Post your favourite videogame music!

[Sirius 16]

Some time ago, I realized that videogames are a goldmine for music-lovers like me.

Share your all-time favourites here.

Perhaps the song has a sentimental value to you, or maybe you just think it's very good.

 

I'll go ahead and post a few of mine for starters:

 

This is a song from the submarine combat game "Critical Depth" from 1997.

It was made for Playstation by the same people who made Twisted Metal.

This game didn't catch on as well as the TM series, but it has a soundtrack that makes up to it by FAR!

 

 

 

Another favourite of mine.

Medievil, from 1998.

This game is Playstation's answer to Nintendo's Castlevania.

It features an AMAZING soundtrack, as well as the best graphics you'll ever see in a Playstation game.

Dark and gothic, but at the same time cartoonish and comical:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9SW_-gDENY&fmt=18

 

 

To another game with great music:

 

Heroes of might and magic 3, released in 1999.

This game was often cast aside by true RPG and strategy fans for being turn based.

It was one of the first PC-games I owned, and I loved every minute of it!

Even though I was really bad at it, I loved to stay in the towns listening to the background music that represented each of them.

It features highly detailed old-school graphics and very atmospherical music.

 

This is the theme for the Rampart town.

They are one of the good guys, which is reflected by the calm and soothing music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFs5nYHejDU&fmt=18

 

 

Here is the theme for the Inferno town.

These are one of the bad guys, as you can clearly hear with the threatning and dramatic music.

(Notice satan himself looking all grim in the background)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6LO1ZSzdmQ&feature=related&fmt=18

 

 

 

I hope you liked these, and I hope you share some of yours with me.

[nilihanth 0]

I've got the Hyrule Symphony's Ocarina of Time album. It is amazingly well-done. It's nice to hear the wonderful music of Zelda done by a real orchestra.

 

I liked the music to Metroid Corruption a lot.

 

Guild Wars - Specifically Factions and Eye of the North

 

Fallout 3

 

Morrowind

 

Killzone 3 - The music I've heard so far from the Beta is fantastic!

 

I know there's more but this is what I've come up with so far.

 

BTW I'm a huge Film score fan!

[Sirius 16]

I can agree with you on the Morrowind theme.

Haven't heard the music in Killzone 3 and the other ones though.

 

What are some of your favourite film scores then?

 

Mine must be:

 

A clockwork orange

Apocalypse Now

Blade Runner

Blue Velvet

Bronson

Conan the barbarian

Dario Agento's "Tenebre" and "Suspiria"

Das Boot

Dune

Lawrence of Arabia

The Clint Eastwood "Money"-trilogy

The Shining

.. and generally anything done by Vangelis.

 

 

The main theme from Das Boot, in case you haven't heard it yet:

 

[Aegis 256]

If you want to listen to game music, I highly recommend the Ar tonelico series, especially the hymmnos albums for all three games. Gust games in general tend to have some original music, and Ar tonelico, a game that revolves around music, is one of them.

 

I've provided a couple examples in the music thread, now I'll just post the intro themes:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FEVNP18oN4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPLY30q1-eg

 

Those three alone made me fall for the series' music.

[Sirius 16]

Very interesting, Aegis.

Truly special.

 

I thought I shoud post some with a more modern sound this time:

 

This is the Jack-2 theme from Tekken 2.

It's the arcade version. Jack-2 is a robot, and the music really reflects that with it's terminator like industrial theme.

Also, Jack was modeled after Schwarzenegger's T-800 character.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxjKR3Wax9I

 

Another theme from the Tekken series:

 

This is Bryan Fury's song from Tekken 3, his first appearance.

Bryan is a cyborg, and was modeled after Roy Batty from Bladerunner.

See the comparison:

 

 

Anyway, here's his theme.

The suspenseful song perfectly fits this cold, psychotic maniac.

He is my favourite character in the tekken series.

 

 

 

Over to another game.

Anyone remember these?

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECjDfQd8QVc

[nilihanth 0]

What are some of your favourite film scores then?

 

Mine must be:

 

A clockwork orange

Apocalypse Now

Blade Runner

Blue Velvet

Bronson

Conan the barbarian

Dario Agento's "Tenebre" and "Suspiria"

Das Boot

Dune

Lawrence of Arabia

The Clint Eastwood "Money"-trilogy

The Shining

.. and generally anything done by Vangelis.

