blueshinra
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Welcome to CAG's general deals thread for video game soundtracks. The reason for this thread's existence are: 1) VGM collecting can be very expensive, since most physical soundtracks come in the form of Japanese imports, and 2) good deals can be had if one looks hard enough.
Shops listings include basic info, pros and cons, and currently ongoing deals (if any). Major deals will be listed in the updates toward the top of this post. Unless otherwise noted, all prices are in US dollars or Japanese yen. I'll do my best to keep this updated on a regular basis, and hope that my fellow CAGs can help out
Thread Updates:
04/28/16: I've gone ahead and reformatted the thread, as I'd thought about doing late last year. The biggest change is that specific deals and sales are now noted in the section below called "Major New Sales/Deals". Shop listings will still include links to sale/clearance sections, but not individual albums. I might still tweak the formatting here and there. Anyway, please let me know what you think.
Other changes for this update: iam8bit and Laced Records have been added to the Official Shops, and some other shops have had their permanent sale/deal sections added (Amazon.co.jp, CDJapan, DeepDiscount, Blizzard Gear, etc.).
Major New Sales/Deals (last updated 04/28/16):
- The Square Enix Online Store is having a big spring sale until May 8th, which includes a handful of CDs at 20% off.
- CDJapan is offering 10% extra points on all released CDs until May 5th.
Albums of the Update:
- The Clock Tower series got a 4-CD 20th anniversary sound collection late last year, in both standard and limited editions.
- For their own 20th anniversary, the original Pokemon Red and Green finally have a Super Music Collection.
- Continuing on this theme, a "Tales of..." series orchestral album came out last month for its 20th.
- As is typical for Blizzard collector's editions, the one for Overwatch will include an OST.
- Joining Capcom's other "Sound Box" releases is one for the Mega Man Battle Network series. This set is out on June 15th.
- Currently playing while I work on this update: the PixelJunk Eden OST (via Steam).
Old updates:
Glossary:
VGM - Video Game Music.
OST - Original Sound Track. A variation is OSV, which is short for "Original Sound Version".
Arrange album - Game music albums that are not OSTs, but rerecordings or remixes of game music. Square Enix's "Piano Collections" albums and live concert recordings fit in this category.
First Press - Refers to an edition of a soundtrack (or a bonus that comes with it) that is only available with the first print run. Many such soundtracks have the same MSRP as "normal" editions.
Doujin - A Japanese term for independantly made and produced media items, including games (and those games' soundtracks) and fan works such as game remix albums.
Obi - The cardstock piece that wraps around the spine of most Japanese CDs. Used CDs that are missing the obi (if there was one originally) will usually be cheaper, but are not considered "complete". Often machine-translated as "band".
SAL - Surface Air Lift. Economy airmail, with no tracking or insurance (though some shops offer "Registered SAL", which includes tracking and limited insurance). Usually the cheapest international shipping available from Japan; can take anywhere from ten days to six weeks.
EMS - Express Mail Service. What it says. The fastest and priciest international postal shipping from Japan, it usually takes between 3-5 days. Always includes tracking and insurance. Highly recommended for large and/or expensive orders.
Proxy service - A type of shopping service international buyers use to get items that are only sold locally. There are also forwarding services in which an international buyer places the order themselves and has it shipped to a local address, from which it's forwarded to said buyer.
How to Find Game Music on Japanese-Language Sites (when you don't know Japanese):
Copy and paste either the title (in kanji) or the catalog number of an album into the search bar, either at the specific site you're searching, or through Google. VGMdb is a good reference for both types of information.
Free and Bonus Game OSTs:
Unfortunately, the lists for these soundtracks have been lost during the transition to CAG 3.0, and I foolishly did not think to save them beforehand. Therefore, I have begun recompiling both lists here from memory, plus there are some new listings as well. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Legally Free Game Soundtracks
Bonus Soundtrack Included Updated!
Online Shops (General)
All shops/services listed in alphabetical order.
Amazon.co.jp Updated!
Formats: CD, MP3
Conditions: new, used (from Marketplace sellers)
+ Some of THE best Japanese game OST prices online and Japanese retail prices on everything else, unbeatable selection, fast international shipping, payment in US dollars is accepted for in-stock items, excellent customer service.
- Only offers expensive express shipping for international orders (for CDs to North America, it's 900 yen per shipment and 300 yen per item), separate and more expensive shipping rates for Fulfilled by Amazon items, limited English-language navigation options, separate Amazon.co.jp account is usually required (unlike with other international Amazon sites), many Marketplace and Fulfilled by Amazon items can't be shipped internationally.
Important note: All prices include 8% domestic sales tax. If you're having your stuff shipped outside of Japan, this tax will be automatically subtracted from your order upon checkout.
Additional info: Amazon.co.jp has a full help section in English. Also, to order Marketplace/Fulfillment items that can't be shipped overseas, or just to lessen the cost of shipping, a proxy or forwarding service is recommended. CAG favorite dv8CAG specializes in Amazon.co.jp forwarding.
