Final Fantasyhas long been a series known for its music. Both main series and spinoff games feature iconic tracks indelibly associated with the series' characters, battles, emotional moments, and more. These songs can be heard in arcades in Japan and elsewhere, as the series features several arcade-centric spinoffs including fighting gameDissidiaand rhythm titleTheatrhythm.However, as oneFinal Fantasyfan recently discovered, the music of the series may be making some unrelated arcade appearances as well.
The musical style ofFinal Fantasywas initially created by Nobuo Uematsu beginning with the series' very first title,Final Fantasy,in 1987. Since then, Uematsu’s signature style has led to the creation of many popular and memorable video game tracks often found gracing “Best Of” lists. In particular, the music ofFinal Fantasy 7is well-liked, featuring such songs as the romantic “Aerith’s Theme” and the ominous"One Winged Angel.“Of course,Final Fantasy 7also features tracks associated with the Chocobos, the adorable yellow birds who appear as mounts throughout the series.
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OneFinal Fantasyfan, who goes by u/AlexAustinRG on Reddit, was surprised to hearFinal Fantasy 7’sversion of theChocobo themeon a random, non-Final Fantasyrelated arcade machine in Ontario, Canada. The machine, called Dino Pop, involved throwing lightweight balls into the mouth of a moving plastic dinosaur. Although the ambient noise of the arcade and general low audio quality make it difficult to identify the exact track, fans have potentially identified it as “Electric de Chocobo,” an up-tempo variant on the classic song that plays when Chocobos are encountered in battle.
Chocobos first appeared inFinal Fantasy 2,and since then have made an appearance in every main seriesFinal Fantasygame and several spinoffs. They are large avian creatures, predominantly yellow but also found in a variety of colors. In mainline games, Chocobos are primarily used as mounts, allowing players to traverse terrain more quickly than they can on foot. The birds' popularity has led to them starring in multiple spinoff titles of their own, includingChocobo Racing, Chocobo’s Dungeon,andDice de Chocobo.The most recent spinoff title,Chocobo GP,debuted earlier in 2022 for the Nintendo Switch and received generally mixed reviews.
Fans interested in listening to a higher-quality version of “Electric de Chocobo” than the one found in the Ontario arcade can do so via the officialSquare Enix YouTube Music channel, which features thousands of songs from throughout theFinal Fantasyseries. The classic Chocobo tune also appears inFinal Fantasy 7 Remake,which released in 2020. In the remake, “Electric de Chocobo” is featured as a Music Disc collectible item.
Final Fantasy 7 Remakeis currently available for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
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