Final Fantasy X's “Otherworld” Nears 9 Million Streams as Switch 2 Remaster Arrives July 23
Updated
Updated · Mashable · Jul 20
Final Fantasy X's “Otherworld” Nears 9 Million Streams as Switch 2 Remaster Arrives July 23
3 articles · Updated · Mashable · Jul 20
Summary
Nearly 25 years after Final Fantasy X launched in Japan on July 19, 2001, opening track “Otherworld” is still drawing listeners, with close to 9 million Spotify streams and 1.5 million YouTube views for its remastered opening.
Bill Muir, then a Tokyo-based hardcore singer, said the song began as a routine Square recording session after translator Alexander O. Smith connected him to the project; Muir rejected a request to rap and instead delivered the track’s signature screamed vocals.
That aggressive opening helped mark Final Fantasy X as a break from earlier series norms, pairing PS2-era technical advances with one of the franchise’s most eclectic soundtracks and themes of grief, trauma and loss.
Square Enix is using the 25th anniversary to release Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster on Nintendo Switch 2 on July 23; the two games have sold a combined 20 million copies worldwide.