Amazon.co.jp's game music CD section and Amazon.co.jp's game music MP3 section (Japanese, limited English)
- Some game music CD subsections, for slightly easier browsing:
Ongoing deals:
- Game music - up to 25% off
- Game music - 25-50% off
- Game music - 50-70% off
- Game music - 70% off or more
Amazon.com
Formats: CD, MP3
Conditions: new, used (from Marketplace sellers)
+ Great selection of domestically-released OSTs, track samples available, excellent customer service, multiple Cheapy Award winner.
- Import OST prices tend to be stupidly high, chance of bootlegs for imports.
Amazon.com's animation and game soundtrack section and Amazon search for "game soundtrack"
Ongoing deals: Some game soundtracks are free to stream if you have Amazon Prime. Other than that, can't find any; if you do, let me know!
AmiAmi Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Japanese retail prices, frequent shopper points, multiple orders can be combined, multiple shipping options, good customer service.
- Rarely any VGM deals (amazing prices for figures, though!), domestic sales tax is included, high shipping estimates, strict cancellation policy.
AmiAmi's game CD section
Ongoing deals:
- All sale CDs
Bandcamp
Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Conditions: new
+ Proceeds from all sales go directly to the artists, many albums are "name your price", easy to browse, sample tracks available.
- None that I know of.
Additional info: VGM albums can be found under the tags game music, game soundtrack, and video game soundtrack. Alternately, there's this Google search.
Some game OSTs/publishers on Bandcamp: A handful of notable artists and albums.
Ongoing deals: None that I know of.
CDJapan Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Good selection, Japanese retail prices (with small discounts on many items), regular sales, frequent shopper points and coupons, multiple shipping options, good customer service.
- Rarer OSTs can be hard to come by, game OSTs in particular hardly ever go on sale (and the most they seem to ever be discounted is 5% off of retail), shipping estimates can sometimes be too high.
CDJapan's game music section
Ongoing deals:
- Offers and special campaigns for the whole site
DeepDiscount.com (suggested by JamesInDigital) Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
I've never bought anything from here, so no review for right now. If anybody wants to contribute one, that'd be great
DeepDiscount.com search for "Game Music" (note: this is pretty much all imports. For domestic releases, search under "Soundtrack" or for the specific title/composer/publisher)
Ongoing deals: They offer free shipping on orders over $25 (with some restrictions).
- All music deals and sales
iTunes
Formats: MP3, AAC
Conditions: n/a
+ Cheaper than physical disks, includes some OSTs that would be hard or impossible to find in disk form to begin with.
- Limited selection, no sales (that I know of), albums are sometimes removed from the store without warning.
Additional info: For game music, search under "Soundtracks" in the iTunes Store; this is one of those places where it really helps if you are looking for something specific.
Some game OSTs/publishers on iTunes: A list of publishers and individual albums to keep an eye out for.
Mandarake Updated!
Formats: CD, sometimes other formats depending on stock
Conditions: used, new (though it's rare)
+ Decent-to-great prices; carries obscure, rare, and doujin CDs.
- Limited English-language browsing options, some parts of the site are NSFW.
Mandarake's CD section
Ongoing deals: The 500 yen handling fee for orders under 5,000 yen has been eliminated, from what I've heard. Other than that, nope.
National Console Support (aka NCSX) (suggested by Traitorious)
Formats: CD, vinyl
Conditions: new
+ Has a great reputation among import gamers.
- Generally high prices, limited selection.
NCSX's music CDs section
Ongoing deals: None that I can see.
Otaku.com
Formats: CD
Conditions: used, new
+ Wide-ranging selection (just about all of it in-stock), carries doujin CDs, some rare items, great customer service.
- Some prices tend to be on the high side, high flat-rate shipping sent via Registered SAL (though this is negotiable for large orders), site not well designed for casual browsing.
Otaku's game music section and Otaku's Final Fantasy CD section
Ongoing deals:
- Sale section for the whole site
Play-Asia Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Good selection, regular sales, multiple shipping options, generally decent prices, coupons, good customer service, multiple Cheapy Award winner.
- Rarer OSTs can be hard to come by, better prices can usually be found elsewhere, no longer offers free shipping, is apparently run by edgelord trolls.
Play-Asia's Video Game Soundtracks section
Ongoing deals: The old sale section is now gone. They still have auctions, as well as some sales, which are announced here. Also, there doesn't seem to be a thread here anymore for Play-Asia coupons. If I've somehow overlooked it, please let me know!
Rakuten Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: mostly used, some new
+ Large and diverse selection; carries obscure, rare, and doujin CDs; points system.
- Most sellers only ship via EMS, product descriptions are machine translated.
Rakuten's game music CD section
Ongoing deals:
- Special offers page for the whole site
Steam
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Good prices, amazing sales, good site navigation, the Steam browser has a built-in music player.
- Soundtracks are treated like DLC and require the base game, no dedicated section in the store for soundtracks.
Steam search for "soundtrack" and Steam search for "soundtrack dlc"
Ongoing deals: Sales change on a daily basis, and may or may not include soundtrack DLC. There are two large annual sales to keep an eye out for-- a summer sale and a holiday sale-- as well as your typical Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale. Check out the current Steam/PC Gaming Deals Thread for up-to-date info.
