Hello all! Welcome back to Play It By Ear, a column where in each instalment I discuss my thoughts on a different video game’s soundtrack.
Today’s game? Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling.
Release Date: November 1, 2019
Platforms: Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Amazon Luna
Developer: Moonsprout Games
Composer: Tristan Alric
Availability: YouTube, Apple Music, Spotify, Bandcamp
‘Essential’ Playlist Link (This playlist contains only my ‘Top Tracks’ and ‘Other Essential Tracks’)
Number of Songs: 84
Approximate Total Time: ~ 3 hours
Played the Game? Yes.
What Kind of Game Is This? Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling is a turn-based RPG originally created as an homage to the first two Paper Mario games, with 2D characters moving in 3D environments and similar battle and stat systems. Rather than simply being a one-to-one rip-off, however, the game takes those elements and refines them, creating something unique in the process. Taking place in Bugaria, a land of sentient insects that is implied to be a post-apocalyptic Earth like in the Pikmin games (given the large number of abandoned human objects throughout the game’s world), Bug Fables follows a newly formed trio of explorers sent on a quest by the Ant Queen to uncover three artifacts that will open the way to the immortality-granting Everlasting Sapling. Among them are Vi, a young, greedy, and hot-tempered bee who makes frequent use of her boomerang (*ahem* beemerang); Kabbu, a chilvarous and level-headed scarab beetle with great strength; and Leif, a mysterious and dry-humored moth who wields powerful ice magic. Over the course of the game, the trio learn new powers and abilities both inside and outside of battle that assist them on their journey.
Top Songs (in Track Order):
Bug Fables
A nicely chill and simple main theme, it nevertheless does a good job of setting the tone for the game.
FIGHT!
Like all good main battle themes, this one manages to be catchy without becoming annoying to listen to in battle after battle.
Snakemouth Den
A rather excellent theme for a first dungeon, this one has great mystery vibes without ever getting too ominous.
Ant Kingdom
A pleasantly upbeat central hub theme that feels very warm and welcoming. I especially love the mix of instruments used throughout the track.
Oh No! WASPS!!
The piano solo transitioning straight into electric guitar is just one highlight of this pretty fantastic mid-boss theme.
Work That Honey
The combination of electronic notes and a pretty strong beat really helps to enhance the industrial theme of this dungeon and makes this track stand out.
MECHA BEE DESTROYER BLASTLORD
I wasn’t expecting a full-on rock song in this game about cute bugs, but it’s fitting for this boss fight and definitely fun to listen to.
Cruel Beast, Devourer of Journeys
I’ve indicated before that I’m a sucker for good use of piano in video game music. Using piano as both the intro and base for this boss theme gives it a surprisingly peppy, encouraging feel before eventually making way for that cool guitar riff.
Termite Capitol
One of my favorite location themes in the game, this has just such a moody atmosphere that fits well with the capitol city of an isolationist and technologically advanced kingdom.
Mothiva’s Grand Stand
Piano, synth, and strings – the perfect combination for an arrogant and overconfident pop star.
Transcending, Overpowering, Everlasting
An excellent final boss theme. Rather than hit you hard out of the gate, it gradually builds up tension over the course of the first minute and a half before jumping into the most memorable and triumphant portion of the song. I really like how it incorporates elements of the intro theme, as it makes feel like it is more of your team’s battle theme rather than the final boss’s.
Other Essential Tracks: His Friends Call Him Spuder (Don’t Call Him Spuder); The One Left Behind (Leif’s Theme); In the Court of the Ant Queen; Golden Lands; Team, This One’s Stronger!; High Above, Bee Kingdom; Bianca, Queen of All Bees; Store That Honey; The Ones Who…; The Watcher; Team, It’s Getting Serious!; Lab Over Snakemouth; Battle Against Ultimax, Who Has a Tank; Credits
Overall Thoughts: When I first started my playthrough of Bug Fables, I didn’t really pay attention to the soundtrack. If you had asked me during the first couple of chapters, I would have told you that the music was fine but not particularly memorable. That is, until I found myself repeatedly humming several of the themes (particularly ‘Ant Kingdom’ and ‘Oh No! WASPS!’) while working around the house and realized that there was more going on with the OST than I was giving it credit for. From then on I made sure to listen more closely as I played, and I really started to become enamored with the game’s soundtrack. One of the most important types of tracks in RPGs, at least for me, is the boss or mid-boss battle theme, and Bug Fables has them in spades, from the rocking ‘MECHA BEE DESTROYER BLASTLORD’ to the groovy ‘Mothiva’s Last Stand’ and the hilariously named ‘Battle Against Ultimax, Who Has a Tank’. The location themes, while generally not as memorable for me as the battle themes, are overall quite solid, with a few real standouts like ‘Work That Honey’, ‘Termite Capitol’, and the aforementioned ‘Ant Kingdom’. All-in-all, it’s a charming and solid soundtrack that at times becomes something quite special. The game itself has shot up into my favorite games list, and while the soundtrack has not completely followed suit, I love it all the same.
And there we have it! Thanks so much for reading and listening to this soundtrack with me.