Kirby & the Amazing Mirror (GBA) - Rainbow Route

Concluding this edition of the Favorite VGMs is the theme for the starting area in Kirby & the Amazing Mirror, Rainbow Route. It's a cheery and spirited tune perfect for beginning Kirby's adventure to collect all of the mirror shard pieces. Kirby & the Amazing Mirror had a sprawling overworld of interconnected areas, each housing a boss to take on to acquire a piece of the mirror shard. This nonlinear format remains exclusive to Amazing Mirror.

SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - Beat 'Em Up Edition

Welcome to a special Tuesday edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs. This week might have Halloween at the tail end of it, but SuperPhillip Central has a special beat-em-up edition in store for you guys and gals this week instead of a cliche "scary music" edition. Kicking (and punching... and throwing) things off is Streets of Rage 2, followed by Battletoads & Double Dragon. It's then morphin' time with Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie. Finally, we end this edition with Final Fight and Super Double Dragon.

If you want to catch up on past VGM volumes, check out the VGM Database.

v991. Streets of Rage 2 (GEN) - Go Straight

Yuzo Koshiro, a god among video game composers, created the music for Streets of Rage 2, a personal favorite of SuperPhillip Central for the Sega Genesis (or for our PAL pals, the Sega Mega Drive). Go Straight is the theme for the first level of Streets of Rage 2, a game considered the superior of the three Streets of Rage games.

v992. Battletoads & Double Dragon (SNES) - Stage 1

Before such historic crossovers like Mario and Sonic, there was Battletoads and Double Dragon with the rightly named Battletoads & Double Dragon on the Super Nintendo. An NES, Genesis, and Game Boy version would also be released, but since this theme comes from the SNES version, that's the only one being noted here.

v993. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie (SNES) - Shopping Center

This beat-em-up is a guilty pleasure of mine, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie for the Super Nintendo. What makes it part of a guilty pleasure was my devote following of the Power Rangers television series in the early '90s. What also makes it fun is the simple combat, ability to morph into a Power Ranger from teen form, and battling familiar enemies like Putties and Cannontop from the TV show.

v994. Final Fight (SNES) - Round 01 - Slum Alleyway Stage

We go with a song with a tribal rhythm with this pick from Capcom's Final Fight. The Super Nintendo version of Final Fight is based off the arcade game, which saw more than its fair share of ports across various systems.

v995. Super Double Dragon (SNES) - Mission 3 (China Town)

We conclude with my favorite of the Double Dragon series, Super Double Dragon. It's a fun game to pick up a knife and chuck it at your teammate, instantly killing him. Of course, it's much funnier if that teammate of yours is your older brother, who appears completely dumbstruck when this happens. Regardless, Super Double Dragon also contains a really well done soundtrack, full of catchy themes to kick Shadow Warrior butt.