axleblaze
09-05-2007, 08:51 AM
Hello all! I'm new here and though I might as well avtually post something. I was recently talking to one of my friends about vidoe game music and I told him I could probably name my twenty favorite bits of music in games. Now of course coming up with said list wasn't as easy as I thought and especially when I applied some rules to it. The rules I applied wre as follows
1) Only one song per game franchise. Even if a song I pick is part of a the franchise by name only and most people would not consider it to be an official entry in said franchise. If the games name has Final Fantasy on it, then that's the only Final Fantasy game I can use. This made certain games very though (Sonic, Final Fantasy, Castlevania). This is to make the list more diverse and toprevent it from being the same few games over and over
2) The version of the song has to be from an actual game. No covers or remixes. If a song has a really good remic but the actual song isn't very good then it's useless.
3) Songs will not be allowed on for sentimental or iconic purposes alone. Sure the door unlocking tune from zelda fills me with joy everytime I hear it. That doesn't make it a good song on it's own. Basically the songs have to hold up out of the context of the game. This rule can be slightly bent but I will note it when that happens. This also means don't expect to see many iconic themes on here
4) The song must have been made for the game. Alot of games have great soundtracks that are just collections of good music. This doesn't mean I won't allow music by bands or established artist on, they just need to have composed the music for the game and the game only.
And thems the rules. Songs should be good for a week. After which point, I might replace the links with more less temporary services. Here's the songs starting from #30
30
Game: Rez
Song Name: Area 5
System: Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/viyz/06_area_5)
Out of all the songs on this list, I was the most reluctant to put this one on. Rez is a game that is very much about the music and when you play Area 5 the music is so good it's almost like a religious experience. The problme with putting it on the list is it's not nearly as good without all the the little sounds you make while playing the level. The song is much better in the game. Still, after listening to it a couple dozen times I have determined that it still contains enough of what makes the song great to be on this list. Be warned it takes a long time to get stared and the sound is very scarce early on. However, if you are patient you'll see why this made it.
29
Game: R-Type Final
Song Name: Stage F-A (Baido is...)
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xfrd/Stage-F-A--Baido-is-...-)
This is another song that I was reluctant to put on the list. Overall it is hard to seperate it from the stage it comes from. Still, once again, I think it stands up on it's own. Most final stages have a sense of action in them. A sense of true danger. This music is very unusual because if anythign it contains a sense of wonder. It's slow and thoughtful rather anything that would fit the hordes of enemies you face and it just adds this eery quality that isn't found in most video game music.
28
Game: Shadowman
Song Name: I Don't Know
System: Playstation/Nintendo 64/Dreamcast
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xwoo/lvlbak14)
This is probably the least listenable song on the entire list. What it does more than anything is create a sense of atmosphere. In creating a scary world music is key in many cases it's all that is neccessary. Given that thsi song from Shadowman is amazing. I dare you to sit in a dark room with this playing on loop. I dare you to listen to this on loop period. Out of any game music I've ever heard nothing has even come close to being this unsettling. After a while you just want to make the music stop. It's actually worse in the game because you can't eunitl you leave the area but ti's still quite effective on it's own.
27
Game: Nightmare Creatures
Song Name: Sewer Snake
System: Playstation/Nintendo 64/PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xjnq/07-sewer_snake)
Most of the music on this list comes from good games. This was not a good game and most of the music wasn't even that good but this one song almost made playing the entire game worth it. WIth it's mixture of hard rock guitars and epic organs this makes for an amazing song. Luckily it appears pretty early in the game so you don't have to play it much...or you can just listen to it here.
26
Game: Descent II
Name: Crush
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ukwh/07_crush)
Descent II was one of the first games I played where I actualyl bought it for the music. From the full orchestral intro to the insanely heavy rifts of the title screen, when I saw my friends playing this I was in love. While the soundtrack included songs by member of Skinny Puppy and an instrumental of a Type O Negative songs, the real highlights were the ones made by the game composers. These songs sersiously just rocked. Here's what might be the best one.
