History AwesomeMusic / FinalFantasyXIIITrilogy

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag-cRmiMWkk "Fighting Fate"]], this Boss Battle theme in particular. Fits very nicely when fighting [[spoiler:Galenth Dysley/Barthandelus]]. The non-battle version of this theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1AjTdQ2OeY "Ragnarok"]], which plays when [[spoiler: the party is turned into l'Cie by Anima]], is very haunting.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXr-J-Pv154 "Born Anew"]] is incredible. Nothing matches the adrenaline rush you get from 0:15-0:33 especially, which plays as [[spoiler:Orphan rises out of its pool to battle you]]. The buildup on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaUdbEgP1A "Nascent Requiem"]] was quite exhilarating, and somehow the playful theme seems to be mocking the players - yet beneath the surface is the sense that Lightning and her friends can already see the dawn of a new future beyond this last battle.

* The beautiful [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLbqxudWLEs "Atonement"]] plays when Hope [[spoiler: reconciles with Snow]], and later on, when Snow [[spoiler: reaffirms his commitment to save Cocoon]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh8XagPnkdA "This is Your Home"]] plays when [[spoiler: Bartholomew tells Hope that l'Cie be damned, Hope is his son...and that their home will always be a sanctuary for him, no matter what]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei5IDNc_s9I "Dust to Dust"]] plays when you explore [[spoiler:Vanille and Fang's hometown, Oerba, and find that everyone there is either dead or has been turned into a Cie'th]]. As if to emphasize the sorrow, [[BackgroundMusicOverride it plays during battles instead of the regular theme, too]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3hN_8RW9So "Will to Fight"]] is a perfect piece to play in [[spoiler:Palumpolum after Hope realizes just how feared he is as an l'Cie]]. It truly evokes the emotions of how painful it must be for him to be looked on as a monster by his neighbours.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aOrhl1O1nU "The Archylte Steppe"]] welcome players with another use of the game's leitmotif. Not only is it quite peaceful, but it conveys quite well the feeling that you are exploring a new, open-ended area, [[spoiler:on top of being a new WORLD]], filled with its own active fauna.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4FBCwoS8WI final boss]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO8DzhYNFYI themes]] against [[spoiler: Bhunivelze]], which is one of the greatest battles in the ''FF'' series overall and accompanies one of the most epic endings to a video game, as Lightning has to fight against [[spoiler: the ruler of the ''FFXIII'' universe in a battle for the souls of all humanity]]. That choir will have you mesmerized.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BvIaXdKL2U Epilogue]] theme [[spoiler:plays when Lightning steps off a train in France, presumably to find her friends, and [[WhenSheSmiles genuinely smiles for the first time.]]]] It's a gorgeous way to send off the series.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDK75Pq5tXs Battle Theme]], "Blinded By Light". With one of the most epic violins worth of note. The even more awesome "Long version" can be heard [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDhVrA2Rc8Q here]]. The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz_iOCT7Fjk arranged version from]] ''[[VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy Duodecim]]'' is 100% pure eargasm from start to finish.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TauG36TbeSc Kimi ga Iru Kara]], the JPop AwardBaitSong.

