Interview conducted by Tokyo Pop.

Tokyo Pop ("TP"): How did you originally get into making music for videogames?
Nobuo Uematsu ("NU"): I started with a computer game for a friend's company. After finishing that, another friend that worked at Squaresoft introduced me to his company. So here I am.

TP: What were you doing before that?
NU: I worked for another company that did jingles for radio commercials. I also worked on music for two low-budget movies.

TP: What's the difference between making music for games and making music for commercials or films?
NNU: There's not so much difference but the music used for games has to be more melodic, because the visual elements of games are less expressive than those of films. If you listen to a movie score separate from the film, I think you'd usually find that it's not that interesting. With games, it doesn't necessarily have to be like that. Melody is very important for keeping momentum within the game.

TP: How long does it take to write and record a game's score?
NU: It takes about a year to do everything these days. We have to go through the entire game several times and make sure everything matches. Sometimes we need to make small adjustments later on.

TP: Where do you find inspiration when making this music?
NU: Most people can't go to an office everyday and sit down at their desk and make music as their job. But, in my case, I don't feel like this is work. So, I'm inspired by the fact that I can do this.

TP: In your 16 years of doing this, have you had any interesting or unusual experiences?
NU: I spent a year in Hawaii, which was really nice, to write the music for Final Fantasy IX. There was no stress there, so I could do a lot of work. In Tokyo, there's too much information everywhere. It's like I have antennae and I keep getting bombarded by information.

TP: Honestly now, are you any good and Final Fantasy VIII or IX?
NU: Yes, of course! I had to play through every section of the game to test it!

TP: Any tips?
NU: Chocobo should dig as much as possible.