YesAsia Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Wide-ranging selection, free international economy shipping for many items.
- Items aren't necessarily guaranteed to come in stock.
YesAsia's Japanese game music section
Ongoing deals: In addition to free shipping, many items come with a free Japanese capsule toy.
- All Japanese soundtrack deals
Online Shops (Official)
Blizzard Gear (formerly the Blizzard online shop) Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Exclusive items.
- Very limited selection.
Blizzard Gear search for "music"
Ongoing deals:
- Vault (all clearance items)
Game Music Bundle
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Set your own price, supports game music composers.
- Limited and fluctuating selection.
Game Music Bundle
Ongoing deals: Unfortunately, new bundles go up rarely. I highly recommend subscribing to their mailing list to get the latest info. Click on the button that says "+ Follow Game Music Bundle" to do so.
Humble Bundle
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Set your own price, supports indie developers and/or charities.
- Limited and fluctuating selection, not all bundles include soundtracks.
Humble Bundle
Ongoing deals: Check out the Humble Megathread for the most up-to-date info.
iam8bit NEW!
Formats: vinyl
Conditions: new
+ Exclusive collector's edition vinyl soundtracks, if you're into that. Also, some albums come with digital copies.
- (never ordered from there, so let me know if you have any thoughts!)
iam8bit - Vinyl
Ongoing deals: Nope.
Laced Records NEW!
Formats: CD, vinyl, digital
Conditions: new
+ Multiple formats.
- Very limited selection.
Laced Records Store
Ongoing deals: Nope.
Rockstar
Formats: CD, vinyl, MP3
Conditions: new
+ Good site navigation, good prices
- Very limited selection, no exclusives (as far as music goes).
Rockstar Warehouse's CD/Vinyl section
Rockstar Warehouse's Downloadable Music section (DRM: iTunes US/Europe)
Ongoing deals: None that I know of.
Square Enix (Online Store suggested by Kirin Lemon, Distant Worlds suggested by Nogib) Updated!
Formats: CD (Square Enix Online Store), MP3 (Distant Worlds)
Conditions: new
+ All-around great prices for import Square Enix OSTs, free shipping at $100 (within the continental US).
- Limited selection, no non-Square Enix-published Square Enix game music (such as anything Dragon Quest), the Online Store is run by Digital River.
Square Enix Online Store's music CD section
Distant Worlds official store
Ongoing deals: At the Square Enix store, there's a "sale" tab at the top of the page which sometimes has deals.
Sumthing Digital (suggested by eastx) Updated!
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Digital downloads of Sumthing Else releases, with samples, all in one handy location. If you aren't familiar with them, Sumthing Else publishes a lot of Western game music, and also domestic versions of some Japanese soundtracks (mostly Capcom ones).
- None that I can see, other than the shop being download-only (for CD releases, check Amazon.com).
Sumthing Digital's game soundtracks section
Ongoing deals: Occasionally offers coupon codes, which usually show up in new posts in this thread. There's also the "Promotions and Discounts" section of Sumthing's blog, though it hasn't been updated in awhile.
Video Games Live
Don't know much about this place, so no plusses or minuses for now. They used to have a small selection of Video Games Live and Tommy Tallarico albums, but right now, all it looks like they carry is t-shirts and other merchandise.
Video Games Live's online shop (new link)
Ongoing deals: The whole store seems pretty much dead. If this continues, I'll remove it.
Auction Sites
eBay
Formats: CD, vinyl (though it's rare)
Conditions: used, new
+ Some tasty rarities pop up here from time to time.
- Tons of BOOTLEGS, limited selection of legit OSTs, rare CDs tend to be cheaper on Japanese secondhand sites, the usual eBay crapola.
Additional info: I don't think I need to tell you all how to get to eBay
Legit Sellers: Otaku.com and NCSX (listed above) are both known eBay sellers; here are some others:
- champ des pins - recommended by SleazyC (for rarities [including doujin CDs], good customer service)
Yahoo! Japan Auctions (suggested by Bloomy)
Formats: CD, vinyl (though it's rare)
Conditions: used, new
+ The Japanese equivalent of eBay, wide-ranging selection, rarities, less of a risk of bootlegs than on eBay.
- Entire site in Japanese, you will probably have to go through (and pay for) a proxy service to get what you want (Bloomy recommends Celga; I like From Japan).
Yahoo! Japan Auctions (Japanese)
Additional Info: Dealing with Yahoo Japan auctions
( GameMusic.com R.I.P. (
( VGM World (vgmworld.com) R.I.P. (Additional contributors/thanks: SleazyC, K_G, helmet, ZerotypeX, metaly, 11440, MSUHitman, neocisco, TheLongshot, louiedog
Shops listings include basic info, pros and cons, and currently ongoing deals (if any). Major deals will be listed in the updates toward the top of this post. Unless otherwise noted, all prices are in US dollars or Japanese yen. I'll do my best to keep this updated on a regular basis, and hope that my fellow CAGs can help out
Thread Updates:
04/28/16: I've gone ahead and reformatted the thread, as I'd thought about doing late last year. The biggest change is that specific deals and sales are now noted in the section below called "Major New Sales/Deals". Shop listings will still include links to sale/clearance sections, but not individual albums. I might still tweak the formatting here and there. Anyway, please let me know what you think.
