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Caves of Narshe Forums > 2017 Regalia Playlist Championship > Championship: #4 Liberi Fatali (FF8) v. #4 Balance is Restored (FF6)

Posted by: Rangers51 18th December 2017 19:40

This is it, fans, the title bout to determine the CoN community's favorite song from Final Fantasy (and a couple other games!). I don't know about you folks, but I certainly didn't predict this matchup. For the most part, Liberi Fatali ground out wins, beating songs by a couple votes most rounds. Any win counts, though, and a grinder is a tough out in any kind of tournament! Balance is Restored tended not to struggle quite as much to get through, but did have a tough out in the Final Four to get past Trisection.

Liberi Fatali's path went through Techno de Chocobo, J-E-N-O-V-A, Aerith's Theme, the FFX Ending Theme, and most recently Corridors of Time; Balance is Restored beat The Big Whale, Phantom Forest, Frog's Theme, Chrono Trigger, and Trisection.

While some websites saw jokes about Final Fantasy VIII go too far over the years, there's one thing that nobody can question about that game: Liberi Fatali is the best-known music that game has. It's got that chorus of voices chanting faux Latin (and then real Latin!), and the angry drums of war beneath soaring fanfare. This is a track made for Distant Worlds, where it's been in rotation for many years.

I don't think I'd ever heard the ending theme to Final Fantasy VI called by the name "Balance is Restored" until setting up this competition, but it makes total sense. This track is kind of a cheater's favorite, I think, since it mashes up so many wonderful themes into an overture. But, that doesn't take away from just how good it is, a song that is very much greater than the sum of its parts and composed perfectly to address the visuals it accompanies.

Posted by: Rangers51 18th December 2017 19:42

Visit here to view this matchup on the Regalia website or listen to these tracks.

Posted by: Glenn Magus Harvey 25th December 2017 02:59

Both strong tracks, but the FF6 ending theme is more effective at summarizing what we love about the series in a nutshell (albeit a 20-minute-long nutshell) -- a complex journey featuring the interwoven fates of a number of distinctive characters, who achieve greatness through their heroic deeds, striving against forces of evil, even sometimes at great personal cost and hardship.

Posted by: BlitzSage 25th December 2017 17:00

This matchup is a lot like Christmas presents. Do you want one really good present that does one thing really well, or do you want one really good present that does like twenty cool things? We're talking about sheer mathematics here!

Also, Merry Christmas

CoN Family

(CoN Christmas colors!)

Posted by: Perigryn 28th December 2017 08:11

Some good tracks, but coming this far, no contest. Balance is Restored is a clear winner in this case for the reasons GMH stated, in my opinion.
Also, it may be hitting a note because I just bit the game about a week and an half ago (for the first time ever).

Posted by: Rangers51 30th December 2017 22:56

I can't decide if I should be shocked by how much of a blowout this is, or not. I'm leaning toward not, which begs the question, is there a matchup that Balance is Restored could have had that would have been closer? I'm thinking if so, it would almost have to have been from FF6 or maybe CT.

Posted by: BlitzSage 31st December 2017 06:14

I'm surprised too, because Liberi is a great task. I think it's must be misfortune. I think that several tracks would've had a much better showing. I think Dancing Mad would've challenged it, and so would Aeris' theme (it's too bad those two challenged each other early, and they both got knocked off. Tracks like that would've had good showings just on name recognition alone.

As a side note, another track I would have loved to see compete is The Place I'll Return to Someday. Because that's my favorite FF track.