Oh, don't do that to me! Too hard. I'll just name some of my favorite composers:

Danny Elfman

John Williams

Hans Zimmer

James Horner

James Newton Howard

 

Tim Burton's Batman and Edward Scissorhands themes are arguably Elfman's best works. I even argue with myself on that because it's too hard to choose. I have a man-crush on Mr. Elfman. Did you know he was the singing voice of Jack Skellington in Nightmare Before Christmas:) Awesome.

 

As far as the topic goes, Here is the Fallout 3 main theme

 

Here's what you hear when you start up the Beta of Killzone 3 and, I assume, the main screen when the game releases.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQhpn0MAnqI

[Sirius 16]

Pretty good contributions there, Nilihanth.

 

I have Fallout 3 for PS3, but I never got very far.

I tend to get really confused in open world RPG's, and end up walking in circles most of the time.

But the main theme is the best, no doubt about that.

The Killzone 3 theme was also nice.

 

I have some more for you:

 

 

I've never played Heroes of might and magic 2, but the music makes me wish that I had.

Here's the theme for "Snow":

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYotuxLcA5s&fmt=18

 

 

 

Another piece form the third game:

This is the theme for the Necropolis town.

It's a place of the undead and disease.

Listen how well the ghastly music depicts that image:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXGBh_3J25g&fmt=18

[nilihanth 0]

Sirius, that snow theme in HOMM2 was awesome and instantly reminded me of the music from Folklore. I played HOMM3 so I remember the Necropolis music among some of the other HOMM3 references in this post. That series indeed had good music!

 

Here's the Folklore main theme:

[Aegis 256]

Sirius: MGS and Tekken? I like your taste.

 

Since you brought up Tekken 2, here's some from the no longer in the hard to find Strike Arranges:

 

A Man of Artificiality (Jack 2)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O1E6SDudeA

 

Emotionless Passion (Kazuya Mishima)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h179A8QKdFI

 

The Head Shaker (Yoshimitsu)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkyBOamApWk

 

Black Winter Nights Sky (Tekken 2 intro)

 

And since MGS was mentioned:

 

MGS Theme: MGS3 version

 

Showtime! (...with MGS theme... that way it should have been.)

Edited February 18, 2011 by Aegis

[Sirius 16]

Nilihanth:

 

Yeah, Heroes of might and magic have amazing soundtracks.

If you're into music, these games are worth the play just for the songs.

The Folklore theme was very good.

Atmospheric and mystical, just the way I like it.

It reminds me of something...

 

 

 

Believe me, if you like Danny Elfman, you would love the soundtrack to this game.

 

 

 

This is the theme of the Whitechapel stage.

In the end, you will meet the Ripper.

 

 

 

 

Aegis:

 

Yeah, I could imagine you being a Tekken fan, having Kazuya as your avatar

He is me second favourite in Tekken 6, and pretty much the only person I can do juggle moves with.

Interesting tekken songs there.

Remixes of the originals, are they?

Still, I think I'll keep the originals closer to my heart

 

I have played or finished most of the MGS games, except for the third one.

I just kept getting totally p*ssed when I had been laying in the grass for AGES, wathing the guards movements and routines, and when I finally moved along to pass them, ANOTHER guard comes from the side and raises the alarm.

But they sure are some of the best games I've ever played, in form of graphic, music, story and gameplay.

[Aegis 256]

Those tracks from Medievil 2 sound real nice. Actually, all the selections in this post sound good, be it KillZone or Fallout or Heroes of Might and Magic. Glad to know people enjoy game music (or any kind for that matter) as much as I do.

 

Sirius: Not to mention the mounds of fanart along with a WIP fanfic spanning thus far 26 chapters long? Gee, I don't have an obsession. ;p

 

Kazuya happens to be my favorite character of the Tekken cast, just because he was the first evil protagonist I've seen in a game. Kinda surprised that he's the only character you can juggle with considering he is not an easy character to pick up. Mishimas in general are not easy to pick up, but moreso Kazuya since he doesn't have any of the more brainless fallback moves that Devil Jin and Heihachi possess.

 

And, yes, there is a certain joy to listening to the themes in their original form. I like most of these Strike Arranges, though, because they are very different yet well done takes on the themes. Plus I've seen some of these themes used in videos, and I thought they were epic.