Other changes for this update: iam8bit and Laced Records have been added to the Official Shops, and some other shops have had their permanent sale/deal sections added (Amazon.co.jp, CDJapan, DeepDiscount, Blizzard Gear, etc.).
Major New Sales/Deals (last updated 04/28/16):
- The Square Enix Online Store is having a big spring sale until May 8th, which includes a handful of CDs at 20% off.
- CDJapan is offering 10% extra points on all released CDs until May 5th.
Albums of the Update:
- The Clock Tower series got a 4-CD 20th anniversary sound collection late last year, in both standard and limited editions.
- For their own 20th anniversary, the original Pokemon Red and Green finally have a Super Music Collection.
- Continuing on this theme, a "Tales of..." series orchestral album came out last month for its 20th.
- As is typical for Blizzard collector's editions, the one for Overwatch will include an OST.
- Joining Capcom's other "Sound Box" releases is one for the Mega Man Battle Network series. This set is out on June 15th.
- Currently playing while I work on this update: the PixelJunk Eden OST (via Steam).
Old updates:
01/24/15: Big updates to Amazon.co.jp, Amazon.com, DeepDiscount.com, and Play-Asia today. Of particular note is the addition of a listing of albums that are free to stream if you have Amazon Prime; see the Amazon.com deals section for those. There's some smaller updates here and there, plus some updated links.
By the way, the dollar-to-yen exchange rate continues to be really, really good, so if you're considering importing, now's a great time to do it!
Albums of the Update:
- According to some shop listings, Nobuo Uematsu has a new release out on March 4th. Thing is, it doesn't have a title yet, and not much is known about it in general.
- Also coming out that day is the Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance Original Soundtrack. This year marks the game's tenth anniversary, so better late than never for the full OST to come out, I guess. By the way, Radiant Dawn's OST goes on sale the same day.
- The third "Distant Worlds" Final Fantasy orchestral album came out just a few days ago. This is the Japanese release; no word yet on a US version.
- Ace Attorney is seeing yet another release: Gyakuten Saiban Meets Again: Orchestra & Jazz. This is a standard release compilation of the (hard-to-find) orchestra and jazz arrange albums, for a budget price.
- Hotline Miami 2 is getting a pricy collector's edition vinyl soundtrack. No word on a release date, AFAIK, but this might already be the best-looking game OST of the year.
By the way, the dollar-to-yen exchange rate continues to be really, really good, so if you're considering importing, now's a great time to do it!
Albums of the Update:
- According to some shop listings, Nobuo Uematsu has a new release out on March 4th. Thing is, it doesn't have a title yet, and not much is known about it in general.
- Also coming out that day is the Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance Original Soundtrack. This year marks the game's tenth anniversary, so better late than never for the full OST to come out, I guess. By the way, Radiant Dawn's OST goes on sale the same day.
- The third "Distant Worlds" Final Fantasy orchestral album came out just a few days ago. This is the Japanese release; no word yet on a US version.
- Ace Attorney is seeing yet another release: Gyakuten Saiban Meets Again: Orchestra & Jazz. This is a standard release compilation of the (hard-to-find) orchestra and jazz arrange albums, for a budget price.
- Hotline Miami 2 is getting a pricy collector's edition vinyl soundtrack. No word on a release date, AFAIK, but this might already be the best-looking game OST of the year.
Glossary:
VGM - Video Game Music.
OST - Original Sound Track. A variation is OSV, which is short for "Original Sound Version".
Arrange album - Game music albums that are not OSTs, but rerecordings or remixes of game music. Square Enix's "Piano Collections" albums and live concert recordings fit in this category.
First Press - Refers to an edition of a soundtrack (or a bonus that comes with it) that is only available with the first print run. Many such soundtracks have the same MSRP as "normal" editions.
Doujin - A Japanese term for independantly made and produced media items, including games (and those games' soundtracks) and fan works such as game remix albums.
Obi - The cardstock piece that wraps around the spine of most Japanese CDs. Used CDs that are missing the obi (if there was one originally) will usually be cheaper, but are not considered "complete". Often machine-translated as "band".
SAL - Surface Air Lift. Economy airmail, with no tracking or insurance (though some shops offer "Registered SAL", which includes tracking and limited insurance). Usually the cheapest international shipping available from Japan; can take anywhere from ten days to six weeks.
EMS - Express Mail Service. What it says. The fastest and priciest international postal shipping from Japan, it usually takes between 3-5 days. Always includes tracking and insurance. Highly recommended for large and/or expensive orders.
Proxy service - A type of shopping service international buyers use to get items that are only sold locally. There are also forwarding services in which an international buyer places the order themselves and has it shipped to a local address, from which it's forwarded to said buyer.
