Well, we’ve come through an entire week already. Almost one-fourth of the challenge is already done. Time sure does fly, doesn’t it?

Last time we listened to Pantheon of Soulless Machines, the theme of the Uyudallo-class battleship that serves as the final boss of Super Robot Wars OG: Dark Prison. And I made a bunch of admittedly lame naval references. Now, we take a listen to a song that plays at the start of a turn in this Strategy RPG series, a Map Theme.

Day 7: Map Theme – GONG Ver. Alpha 3 (Super Robot Wars Alpha 3)

Map themes in Super Robot Wars have less prominence than other SRPGs. At least, nowadays they do, considering the fact that the Battle themes continue playing over the Map themes once a battle is initiated. The first two entries in the series, however did not have this feature. And there’s also the option to turn of continuous battle music. But I digress.

So…my entry this time around isn’t a Map theme in the way that I just described it, but it plays over the map, so I’m counting it. The main theme of the final game in the Alpha series, Alpha 3, is JAM Project’s GONG. And not only is it out of this world, but it’s also one of their most popular hits. And the Ver. Alpha 3 rendition of GONG is an instrumental mix used in the final stage of that game.

The Alpha Numbers, your team in that game, have their backs against the wall against the Spirit Emperor. Possessing the power of Infinite Negativity, he desires to destroy the material universe and create a world composed of only spiritual beings. Sapped of their will to fight, it looks like everything might be over…

But then the many comrades that the Alpha Numbers made over their journeys together arrive on the battlefield. Though they cannot directly aid in the fight, they rally the Alpha Numbers to triumph over their enemy. Then the voices of friends and even foes that passed away during the long conflict join in. The Alpha Numbers are bolstered by this, and the power of Infinite Negativity begins to wane.

It’s then that the instrumental version of GONG kicks in. And it keeps playing until you’ve brought down the Spirit Emperor once and for all. The finale of your journey to the end of the galaxy is in sight. Now’s the time to bring it all to a close. Yeah, it’s pretty darn cool, and I can’t wait until we see it all happen again in the climax of the OG series.

Incidentally, the plot has Basara Nekki from Macross 7 playing GONG Ver. Alpha 3 as a means of further weakening the Spirit Emperor. And when the songs starts up, other musicians such as GaoGaiGar’s Mic Sounders the 13th, Gundam SEED’s Lacus Clyne and the original Macross’ Lynn Minmay join in. Excellent fan service as always.

And with that, we’ve come to the end of the entry. In the next one, we’ll be looking at an song that plays when a cutscene or any similar event occurs during gameplay. See ya!