Overview
オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup- (also displayed as OPA! OPA! RACER -GMT mashup- in Asian English releases) is a high-energy mashup that fuses two iconic arcade game themes: the floating OPA-OPA ship theme from SEGA's Fantasy Zone and the title music from Bandai Namco's Ridge Racer. Arranged by COSIO, a veteran composer from TAITO's in-house sound team ZUNTATA, the track was created as the second entry in the Game Music Triangle (GMT) collaboration, a cross-company initiative between TAITO's Groove Coaster, SEGA's maimai, and Bandai Namco's Taiko no Tatsujin. All three rhythm games received the same arrangement of this mashup, making it one of the few songs to appear natively across three competing arcade ecosystems. The arrangement barrels forward at a relentless BPM 172, significantly faster than either source track, and transitions between the melodic phrases of both games without stopping for breath. COSIO deliberately left the original compositions largely untouched, instead forcing them onto the faster tempo with what he described as a "brute-force" mashup approach. The promotional video switches between Fantasy Zone and Ridge Racer imagery in sync with the music, visually reinforcing which source is dominant at any given moment.
Videos
Charts
Trivia
- オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup- was the second song released as part of the Game Music Triangle (GMT) collaboration, following the first wave of cross-company arrangements shared between Groove Coaster, maimai, and Taiko no Tatsujin.
- The GMT collaboration was themed around each company's vehicle-themed games: Fantasy Zone features the flying OPA-OPA ship, Ridge Racer is a racing game, and the other two GMT songs involved trains (電車で電車でOPA! OPA! OPA!) and another racing theme (リッジでリッジでGO! GO! GO!).
- COSIO has stated that he originally proposed the title リッジでリッジでOPA! OPA! OPA! (Ridge de Ridge de OPA! OPA! OPA!) as a playful combination of all three GMT song concepts, but the idea was vetoed. He recalls Hiroshi Kawaguchi himself pushing back, saying the early rough mix was too forceful even by mashup standards.
- The original compositions behind the mashup are by Shinji Hosoe (credited as Sampling Masters MEGA under BNGI) for Ridge Racer and Hiroshi Kawaguchi (SEGA) for Fantasy Zone's OPA-OPA theme. COSIO handled the arrangement.
- The Master chart has undergone extensive re-leveling across maimai versions: it started at Lv11 in GreeN PLUS, rose to Lv11+ in MURASAKi, Lv12 in MiLK PLUS, Lv12+ in DX PLUS, Lv13 in Splash, and finally Lv13+ (constant 13.7) from FESTIVAL PLUS onward.
- Similarly, the Advanced chart began at Lv6 and was raised to Lv7 starting with FESTIVAL, while the Expert chart started at Lv9 and was gradually elevated to Lv10+ (constant 10.6) in UNiVERSE PLUS.
- In maimai GreeN PLUS through ORANGE PLUS, the song was categorized under COLLABO. From PiNK onward it was classed as GAME & VARIETY, briefly became VARIETY in the first maimai DX, then returned to GAME & VARIETY from DX PLUS onward.
- The song has no lyrics, it is a purely instrumental mashup of two video game themes.
- The Expert chart was designed by Jack and the Master chart by チャン@DP皆伝. Basic and Advanced charts have no credited designer.
FAQ
- Who composed オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup-?
- The track is a mashup arrangement by COSIO (ZUNTATA/TAITO) of two pre-existing compositions: OPA-OPA from Fantasy Zone, composed by Hiroshi Kawaguchi (SEGA), and the Ridge Racer theme, composed by Shinji Hosoe (as Sampling Masters MEGA, credited under BNGI).
- What is the Game Music Triangle (GMT) collaboration?
- Game Music Triangle was a cross-company collaboration between TAITO's Groove Coaster, SEGA's maimai, and Bandai Namco's Taiko no Tatsujin. Each game received the same mashup arrangements. オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup- was the second song in this collaboration, themed around vehicle games from each company.
- Which maimai version added オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup-?
- The song was added to maimai GreeN PLUS on May 8, 2014, as part of the Game Music Triangle collaboration event.
- What is the BPM of オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup-?
- The song runs at BPM 172, which is notably faster than either of its source tracks (Fantasy Zone's OPA-OPA and Ridge Racer).
- Who charted the Expert and Master difficulties for オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup-?
- The Expert chart was designed by Jack and the Master chart was designed by チャン@DP皆伝.
- What is the current Master difficulty level of オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup-?
- The Master chart is currently rated Lv13+ with a difficulty constant of 13.7. It has been re-leveled multiple times since its original Lv11 rating in GreeN PLUS.
- Does オパ! オパ! RACER -GMT mashup- have any lyrics?
- No, the track is fully instrumental, it is a mashup of two arcade game themes with no vocal content.
- What video games are mashed up in this song?
- The song mashes together OPA-OPA from SEGA's Fantasy Zone (a 1986 side-scrolling shooter) and the title theme from Bandai Namco's Ridge Racer (a 1993 arcade racing game).
External Links
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