The 2021 Summer Olympics has an... interesting musical selection.

[ArugulaZ]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1418541520043483142

Tons and tons (and tons) of video game music will be played at the Olympics this year, including selections from Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy, and other RPG favorites. Yes, even that one tune that sounds like Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up.

 

[Violentvixen]

I'm sad the victory fanfare is in the march, because I would have preferred it be played at every medal ceremony.

 

[Zef]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1418546730719666180

 

[Zef]

"Hey, our original composer is a horrible bully. Who do we replace him with?"

"How about this racist, Nanking-denying, LGBT-phobe who spends the royalties he gets from every single DQ game sale on donations to homophobic causes?"

"Perfect."

 

[WisteriaHysteria]

Glaring absence of Nintendo songs in that track list.

 

[q 3]

Good for Nintendo tbh.

 

[Sarge]

Ready for some Olympic-themed rickrolling memes.

 

[Zef]

Ready for some Olympic-themed rickrolling memes.

You mean Robo's Theme

 

[WisteriaHysteria]

Good for Nintendo tbh.

Yeah, same. Still, it's pretty funny. Especially since there's no more iconic, recognizable game music than Nintendo stuff. Especially when Mario at the Olympics has been a thing for so long. This whole debacle of an event would be hilarious if it weren't imperiling thousands of lives.

 

[Violentvixen]

Yeah, same. Still, it's pretty funny. Especially since there's no more iconic, recognizable game music than Nintendo stuff. Especially when Mario at the Olympics has been a thing for so long. This whole debacle of an event would be hilarious if it weren't imperiling thousands of lives.

Didn't Mario jump out of a pipe at the end of Rio to announce this? Or did Nintendo pull out since then, I'm not up on this.

 

[WisteriaHysteria]

Yeah I remember that. And I don't know the details either, but I have to assume Nintendo pulled out. When these events are deeply unpopular at home, they've got a brand to protect.

 

[Ixo]

Didn't Mario jump out of a pipe at the end of Rio to announce this? Or did Nintendo pull out since then, I'm not up on this.

It was Prime Minister Abe dressed as Mario:

Which I'm not sure if it makes things better or worse.

 

[Zef]

Considering that the original composer was "canceled" just a few days ago, I'm pretty sure the TOC simply did a quick search for orchestral arrangements (and they definitely skewed heavily to their own Square CDs), contacted the rights owners, and went with those that gave a positive reply in time.

I don't think it's so much Nintendo staying out of it as it was Nintendo getting the email, and sending back too complicated a legal document for the TOC to deal with in one or two days.

 

[Kirin]

Considering that the original composer was "canceled" just a few days ago

Aw hell, I just looked this up and discovered that the person in question was Keigo Oyamada, aka Cornelius, and it apparently turns out he (bullying, ableism) straight-up physically and sexually tortured disabled kids when he was in school, and happily admitted it in print later when he was already a published musician, though he apparently feels bad about it now, several decades late. Ugh. That sure puts a bad taste on a dozen tracks in my music collection.

 

[ArugulaZ]

Something tells me I badly miscalculated when I started this post.