Line #27 Music/MasayoshiSoken


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/soken.jpg]]
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3	Masayoshi Soken (born January 10, 1975) is a video game composer and sound editor at Creator/SquareEnix best known for his work on the ''VideoGame/FinalFantasy'' series, namely ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI''. Considered by some to be the spiritual successor of Music/NobuoUematsu, Soken joined Square in 2001 as a sound designer, working on games including ''VideoGame/Drakengard2'' and ''VideoGame/FrontMission5'' before making his major debut as a solo composer on ''VideoGame/MarioHoops3On3''. He would go on to work as a composer for ''VideoGame/DawnOfMana'' and ''VideoGame/NanashiNoGame'' before joining as a sound director and composer for the then-upcoming {{MMORPG}} ''Final Fantasy XIV''.
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5	Following the debacle of ''FFXIV'' 1.0, and the subsequent restructuring of the development team that saw Creator/NaokiYoshida become producer & director of the game, Soken was notable for being one of the very few members on the team who believed in Yoshida's then-considered ambitious and nigh-impossible task of rebuilding the game. Yoshida and Soken would very quickly form a working relationship on ''FFXIV'', with the duo regarding each other as close friends.
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7	As ''FFXIV'' was rebuilt, so too did Soken's work on the game. He would go on to work as the main composer and sound director for ''A Realm Reborn'' and all the subsequent expansions. During the development of the patch content for ''Shadowbringers'' and the then upcoming ''Endwalker'' expansion in 2020, Soken underwent chemotherapy for cancer that went into remission following treatment. That did not stop Soken from continuing with his work on ''FFXIV''. In June 2022, Soken was revealed as the composer of ''Final Fantasy XVI'', to the delight of many who were familiar with his work on ''FFXIV''.
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9	Soken also heads The Primals, a HeavyMetal rock band dedicated to remixes of several songs in ''FFXIV''.
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11	!! Video Game Music:
12	* ''Gekikuukan Pro Baseball: The End of the Century 1999'' (2000, along with Creator/KenjiIto)
13	* ''Nichibeikan Pro Baseball: Final League'' (2002)
14	* ''World Fantasista'' (2002, with Takeharu Ishimoto)
15	* ''VideoGame/MarioHoops3On3'' (2006)
16	* ''VideoGame/DawnOfMana'' (2006, with Kenji Ito, Tsuyoshi Sekito and Music/RyuichiSakamoto)
17	* ''Elebest'' (2007)
18	* ''VideoGame/NanashiNoGame'' (2008)
19	* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' (2010 to present)
20	** ''A Realm Reborn'' (2013)
21	** ''Heavensward'' (2015)
22	** ''Stormblood'' (2017)
23	** ''Shadowbringers'' (2019)
24	** ''Endwalker'' (2021)
25	* ''VideoGame/MarioSportsMix'' (2010, with Kumi Tanioka)
26	* ''VideoGame/IkenieNoYoru'' (2011, with Ai Yamashita)
27	* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'' (2023)
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29	!!Tropes present in his work include:
30	* {{Leitmotif}}: Much like Nobuo Uematsu, Soken heavily incorporates leitmotifs in his songs. Several songs in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' incorporate arrangements of the theme of the expansion pack it pertains to, whether be for a character, town, dungeon, or trial. For example, for Eden Shiva, Soken incorporates the theme of a previous Shiva fight, ''Oblivion'' as part of Eden Shiva's theme, ''Return to Oblivion''. Also of note is that Soken even used some leitmotifs from ''Final Fantasy XIV'' in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'' as well, such as [[spoiler:Omega and Leviathan]]'s leitmotifs from XIV being used in their respective battles for XVI.
31	* SignatureInstrument: Soken's Signature Instrument is a Fender Stratocaster, which is commonly used in several of his songs that are heavy on guitar. There is a strong chance that if you hear a guitar in one of his pieces, it is very likely him playing it. However, he is also known to play the piano and the Otamatone.
32	* TriumphantReprise: Most often so. Since ''Heavensward'', Soken incorporates the main theme of the expansion pack for ''FFXIV'' into the [[FinalBoss final trial]] of the base expansion. This can be seen with the fights against [[spoiler:King Thordan]], [[spoiler:Shinryu]], and [[spoiler:Hades]]. The main theme of the ''Endwalker'' expansion, meanwhile, calls back to each and every prior expansion's main theme, and the final battle against [[spoiler:the Endsinger]] likewise reprises each of their respective final boss themes.

Context Music / MasayoshiSoken