How to Find Game Music on Japanese-Language Sites (when you don't know Japanese):
Copy and paste either the title (in kanji) or the catalog number of an album into the search bar, either at the specific site you're searching, or through Google. VGMdb is a good reference for both types of information.
Free and Bonus Game OSTs:
Unfortunately, the lists for these soundtracks have been lost during the transition to CAG 3.0, and I foolishly did not think to save them beforehand. Therefore, I have begun recompiling both lists here from memory, plus there are some new listings as well. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Legally Free Game Soundtracks
Official
(N64) Banjo-Kazooie download (Bandcamp)
(N64) Banjo-Tooie download (Bandcamp)
God of War: Ascension - download (PSN)
(N64) Perfect Dark download (Bandcamp)
Portal 2 - download
Torchlight II - download
World of Goo - download
Fan Remixes
- OverClocked Remix is the gold standard in this department.
- Game music/hip hop mashups by 2 Mello at Bandcamp.
Remember Me Remix: the results of a competition held by Capcom - download
- Spectrum of Mana: a Secret of Mana tribute album - download
(N64) Banjo-Kazooie download (Bandcamp)
(N64) Banjo-Tooie download (Bandcamp)
God of War: Ascension - download (PSN)(N64) Perfect Dark download (Bandcamp)
Portal 2 - download Torchlight II - download World of Goo - downloadFan Remixes
- OverClocked Remix is the gold standard in this department.
- Game music/hip hop mashups by 2 Mello at Bandcamp.
Remember Me Remix: the results of a competition held by Capcom - download- Spectrum of Mana: a Secret of Mana tribute album - download
Bonus Soundtrack Included Updated!
Collector's/Limited Editions
Alan Wake
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Bravely Default
Bravely Second: End Layer
Catherine
Corpse Party
Dark Souls II
Diablo II
Diablo III
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls
Disgaea D2
Final Fantasy X|X-2 Remaster
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Final Fantasy XV
Grand Kingdom
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
Overwatch
Persona 4: Dancing All Night
Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness
Soul Calibur V
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm
StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void
Street Fighter IV
Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collector's Set
Super Mario All-Stars
Tales of Symphonia Chronicles
Tales of Vesperia
Tales of Xillia
The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky
World of WarCraft: The Burning Crusade
World of WarCraft: Wrath of the Lich King
World of WarCraft: Cataclysm
World of WarCraft: Mists of Pandaria
World of WarCraft: Warlords of Draenor
Ys: Memories of Celceta
Ys: The Oath in Felghana
Ys I & II Chronicles
Ys Seven
First-Press Editions
The Dark Spire
Etrian Odyssey IV
Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millenium Girl
The Legend of Legacy
Luminous Arc 2
Phantom Brave
Project X Zone
Radiant Historia
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
Shin Megami Tensei IV
Solatorobo: Red the Hunter
Stella Glow
Standard Editions
Audiosurf (includes The Orange Box Original Soundtrack)
(Dreamcast) Grandia II
Kirby's Dream Collection
Alan Wake Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Bravely Default Bravely Second: End Layer Catherine Corpse Party Dark Souls II Diablo II Diablo III Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Disgaea D2 Final Fantasy X|X-2 Remaster Final Fantasy XIII-2 Final Fantasy XV Grand Kingdom Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Overwatch Persona 4: Dancing All Night Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness Soul Calibur V StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void Street Fighter IV Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collector's Set Super Mario All-Stars Tales of Symphonia Chronicles Tales of Vesperia Tales of Xillia The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky World of WarCraft: The Burning Crusade World of WarCraft: Wrath of the Lich King World of WarCraft: Cataclysm World of WarCraft: Mists of Pandaria World of WarCraft: Warlords of Draenor Ys: Memories of Celceta Ys: The Oath in Felghana Ys I & II Chronicles Ys SevenFirst-Press Editions
The Dark Spire Etrian Odyssey IV Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millenium Girl The Legend of Legacy Luminous Arc 2 Phantom Brave Project X Zone Radiant Historia Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2 Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Shin Megami Tensei IV Solatorobo: Red the Hunter Stella GlowStandard Editions
Audiosurf (includes The Orange Box Original Soundtrack)(Dreamcast) Grandia II
Kirby's Dream CollectionOnline Shops (General)
All shops/services listed in alphabetical order.
Amazon.co.jp Updated!
Formats: CD, MP3
Conditions: new, used (from Marketplace sellers)
+ Some of THE best Japanese game OST prices online and Japanese retail prices on everything else, unbeatable selection, fast international shipping, payment in US dollars is accepted for in-stock items, excellent customer service.
- Only offers expensive express shipping for international orders (for CDs to North America, it's 900 yen per shipment and 300 yen per item), separate and more expensive shipping rates for Fulfilled by Amazon items, limited English-language navigation options, separate Amazon.co.jp account is usually required (unlike with other international Amazon sites), many Marketplace and Fulfilled by Amazon items can't be shipped internationally.
Important note: All prices include 8% domestic sales tax. If you're having your stuff shipped outside of Japan, this tax will be automatically subtracted from your order upon checkout.
