Great news, classic role-playing game fans! Starting today, Breath of Fire and game music aficionados in North America, Europe and Oceania alike can purchase and download the original soundtracks to the first three Breath of Fire games!

Breath of Fire I ~ III Original Soundtrack Collection, previously exclusive to Japan, can now be downloaded on the Capcom Store – altogether that’s a spicy 192 DRM-free MP3 tracks for just $14.99!

The first three BoF games were composed by the prolific Capcom Sound Team “Alph Lyla”, who also worked on a slew of other beloved Capcom games. You might recognize their aliases in the credits of some of your favorite retro titles:

Breath of Fire (SNES)

• Yasuaki “Bun Bun” Fujita (Mega Man 3, Final Fight 1 & 2 )
• Mari “Mari” Yamaguchi (Mega Man 5, Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts )
• Minae “Ojalin” Fujii (Mega Man 4, DuckTales 2 )
• Yoko “Piiâ’ª” Shimomura (Street Fighter II, Final Fight )
• Tatsuya “ANIE” Nishimura (Final Fight 2 )

Breath of Fire II (SNES)

• Yuko “YUKO.K” Takehara (Mega Man 6 & 7, Marvel vs. Capcom )

Breath of Fire III (PS1)

• Akari “Akari.K –Lemon” Kaida (Mega Man & Bass, Mega Man Battle Network )
• Yoshino Aoki (Mega Man Battle Network 2, 3 & 6 )

Leading up to Breath of Fire’s North American SNES debut in 1994, Capcom was already a champion of videogame music. At this point, the memorable tunes of  Mega Man  and  Street Fighter II were constantly inspiring countless fans. Since  Breath of Fire  was our company’s first 16-bit flagship RPG, it’s no wonder the composers wanted to go all-out with the score.

And boy, they sure did! Ever since my childhood days, the music to this series continues to fill me with a sense of awe and wonder.

Breath of Fire’s  music is largely classical and orchestral in nature. The main concept behind the music is “piano concerto,” in which a piano is accompanied by a whole orchestra. This is immediately evident with the first few tracks you’ll hear in the game, such as the dramatically moving “White Dragon” during the prologue and “Blood Relation”, which hits you with its wondrous Chopin-like arpeggios (a quick succession of notes going up and then back down) the moment you begin a new game. When the trumpets and strings of the world map theme “Starting the Journey” kicked in, I truly felt like I was in the boots, tunic and cape of Ryu, the game’s dragon-morphing hero.

The story in Breath of Fire II is darker than its predecessor, and the music reflects that in many moments. The title screen music “The Destined Child” will raise the hairs on the back of your neck with its ominous onset, and then instill you with a feeling of triumph with its rousing orchestral outro. Fans will appreciate the game’s battle music – themes like “Cross Counter” and “I’ll Do It!” could have easily found a place within any SNES  Mega Man X  title with their rock-solid (pun intended) guitar licks and fast-paced drumming.

Finally, the Breath of Fire III soundtrack took the idea of a classical JRPG soundtrack and turned that concept completely on its head, providing pop and jazz fusion that gelled perfectly with the game’s colorful sprites and 32-bit environments. Try putting on the battle theme “Do Your Best!” for a pick-me-up; the groovy bass and rock organ solo are sure to please. Or, if you need something more mellow, “Casually” is the perfect “chill” world map theme to kick up your feet and relax to.

Whether you’re in the mood for the orchestral and rockin’ flair of Breath of Fire and Breath of Fire II or the pop/jazz fusion of Breath of Fire III, there’s a little something for everyone to enjoy. But enough of my rambling; grab the soundtracks here and enjoy!

And just in case you’re in the mood to conquer evil, explore fantastical worlds filled with talking anthropomorphic animals and morph into powerful, fire-breathing dragons, Breath of Fire just landed on the New Nintendo 3DS eShop, and can also be purchased on Wii U alongside Breath of Fire II. Breath of Fire III, re-released earlier this year, can be purchased on PlayStation Store for PSP, PS Vita and PSTV.