General RPGs' AMVs 21

AMVs exist and you should watch them and to facilitate that I am sharing some with you right now.  Look, I’ve done 20 of these intros now, there’s no need to keep dressing this concept up.



DELTARUNE

Deltarune: Ad Infinitum, by The Stupendium
The music used is Ad Infinitum, by The Stupendium.  As was made abundantly clear last year, The Stupendium’s standards for production value of his videos are absolutely sky-high, and his gift for lyrics, both their creation and performance, is nigh unmatched.  This video’s another great example of this level of quality and talent as it aggressively, rapidly, darkly displays the memorable Spamton in all his sympathetic, disturbing, terrifying glory.


DISCO ELYSIUM

Disco Elysium: Detective.  Arriving.  On the Scene, by Oblivionblade
The music used is Intro, by Alt J.  Disco Elysium’s incomparable excellence is such that even though it’s a retro-style isometric game, there’s still a decent number of people who have made AMVs for it.  Music videos for video games whose visuals are not large, detailed, and animated within certain parameters (Playstation 1 era FMV or Playstation 2 era in-game graphics are generally the starting point) are a rarity, and yet, DE is simply too significant not to inspire creators.  And inspire it has, because this snapshot of the compelling power this game’s scenes and intensity hold is a genuinely excellent work of editing, melding the haunting hold the game has on its audience with the smooth power and flourish of the music to form a terrific trailer-style AMV here.

Disco Elysium: Good Life, by Yellow-Py
The music used is Good Life, by Shayfer James.  As with the Deltarune AMV above, this is an AMV whose visual component is fan-crafted rather than lifted directly from the game, although this time it’s a cartoon animatic.  And this fanart storyboard is darned well-made, an expressive, appealing take on the characters and setting of Disco Elysium that brings to visual life the exquisite personality and emotion seen only (albeit excellently) through narration in the game itself.  The music video merges its art with the beat and lyrics of the song to wonderfully portray the story of Disco Elysium, both its tangible events, and the annals of Harry’s mind, heart, and torment.  It’s great all around, and the fact that someone not only merged the visuals of Disco Elysium to the song so well, but actually created those visuals, is impressive.


FINAL FANTASY

Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Enemy, by RivAyshil
The music used is Enemies, by The Score.  This is one of those classic AMVs set to a piece of music that makes an argument for the need for a genre called Adolescent Edge.  But what of it?  It’s still a cool AMV that brings game and song together well and is fun to watch.  Ain’t nothing wrong with being a good, solid meat-and-potatoes music video!

Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Madness, by RivAyshil
The music used is Madness, by Ruelle.  I’ll admit that the Disco Elysium AMVs above hit me harder, but honestly, this video is kinda just flawless--it’s perfectly, minutely edited to merge music and visuals both naturally and with effects that enhance rather than distract from the experience, and both the song’s lyrics and tone just feel like the exact right thing to be playing to both this video and the game as a whole.  This is just as good as an AMV can get without getting an entire rant of its own.


FIRE EMBLEM

Fire Emblem 14: End of an Empire, by LaTeddyNecto
The music used is End of an Empire, by Celldweller.  LaTeddyNecto’s skill with Fire Emblem is no stranger to these rants, and while this isn’t the best of their works, it’s still worthy of notice and consideration.  Does this AMV go on too long?  Yes, after a certain point FE14 can’t sustain the duration of the song and its intensity.  But considering that this AMV is over 7 minutes long, the fact that the overall quality of it is really good, and that it can manage to stay at least decent to its end, is a laudable testament to its creator’s abilities for scene selection and editing.


MASS EFFECT

Mass Effect Series: 10 Duel Commandments, by Warped Meaning Productions
The music used is 10 Duel Commandments, from the soundtrack for Hamilton.  Look, Hamilton is obnoxious almost from start to finish and I’m not in the least bit afraid to say that a huge part of that is its garbage music, but...I must admit that this particular song is kinda fun, and uncharacteristically educational for its rather...skewed vision of the history the musical portrays.  And this AMV neatly takes advantage of the quirky appeal of the song, assembling the scenes and characters of Mass Effect to amusingly bring the song to visual life.  There’s not much to say here, really, this is just a very fun AMV.

Casting The Illusive Man as Aaron Burr is an atrocity, though.


THE OUTER WORLDS

The Outer Worlds: Payday, by Miracle of Sound
The music used is Payday, by Miracle of Sound.  As 1 of the only guys whose talents for original fan music (and AMVs to go with it) rival The Stupendium, Miracle of Sound has given us a good, solid view of the memorable setting and concepts of The Outer Worlds that deftly emphasizes his music’s tough, appealing tune and lyrics.  This is a type of music that Miracle of Sound excels at, and this one’s particularly in line with the soul of the work that inspired it, with some groovy retro background sci-fi sounds to coalesce with the color and artistry of The Outer Worlds, even while the music itself seems to feel aligned to the rustish frontier tint of the game’s visual depiction of its civilization and industry.  All this video has to do to be a damn fine AMV is to simply keep apace with its song, and it undeniably does so with great skill, bringing the grit and weary common man’s frustration of the music back to the game built upon it.