You\'re right, I should have read more carefully allof the posts-- Karyuu is recording live. Got it. (I still say get Sibelius if you can afford Finale because the learning curve is much gentler.) I was responding more than anything to Dalec\'s comment:
It [Finale] is perfect for theme music, especially games, since it plays back the music with each instrument sounding like they should...
I know I\'m going on and on, but...There are four different skills involved here: composition, notation (for printing), sequencing, and recording. Finale and Sibelius are tools for composition and notation. The other two skills require different software/hardware, a good bit of time, practice, and guidance to make something that sounds right.
I hear a variety in the quality of tracks playing in PS right now which has more to do with the quality of the sounds being used rather than the style of composition (though that is apparent, too). The title music uses low quality (i.e., low sampling rate) instruments, but the track works because the composition and sequencing are good. The temple music uses much higher quality instruments and so, even though the composition and sequencing is roughly the same quality as the other tracks, the pure sound is much more enjoyable to me.
The much-maligned cavern track is supposed to sound disjointed and disorienting. I think it works pretty well because the first time you\'re there, you are lost in a maze for a while. I think the track would work better if the cello sound were of higher quality.
Anyway, all the music on PS was produced on a computer and it sounds to me like very little if any of it was actually played in freely because of the metrical exactness. A track with some live music would really be cool, but it is not cheap (money or time) to pull off a good-sounding live recording.
Done.
Nick