* The game's jazzy [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MZL2Mov4so Chocobo Theme]] is so... catchy... There's also the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG4U_axEqf0 other Chocobo Theme]], which has its own lyrics.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jra6E7BkrJU Lightning's Theme]] is calm yet beautiful. It's probably so awesome because it's a variation on Blinded By Light above. And [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFVlkKlGbCo how about the version from the game's Piano Collections?]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hLYu4lCC64 Snow's Theme]] is just plain badass... mostly due to the beat and the electric guitars.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdfTioOggbY Sazh's Theme]] is jazzy and improvisational. It works.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQN9Yx2txxU Hope's Theme]] is very melancholic. It also has an orchestrated version, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d0Ej2md62E Sustained by Hate]].
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdgF63xKTe0 Fang's Theme]] is filled to the brim with energy. Fittingly, it contains part of the battle theme.
** Finally, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cu3rJ8OFcc Vanille's Theme]] is done entirely on piano. It's a TearJerker in its own right.
%%* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD0HrrLQfhk Prelude]] (a departure from the standard ''Final Fantasy'' prelude) and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1MSUAfI3b4 Cavalry Theme]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLbULEiuFgo Saber's Edge]], especially once the brass section kicks in. Oddly for a battle theme, it's in waltz time. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74qesh3bTSA The version]] from ''Dissidia'', as well. It starts off the same as the original... then the drum beat kicks in and it gets ''intense''.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bF0ibg01rxw Can't Catch a Break]], a catchy jazz theme.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bzxejm082M Eden Under Siege]] goes well with the chaos raging in the game's penultimate act.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N82QgF0EibM PSICOM]], a short, militaristic fanfare that never tires you out while fighting the [[HumongousMecha Proudclad]].
%%* The aptly-named [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx2IC7_csRU Cavalry Theme]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag-cRmiMWkk Fighting Fate]], this Boss Battle theme in particular. Fits very nicely when fighting [[spoiler: Galenth Dysley/Barthandelus]]. The non-battle version of this theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1AjTdQ2OeY Ragnarok]], which plays when [[spoiler: the party is turned into l'Cie by Anima]], is very haunting.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXr-J-Pv154 Born Anew]] is incredible. Nothing matches the adrenaline rush you get from 0:15-0:33 especially, which plays as [[spoiler: Orphan rises out of its pool to battle you.]] The buildup on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaUdbEgP1A Nascent Requiem]] was quite exhilarating, and somehow the playful theme seems to be mocking the players - yet beneath the surface is the sense that Lightning and her friends can already see the dawn of a new future beyond this last battle.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37a7sSxiNi0 The Vestige]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjrWjptj9Xc Gapra Whitewood]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kkz6JwE3xE The Sunleth Waterscape]]. Take the game's leitmotif, speed it up to a bubblegum pop rhythm, and throw in upbeat lyrics. This is what you'll get.
* The beautiful [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLbqxudWLEs Atonement]] plays when Hope [[spoiler: reconciles with Snow]], and later on, when Snow [[spoiler: reaffirms his commitment to save Cocoon]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh8XagPnkdA This is Your Home]] plays when [[spoiler: Bartholomew tells Hope that l'Cie be damned, Hope is his son...and that their home will always be a sanctuary for him, no matter what]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cKEhcwGP20 Eidolons]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH38J0pAahY Test of the l'Cie]], play during the battles with the Eidolons, depending on which one you're facing.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei5IDNc_s9I Dust to Dust]] plays when you explore [[spoiler: Vanille and Fang's hometown, Oerba, and find that everyone there is either dead or has been turned into a Cie'th]]. As if to emphasize the sorrow, [[BackgroundMusicOverride it plays during battles instead of the regular theme, too]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3hN_8RW9So Will to Fight]] was a perfect piece to play in [[spoiler: Palumpolum after Hope realizes just how feared he is as an l'Cie]]. It truly evokes the emotions of how painful it must be for him to be looked on as a monster by his neighbours.

* This list ain't complete without [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xMJ5Uj_i7E Desperate Struggle]]. Only plays during a handful of boss battles, but they're also some of the most intense battles in the game. Thus it doesn't matter when [[ThatOneBoss Cid Raines]] kicks your ass for the 100th time, because it just means you get to listen to this badass music even ''more''.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aOrhl1O1nU The Archylte Steppe]] welcome players with another use of the game's leitmotif. Not only is it quite peaceful, but it conveys quite well the feeling that you are exploring a new, open-ended area, [[spoiler:on top of being a new WORLD]], filled with its own active fauna.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLyGnxAzdQU Lake Bresha]] just oozes 'beginning of an adventure'. It's also damn catchy.

%%* Speaking of Academia 400 AF, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nm9VacI-oG0 Condition Omega]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKBld76VVqk "Unseen Intruder"]] and the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuRYlUekfO4 Instrumental]]. The [[RandomEncounters Aggressive]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_do2g1ufqg version]] is generally more well-liked due to the faster pace.

* You may have a hard time pressing the Start button at the main menu since it means cutting [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RThxLTzqvdA the menu theme]] short. The vocal version also doubles as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0_7lVVvedU Serah's Theme]], which somehow manages to be even more heartwarming than her theme in the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII previous game]].
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooxgyqC5Nmg Etro's Champion]], the battle theme in the introduction.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7-RZidiiiI Divine Conflict]], the other intro battle theme.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSuue5q7o94 Warrior Goddess]], used in the introductory cutscene and while battling [[TragicMonster Gorgyra]].
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pZk0wDaNts The Last Hunter]], the main battle theme.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_SqHBW13ZI Eternal Fight]].
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8vXYBEvSow Caius's Theme]].
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2q0b5xV8OA Paradigm Shift]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b53UYNX0-fw Worlds Collide]] gets your blood boiling while fighting Paradox Alpha.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEUOOgNzOv4 Crazy Chocobo]] is either awesome or SoBadItsGood. It's unmitigated cheese, nonetheless.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3aB92PW9Qw "Eclipse"]] and its [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcP6tTTcD1w aggressive mix]] definitely qualify as some of the most atmospheric and haunting music in the game.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFROwjCtcdQ "New Bodhum" and the aggressive mix]] is very reminiscent of [[Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex "Inner Universe"]]. No surprise on that one, considering the singer is Origa, who also did some of the more memorable vocal tracks in GITS: SAC.