 

I fell in love with the MG series the moment I played MGS. It's a romanticizing of the soldier that actually keeps my interest, and I've rarely stumbled upon a game in the series with bad music. Especially true with the outros, the latest obsession being Heavens Divide.

 

And being in a bit of an old skool moment, MechWarrior 2 has some slick tracks.

 

A few samples:

Edited February 19, 2011 by Aegis

[Sirius 16]

These are some great themes, Aegis.

Seing we are moving into industrial based soundtracks again, I'd like to share a few of my favourites:

 

 

 

I don't know if you're familiar with Westwood's Dune franchise.

I have been a fan of Dune since I saw the 1984 sci-fi cult classic by David Lynch.

Dune is a movie that features amazing music made by Toto and Brian Eno.

The music in the videogames is also astonishing, and I would like to share som with you:

 

This is the main theme for the evil Harkonnen.

They hail from an industrial planet, and are ruthless and violent in their quest for total control of Dune.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vBfsG3Bxk0&fmt=18

 

 

Imagine your forces of evil soldiers storming over the desert to this theme.

You can see it, can't you?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9TTXQ6o4Cs&fmt=18

 

 

 

Another theme from that submarine combat game I showed you in the first post.

This happens to be one of my PS1 all-time favourites.

On this level, you are duking it out in the Bermuda triangle.

For those who don't know what that is, it is a place in the atlantic ocean just east of Florida, where planes and ships have dissapeared suddenly and without warning.

In the game, this level is filled with sunken ships and aircraft, and the whole setting is constantly being backed up by this overhanging, spooky and dramatic theme..

Now that's a powerful image.

 

[Aegis 256]

I don't follow Dune, but I am certainly familiar with the series. That, and I've been told to stay away from Kevin J Anderson's stuff. Ah, what I would give for some of that spice... minus the sandworms. ;p

 

I'm also beginning to see why you liked Critical Depth's soundtrack. What you've shown so far sounds pretty epic.

 

And speaking of epic, this is the sound you here when fighting against a giant nuclear walking tank:

 

[Sirius 16]

Wow, that's certainly a dramatic theme.

I haven't played portable ops, but it looks (sounds) cool.

 

 

I can add another really good track off critical depth:

This is the theme from the last level in the game.

On this level you fight alien submarine bosses in a giant underwater dome called "The transmitter".

It is a great finale to a game filled with great music.

 

 

 

 

 

The dune videogame series includes some great soundtracks.

I'd like to see what you think about these:

 

The Harkonnen theme were made by a musician called "David Arkenstone" exclusively for the game "Emperor: Battle for Dune".

It sounds very menacing and industrial, which perfectly fits Harkonnen.

I don't like using the word "epic" too often, because I think it has been over-used on the net, but this game is the most epic RTS I have ever tried, and that is all thanks to the brilliant music.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uI8BMzGaloQ&fmt=18

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHL6CDyDfp8&fmt=18

[Aegis 256]

I don't use the word 'epic' much, either, unless I think something really is.

 

Another nice tune for Critical Depth, Unstoppable sounds very menacing, and Harkonnen Force is fairly upbeat.

 

Remember the Ar tonelico intros I showed for the three games? I mentioned how the game revolves around music. More specifically, the game's magic is derived from music via a language referred to as 'hymnnos' (thus the 'Hymnnos' albums). Based on lore, how the songs sound depends on the caster wielding said spell. I say that, since there isn't a whole bunch of examples in the game that really display such in the soundtrack, but here is one of the few:

 

Purger/Aurica Extracting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Fd29K4lOPI

 

Purger/Misha Extracting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0l4yP_7lc8

 

Both of these serve as boss themes, depending on which caster you choose.

[Sirius 16]

Cool, I wish more games revolved around music.

In that case, this would be a kickass game: (and still is..)

 

Again, the composer, Paul Romero, goes beyond fantastic to create such beautiful and powerful pieces to be put in a videogame:

 

This is the theme for the noble "Order" town.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrgQOinNgWI&fmt=18

 

This is the theme for the evil "Death" town.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAfz6TpDiQE&fmt=18

 

 

Imagine if he created the soundtrack for a fantasy or sci-fi movie.