Additional info: Amazon.co.jp has a full help section in English. Also, to order Marketplace/Fulfillment items that can't be shipped overseas, or just to lessen the cost of shipping, a proxy or forwarding service is recommended. CAG favorite dv8CAG specializes in Amazon.co.jp forwarding.
Amazon.co.jp's game music CD section and Amazon.co.jp's game music MP3 section (Japanese, limited English)
- Some game music CD subsections, for slightly easier browsing:
- Game music - up to 25% off
- Game music - 25-50% off
- Game music - 50-70% off
- Game music - 70% off or more
Amazon.com
Formats: CD, MP3
Conditions: new, used (from Marketplace sellers)
+ Great selection of domestically-released OSTs, track samples available, excellent customer service, multiple Cheapy Award winner.
- Import OST prices tend to be stupidly high, chance of bootlegs for imports.
Amazon.com's animation and game soundtrack section and Amazon search for "game soundtrack"
Ongoing deals: Some game soundtracks are free to stream if you have Amazon Prime. Other than that, can't find any; if you do, let me know!
AmiAmi Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Japanese retail prices, frequent shopper points, multiple orders can be combined, multiple shipping options, good customer service.
- Rarely any VGM deals (amazing prices for figures, though!), domestic sales tax is included, high shipping estimates, strict cancellation policy.
AmiAmi's game CD section
Ongoing deals:
- All sale CDs
Bandcamp
Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Conditions: new
+ Proceeds from all sales go directly to the artists, many albums are "name your price", easy to browse, sample tracks available.
- None that I know of.
Additional info: VGM albums can be found under the tags game music, game soundtrack, and video game soundtrack. Alternately, there's this Google search.
Some game OSTs/publishers on Bandcamp: A handful of notable artists and albums.
- Analogue: A Hate Story OST
- Danny Baranowsky - composer for Super Meat Boy, Canabalt, and others
- Bits of Music from The Stanley Parable
- Dear Esther
- Disasterpiece - composer for Fez, Shoot Many Robots, and others
- Double Fine Productions
- Howard Drossin - composer for Splatterhouse
- Dungeon Defenders: OST
- Frog Fractions
- Jake Kaufman - composer for Shantae: Risky's Revenge, Mighty Switch Force, and others
- Jamestown Soundtrack
- Machinarium Soundtrack
- Minecraft - Volume Alpha
- Offspring Fling
- OneUp Studios - fan albums by The OneUps, Dale North, Mustin, and others.
- Plants vs. Zombies Soundtrack
- Puzzlejuice Soundtrack
- Shatter Official Videogame Soundtrack
- SonicPicnic - composer for Awesomenauts, Toki Tori 2, and Rocket Riot 3D
- Eirik Suhrke - composer for Spelunky, Ridiculous Fishing, and others
- Terraria Soundtrack
- Danny Baranowsky - composer for Super Meat Boy, Canabalt, and others
- Bits of Music from The Stanley Parable
- Dear Esther
- Disasterpiece - composer for Fez, Shoot Many Robots, and others
- Double Fine Productions
- Howard Drossin - composer for Splatterhouse
- Dungeon Defenders: OST
- Frog Fractions
- Jake Kaufman - composer for Shantae: Risky's Revenge, Mighty Switch Force, and others
- Jamestown Soundtrack
- Machinarium Soundtrack
- Minecraft - Volume Alpha
- Offspring Fling
- OneUp Studios - fan albums by The OneUps, Dale North, Mustin, and others.
- Plants vs. Zombies Soundtrack
- Puzzlejuice Soundtrack
- Shatter Official Videogame Soundtrack
- SonicPicnic - composer for Awesomenauts, Toki Tori 2, and Rocket Riot 3D
- Eirik Suhrke - composer for Spelunky, Ridiculous Fishing, and others
- Terraria Soundtrack
CDJapan Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Good selection, Japanese retail prices (with small discounts on many items), regular sales, frequent shopper points and coupons, multiple shipping options, good customer service.
- Rarer OSTs can be hard to come by, game OSTs in particular hardly ever go on sale (and the most they seem to ever be discounted is 5% off of retail), shipping estimates can sometimes be too high.
CDJapan's game music section
Ongoing deals:
- Offers and special campaigns for the whole site
DeepDiscount.com (suggested by JamesInDigital) Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
I've never bought anything from here, so no review for right now. If anybody wants to contribute one, that'd be great
DeepDiscount.com search for "Game Music" (note: this is pretty much all imports. For domestic releases, search under "Soundtrack" or for the specific title/composer/publisher)
Ongoing deals: They offer free shipping on orders over $25 (with some restrictions).
- All music deals and sales
iTunes
Formats: MP3, AAC
Conditions: n/a
+ Cheaper than physical disks, includes some OSTs that would be hard or impossible to find in disk form to begin with.
- Limited selection, no sales (that I know of), albums are sometimes removed from the store without warning.
Additional info: For game music, search under "Soundtracks" in the iTunes Store; this is one of those places where it really helps if you are looking for something specific.
Some game OSTs/publishers on iTunes: A list of publishers and individual albums to keep an eye out for.
- Basiscape (Hitoshi Sakimoto's music production company: Muramasa, Odin Sphere, Opoona, etc.)