%%* While we're on the subject of metal music, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uncwKFZflS0 Limit Break]] certainly qualifies.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPOrkLoNs6g Chaotic Guardian/Followers of Chaos]], a remix of Caius's Theme and something that you'd probably expect to hear in a Triple-A big-budget epic movie. It's also the best thing by far about [[ScrappyLevel Academia 400AF]], almost making [[ZergRush the waves of endless Cie'th]] an enjoyable experience to wade through.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcLetgnrcIo Noel's Theme]] is hauntingly beautiful.
%%* Ditto to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9prDR5gLek Yeul's Theme]], which has lyrics.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKBld76VVqk Unseen Intruder]] and the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuRYlUekfO4 Instrumental]]. The [[RandomEncounters Aggressive]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_do2g1ufqg version]] is generally more well-liked due to the faster pace.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3aB92PW9Qw Eclipse]] and its [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcP6tTTcD1w aggressive mix]] definitely qualify as some of the most atmospheric and haunting music in the game.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFROwjCtcdQ New Bodhum and the Aggressive mix]] is very reminiscent of [[Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex Inner Universe]]. No surprise on that one, considering the singer is Origa, who also did some of the more memorable vocal tracks in GITS: SAC.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPDN7-qpHPw The City of Academia]] gives a perfect feeling of "welcome to the future: it is awesome."
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTWPdcXm0Iw Chaotic Labyrinth]], which plays in Academia 500AF, really provides an 'end of days' feeling.
* The final battle sequence has [[RuleOfThree THREE]] back-to-back-to-back battle themes of awesome: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9pzcp6GiYs Time's Master]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvGnmt70kms Heart of Chaos]], and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKmZ7Uw76qI Unseen Abyss]].
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG8SmT_dY6k Yakusoku no Bashou]], the Japanese ending theme, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1vd0z3SLYo New World]], the English ending theme.

%%* The updated Oerba theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEEcKCh-Yx4 Ruined Hometown]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiHWnQ4k21U Eternal Plains]], the peppy J-Pop theme of the sunny Archylte Steppe.
%%* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK4r89wN0gU Clash on the Big Bridge]], the fight theme for Gilgamesh.

* You may have a hard time pressing the Start button at the main menu since it means cutting [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RThxLTzqvdA the menu theme]] short. The vocal version also doubles as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0_7lVVvedU Serah's Theme]], which somehow manages to be [[UpToEleven even more heartwarming]] than her theme in the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII previous game]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQdKkvERi6c Death Game]] is most certainly one of the most [[NeoclassicalPunkZydecoRockabilly unique blends of musical genres in the game.]] Also comes in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATO7fUmFY2U synthesizer version!]]

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG8SmT_dY6k Yakusoku no Bashou]], the Japanese ending theme, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1vd0z3SLYo New World]], the English ending theme.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMm7Oeb1_64 Historia Crux]] theme. Bet you didn't know it was over four minutes long, eh?

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VoVj_CnfL4 Yakusoku no Bashou]], the Japanese ending theme, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1vd0z3SLYo New World]], the English ending theme.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXr-J-Pv154 Born Anew]] is incredible. Nothing matches the adrenaline rush you get from 0:15-0:33 especially, which plays as [[spoiler: Orphan rises out of its pool to battle you.]] The buildup on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaUdbEgP1A Nascent Requiem]] was quite exhilarating, and somehow the playful theme seems to be mocking the players - yet beneath the surface is the sense that Lightning and her friends can finally see the dawn of a new future beyond this last battle.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXr-J-Pv154 Born Anew]] is incredible. Nothing matches the adrenaline rush you get from 0:15-0:33 especially, which plays as [[spoiler: Orphan rises out of its pool to battle you.]] The buildup on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaUdbEgP1A Nascent Requiem]] was quite exhilarating, and somehow the playful theme seems to be mocking the players.