It would immediately become my favourite.

[nilihanth 0]

I don't know if you're familiar with Westwood's Dune franchise.

I have been a fan of Dune since I saw the 1984 sci-fi cult classic by David Lynch.

Dune is a movie that features amazing music made by Toto and Brian Eno.

The music in the videogames is also astonishing, and I would like to share som with you:

Did you happen to notice that, in the cut-scenes of Dune 2000, a familiar face plays Gurney Halek? I'll tell you if you have no clue what I'm talking about

 

BTW I love the Dune original 5 books written and created by Frank Herbert. I also loved the 80's box office release too, with Sting in it, but it didn't tell the story accurately. Still a great tribute to the Dune story though.

[Sirius 16]

Did you happen to notice that, in the cut-scenes of Dune 2000, a familiar face plays Gurney Halek? I'll tell you if you have no clue what I'm talking about

 

It's been a long time since I played it, and I thought it was damn hard.

But I remember the Atreides mentat was played by John Rhys-Davies (the gimli dude).

That was uniqe about Westwood's games.

They included real-life videos with actors in them between missions.

 

Another suspenseful tune off Dune 2000:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKv9R6Ft36g&fmt=18

[nilihanth 0]

Did you happen to notice that, in the cut-scenes of Dune 2000, a familiar face plays Gurney Halek? I'll tell you if you have no clue what I'm talking about

 

It's been a long time since I played it, and I thought it was damn hard.

But I remember the Atreides mentat was played by John Rhys-Davies (the gimli dude).

That was uniqe about Westwood's games.

They included real-life videos with actors in them between missions.

Yep! Good job! Yeah, I didn't play the game much--it WAS hard, but I do terrible on RTS games.

 

Here is one of my earlier references, Metroid Prime 3 (Corruption), I just hadn't posted until now:

[Sirius 16]

That Metroid piece sounds awesome, Nilihanth.

Never played any of those games, but I seriously consider it because of Samus. ;P

 

You mentioned being a huge fan of Danny Elfman.

How do you like those Medievil soundtracks?

[nilihanth 0]

That Metroid piece sounds awesome, Nilihanth.

Never played any of those games, but I seriously consider it because of Samus. ;P

 

You mentioned being a huge fan of Danny Elfman.

How do you like those Medievil soundtracks?

Yeah, those Medievil tracks sound great! I never played those games so I hadn't heard it before.

 

I have to post another one or two...

 

Banjo-Kazooie music was so well themed to each level it was incredible. As corny as the music sounds, it had a wonderful immersion effect.

[Aegis 256]

Sometimes what grabs a person's attention is in the way the music fits the scene. If someone were to listen to these tracks by themselves without knowing much of the game, I can imagine someone thinking they'd be corny.

 

I can give examples of such from Ar tonelico as well. From the third game:

 

I don't recall exactly what the EXEC_EP=Nova spell is for, but it has something to do with halting or freezing a virus or something. However, since the program was downloaded to this nauseatingly cute girl who happens to like cats... well... that's the result of the song. >>

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzC_8Ss4Rk4

With EXEC_Z, if you didn't know the scene and you never bothered to check the lyrics, you'd think this was a mere Jpop song. Knowing the scene, however, this song turned out quite well as spell, and subsequently, a boss theme.

 

And for those who managed to get their hands on Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, I give you the ultimate boss theme (hehehe):

[Sirius 16]

Haha, Nilihanth, those tracks were great!

Sounds like the mind of a 5-year-old schizofrenic at the circus.

That reminded me of another childrens-game with great music:

 

 

(The level's theme doesn't start until 0:35)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcpTAzScrWE

 

Despite being made for kids, this game was damn hard, so I only finished the game on easy.

[Aegis 256]

Great... lost my speakers, so I can't listen at the moment.

[Sirius 16]

Oh, that sucks, Aegis.

 

Nilihanth:

I've been listening to the Mad monster mansion theme alot.

I think it's awesome.

Great work by the composer.

 

It reminds me even more about my beloved Medievil-soundtrack.

Take a closer look:

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VqlYrlt4o4&fmt=18

 

 

This was one of the trickiest levels in the game.

Your on a flying ghostship, and you're surrounded by skeleton pirates.

The boss of this level is a 10-foot skeleton captain.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25MAac45o4A&fmt=18