- Blizzard Entertainment (search by composer or title)
- Electronic Arts (search for "EA Games Soundtrack" or by composer or title)
- Falcom (Ys, Legend of Heroes, etc. publisher/developer)
- Game Freak (Pokemon series developer)
- Konami (search for "Konami Kukeiha Club")
- Namco Bandai (search for "Namco Sounds". Culdcept Saga OSTs can be found through separate searches)
- Rockstar Games (search by composer or title)
- Sega
- Sony (search by composer or title)
- Square Enix (search for "Square Enix Music", or by composer or title)
- Sumthing Else/Sumthing Digital (search by composer or title)
- Taito (search for "ZUNTATA")
- Ubisoft (search by composer or title)
- Video Games Live (search for "Video Games Live")
- Bemani (DDR, beatmania, etc.) soundtracks/artist albums by the boatload; here's a comprehensive list
- Epic Mickey (Original Game Score), James Dooley
- GAME: Game & Anime Music Emotions, Piano Squall
- many other fan albums, including ones by Metroid Metal, Sideview, Dale North, the OneUps, etc.
- The Orange Box (Original Soundtrack), Various Artists
- Play for Japan: The Album - proceeds go to the Japanese Red Cross; more info
- The Int'l Versions of Recettear Original Sound Tracks and Chantelise Original Sound Tracks, Easy Game Station
- Silent Hill soundtracks and other works by Akira Yamaoka
- Turrican (Original Video Game Soundtrack) and many others by Chris Huelsbeck
- Zeno Clash OST - Patrick Meneses
- Blizzard Entertainment (search by composer or title)
- Electronic Arts (search for "EA Games Soundtrack" or by composer or title)
- Falcom (Ys, Legend of Heroes, etc. publisher/developer)
- Game Freak (Pokemon series developer)
- Konami (search for "Konami Kukeiha Club")
- Namco Bandai (search for "Namco Sounds". Culdcept Saga OSTs can be found through separate searches)
- Rockstar Games (search by composer or title)
- Sega
- Sony (search by composer or title)
- Square Enix (search for "Square Enix Music", or by composer or title)
- Sumthing Else/Sumthing Digital (search by composer or title)
- Taito (search for "ZUNTATA")
- Ubisoft (search by composer or title)
- Video Games Live (search for "Video Games Live")
- Bemani (DDR, beatmania, etc.) soundtracks/artist albums by the boatload; here's a comprehensive list
- Epic Mickey (Original Game Score), James Dooley
- GAME: Game & Anime Music Emotions, Piano Squall
- many other fan albums, including ones by Metroid Metal, Sideview, Dale North, the OneUps, etc.
- The Orange Box (Original Soundtrack), Various Artists
- Play for Japan: The Album - proceeds go to the Japanese Red Cross; more info
- The Int'l Versions of Recettear Original Sound Tracks and Chantelise Original Sound Tracks, Easy Game Station
- Silent Hill soundtracks and other works by Akira Yamaoka
- Turrican (Original Video Game Soundtrack) and many others by Chris Huelsbeck
- Zeno Clash OST - Patrick Meneses
Mandarake Updated!
Formats: CD, sometimes other formats depending on stock
Conditions: used, new (though it's rare)
+ Decent-to-great prices; carries obscure, rare, and doujin CDs.
- Limited English-language browsing options, some parts of the site are NSFW.
Mandarake's CD section
Ongoing deals: The 500 yen handling fee for orders under 5,000 yen has been eliminated, from what I've heard. Other than that, nope.
National Console Support (aka NCSX) (suggested by Traitorious)
Formats: CD, vinyl
Conditions: new
+ Has a great reputation among import gamers.
- Generally high prices, limited selection.
NCSX's music CDs section
Ongoing deals: None that I can see.
Otaku.com
Formats: CD
Conditions: used, new
+ Wide-ranging selection (just about all of it in-stock), carries doujin CDs, some rare items, great customer service.
- Some prices tend to be on the high side, high flat-rate shipping sent via Registered SAL (though this is negotiable for large orders), site not well designed for casual browsing.
Otaku's game music section and Otaku's Final Fantasy CD section
Ongoing deals:
- Sale section for the whole site
Play-Asia Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Good selection, regular sales, multiple shipping options, generally decent prices, coupons, good customer service, multiple Cheapy Award winner.
- Rarer OSTs can be hard to come by, better prices can usually be found elsewhere, no longer offers free shipping, is apparently run by edgelord trolls.
Play-Asia's Video Game Soundtracks section
Ongoing deals: The old sale section is now gone. They still have auctions, as well as some sales, which are announced here. Also, there doesn't seem to be a thread here anymore for Play-Asia coupons. If I've somehow overlooked it, please let me know!
Rakuten Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: mostly used, some new
+ Large and diverse selection; carries obscure, rare, and doujin CDs; points system.
- Most sellers only ship via EMS, product descriptions are machine translated.
Rakuten's game music CD section
Ongoing deals:
- Special offers page for the whole site
Steam
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Good prices, amazing sales, good site navigation, the Steam browser has a built-in music player.