* "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZXQmWkgAFA My Hands]]", the song "set to defile the English version" ,is quite moving and very fitting, especially when it played in the game's international trailer.

* Some of the first tracks released for the game: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfsJmgb0nAs "Defiers of Fate"]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smrC4NgbtHM "The Promise".]]
* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVoSrOPM2qI title screen music]] is just so beautiful.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TauG36TbeSc Kimi ga Iru Kara]], the JPop AwardBaitSong.
* "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZXQmWkgAFA My Hands]]", the song "set to defile the English version" is quite moving and very fitting, especially when it played in the game's international trailer.
* Here is the game's jazzy [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MZL2Mov4so Chocobo Theme]]. It's so... catchy... There's also the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG4U_axEqf0 other Chocobo Theme]], which has its own lyrics.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD0HrrLQfhk Prelude]] (a departure from the standard ''Final Fantasy'' prelude) and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1MSUAfI3b4 Cavalry Theme]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bF0ibg01rxw Can't Catch a Break]], a catchy jazz theme.

* The aptly-named [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx2IC7_csRU Cavalry Theme]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag-cRmiMWkk Fighting Fate]], this Boss Battle theme in particular. Fits very nicely when fighting [[spoiler: Galenth Dysley/Barthandelus]]. The non-battle version of this theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1AjTdQ2OeY Ragnarok]], which plays when [[spoiler: the party is turned into l'Cie by Anima]], is also good, as well as very haunting.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXr-J-Pv154 Born Anew]] is incredible as well. Nothing matches the adrenaline rush you get from 0:15-0:33 especially, which plays as [[spoiler: Orphan rises out of its pool to battle you.]] The buildup on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaUdbEgP1A Nascent Requiem]] was quite exhilarating, and somehow the playful theme seems to be mocking the players.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37a7sSxiNi0 The Vestige]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjrWjptj9Xc Gapra Whitewood]].
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kkz6JwE3xE The Sunleth Waterscape]]. Take the game's leitmotif tune, speed it up to a bubblegum pop rhythm, and throw in upbeat lyrics. This is what you'll get.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLbqxudWLEs Atonement]] is a beautiful track that plays when Hope [[spoiler: reconciles with Snow]], and later on, when Snow [[spoiler: reaffirms his commitment to save Cocoon]]. Other great tracks include [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh8XagPnkdA This is Your Home]], which plays when [[spoiler: Bartholomew tells Hope that l'Cie be damned, Hope is his son...and that their home will always be a sanctuary for him, no matter what.]]
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cKEhcwGP20 Eidolons]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH38J0pAahY Test of the l'Cie]], which play during the battles with the Eidolons, depending on which one you're facing, make this list easily.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei5IDNc_s9I Dust to Dust]], the track that plays when you explore [[spoiler: Vanille and Fang's hometown, Oerba, and find that everyone there is either dead or has been turned into a Cie'th]]. As if to emphasize the sorrow, [[BackgroundMusicOverride it plays during battles instead of the regular theme, too]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooxgyqC5Nmg Etro's Champion]], the battle theme in the introduction.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7-RZidiiiI Divine Conflict]], the other intro battle theme.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSuue5q7o94 Warrior Goddess]], used in the introductory cutscene and while battling [[TragicMonster Gorgyra]].

%%Weblinks are not examples. Why are the above tracks awesome?

%%WHY does it "certainly qualify"?

* Speaking of Academia 400 AF, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nm9VacI-oG0 Condition Omega]].

* Ditto to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9prDR5gLek Yeul's Theme]], which has lyrics.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EqhAsRJdJw unnamed theme]] of the Coliseum.

* The updated Oerba theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEEcKCh-Yx4 Ruined Hometown]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK4r89wN0gU Clash on the Big Bridge]], the fight theme for Gilgamesh.

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BvIaXdKL2U Epilogue]] theme[[spoiler: plays when Lightning steps off a train in France, presumably to find her friends, and [[WhenSheSmiles genuinely smiles for the first time.]]]] It's a gorgeous way to send off the series.

* Another one is the acoustic guitar rendition of "New Bodhum" from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2'' in Luxerion, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIvv2_Ui4GU "A Place to Call Home",]] and the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vki0hsQII1I "Traveler's Ballad"]] piece.
* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvF-E7hVGAc piano version of Serah's theme]] that is sung by Olga in Yusnaan after completing her sidequest.

%%What about it? Weblinks are not examples.
* The ending theme of the game [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sztAGFXDDIQ Humanity's Tale]]. Words really can't describe how incredible this track is.