- Soundtracks are treated like DLC and require the base game, no dedicated section in the store for soundtracks.
Steam search for "soundtrack" and Steam search for "soundtrack dlc"
Ongoing deals: Sales change on a daily basis, and may or may not include soundtrack DLC. There are two large annual sales to keep an eye out for-- a summer sale and a holiday sale-- as well as your typical Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale. Check out the current Steam/PC Gaming Deals Thread for up-to-date info.
YesAsia Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Wide-ranging selection, free international economy shipping for many items.
- Items aren't necessarily guaranteed to come in stock.
YesAsia's Japanese game music section
Ongoing deals: In addition to free shipping, many items come with a free Japanese capsule toy.
- All Japanese soundtrack deals
Online Shops (Official)
Blizzard Gear (formerly the Blizzard online shop) Updated!
Formats: CD
Conditions: new
+ Exclusive items.
- Very limited selection.
Blizzard Gear search for "music"
Ongoing deals:
- Vault (all clearance items)
Game Music Bundle
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Set your own price, supports game music composers.
- Limited and fluctuating selection.
Game Music Bundle
Ongoing deals: Unfortunately, new bundles go up rarely. I highly recommend subscribing to their mailing list to get the latest info. Click on the button that says "+ Follow Game Music Bundle" to do so.
Humble Bundle
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Set your own price, supports indie developers and/or charities.
- Limited and fluctuating selection, not all bundles include soundtracks.
Humble Bundle
Ongoing deals: Check out the Humble Megathread for the most up-to-date info.
iam8bit NEW!
Formats: vinyl
Conditions: new
+ Exclusive collector's edition vinyl soundtracks, if you're into that. Also, some albums come with digital copies.
- (never ordered from there, so let me know if you have any thoughts!)
iam8bit - Vinyl
Ongoing deals: Nope.
Laced Records NEW!
Formats: CD, vinyl, digital
Conditions: new
+ Multiple formats.
- Very limited selection.
Laced Records Store
Ongoing deals: Nope.
Rockstar
Formats: CD, vinyl, MP3
Conditions: new
+ Good site navigation, good prices
- Very limited selection, no exclusives (as far as music goes).
Rockstar Warehouse's CD/Vinyl section
Rockstar Warehouse's Downloadable Music section (DRM: iTunes US/Europe)
Ongoing deals: None that I know of.
Square Enix (Online Store suggested by Kirin Lemon, Distant Worlds suggested by Nogib) Updated!
Formats: CD (Square Enix Online Store), MP3 (Distant Worlds)
Conditions: new
+ All-around great prices for import Square Enix OSTs, free shipping at $100 (within the continental US).
- Limited selection, no non-Square Enix-published Square Enix game music (such as anything Dragon Quest), the Online Store is run by Digital River.
Square Enix Online Store's music CD section
Distant Worlds official store
Ongoing deals: At the Square Enix store, there's a "sale" tab at the top of the page which sometimes has deals.
Sumthing Digital (suggested by eastx) Updated!
Formats: MP3
Conditions: n/a
+ Digital downloads of Sumthing Else releases, with samples, all in one handy location. If you aren't familiar with them, Sumthing Else publishes a lot of Western game music, and also domestic versions of some Japanese soundtracks (mostly Capcom ones).
- None that I can see, other than the shop being download-only (for CD releases, check Amazon.com).
Sumthing Digital's game soundtracks section
Ongoing deals: Occasionally offers coupon codes, which usually show up in new posts in this thread. There's also the "Promotions and Discounts" section of Sumthing's blog, though it hasn't been updated in awhile.
Video Games Live
Don't know much about this place, so no plusses or minuses for now. They used to have a small selection of Video Games Live and Tommy Tallarico albums, but right now, all it looks like they carry is t-shirts and other merchandise.
Video Games Live's online shop (new link)
Ongoing deals: The whole store seems pretty much dead. If this continues, I'll remove it.
Auction Sites
eBay
Formats: CD, vinyl (though it's rare)
Conditions: used, new
+ Some tasty rarities pop up here from time to time.
- Tons of BOOTLEGS, limited selection of legit OSTs, rare CDs tend to be cheaper on Japanese secondhand sites, the usual eBay crapola.
Additional info: I don't think I need to tell you all how to get to eBay
Legit Sellers: Otaku.com and NCSX (listed above) are both known eBay sellers; here are some others:
- champ des pins - recommended by SleazyC (for rarities [including doujin CDs], good customer service)
Yahoo! Japan Auctions (suggested by Bloomy)
Formats: CD, vinyl (though it's rare)
Conditions: used, new
+ The Japanese equivalent of eBay, wide-ranging selection, rarities, less of a risk of bootlegs than on eBay.
- Entire site in Japanese, you will probably have to go through (and pay for) a proxy service to get what you want (Bloomy recommends Celga; I like From Japan).
Yahoo! Japan Auctions (Japanese)
Additional Info: Dealing with Yahoo Japan auctions
( GameMusic.com R.I.P. (( VGM World (vgmworld.com) R.I.P. (
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