25
Game: The 7th Guest
Name: Opening Theme
System: PC/Mac/CD-i/3D0
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/oisu/Track-02)
This might be the greatest unsung game theme of all time. You start up the game and are trated to the sound of rain as this lonely violin plays its heart out and slowly fades you in slowly sucking you in. Really the emotion in the notes of this intro song were better than any acting the actual game contained. Simply beautiful, especiallyt in an era when most game music was still 16-bit or midis
24
Game: Super Mario Bros. 3
Name: Bowser Battle
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/pqfi/3-29_bowser_battle)
I'll be honest with you: I find that overall the mario games are seriously lacking in the music department. Most of it is just to happy go lucky for my tastes. Still there are some songs that are enjoyable. There were a few I could have picked for this but I think the best overall is Bowsers music from mario 3. Mario 3 was unique amongst nintendo games as it had an extra chip to make the drum sounds in the music. That ship in on full display here and really it does help add to this little tune that really gives you a sense of Danger which is absent in much of mario. The tune is very catchy and cool and manages to carry that sense that this is final fight music without being too overdramatic. Afterall, this is just mario music.
23
Game: Space Channel 5 Part 2
Song Name: Ulala's History
System: Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/dcfw/02_-_demo_-_ulala-s_history)
If you've ever played Space Channel 5 you'll know this song well. You really have to if you wanna do well at all because this tune is integrated throughout the span of both games. It really helps that this tune is so good. There are many versions of it but this is really the best one. As funky as most of them are this one just one just seems to overflow be the most well put together and most complex while still having that fun fanciness that ll music of the series has.
22) Tetris
Song Name: Music B
System: Game Boy
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/tykl/tetris-gameboy-02)
Out of all well known game themes this is the one I like best. If I get this stuck in my head it doesn't annoy me. It's just a great and catchy tune and the fact that it manages to sound good on the game boy speakers is a testament to how good the tune actually is.
21
Game: Hunter/Hunted
Song Name: Wired
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/obix/11_-_wired)
This is probably the most obscure game on this list. I only heard about it because I got Sierra's official magazine and it was featured and I thought it looked cool . The games itself was pretty weak but the music was really good overall. This song is particularly good. It has quite a complex feel while still manages to be video game music.
20
Game: Godzilla
Song Name: Title Screen
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ojkm/Track-01)
This was the first game that had a sound test that I'd listen to for hours on end. Really I probably spent more time with the sound test then I did with the actuall game. For a crappy Godzilla hard to control game the music in Godzilla was topnotch all around. From the various planet music to the individual themes each monsters had. Still nothing actually beat the title screens music which prepared you for a better game than you actually got.
19
Game: The Neverhood
Song Name: Skat Radio
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/tfco/06._skat_radio)
The Neverhood might have the single strangest game score in the history of games. It's all skat that sounds like ti was done by a drunkard and new orleans style blues. Yet soemhow it seems to work perfectly with the strange claymated world of the game. Here's one of the best songs.
18
Game: Quake
Song Name: Title Screen
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uwst/02--untitled-)
Nine Inch Nails is my favorite band, so this was gonna be in here somewhere. Quake was a big game in amny ways. It changed the way first person shooters worked, it was full of interesting stuff to explore and it had a soundtrack by a known musician. Form th moment it started it's clear Trent Reznor was involved in this. Every inch of the game scream industrial. MOre indutrial then NIN has ever actually been. Most of the game isn't even very musical except this track which slams you right into the game as the demo starts.
17
Game: Metroid
Song Name: Title Screen
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/hxxj/01_-_metroid_title)
In making this list I found it suprisingly hard to come up with a good metroid song. Metroid music is all atmosphere and on it's own it loses alot. Still, there's something eerie and almost hypnotic about the single repetive drone of the original's title screen. It paints the picture of an scary alien wordl but as it goes on the music gets lighter and maanges to to contain the adventure that lies within.
16
Game: Chrono Trigger
Song Name: Battle With Magus
System: Super Nintendo
Link: http://download.yousendit.com/E23CC9D53E67BCAB
Screw Lavos. The battle with Magus is the highlight of Chrono Trigger. A thorn in your side most of the game yet and amazing badass it takes a helluva an epic tune to really go with a battle like this and this game delivers on what is probably the best song in a game full fo great songs.
15
Game: Katamari Damacy
Song Name: Cherry Blossom Color Season
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/hojz/Cherry-Blossom-Color-Season)
Choosing a song from the two Katamari games was hard. Both represent two of the best soundtracks ever made. They both contain an amazingly diverse amount of music that also somehow fits the action fo rolling up the world into a giant ball. Overall, I find this song to be best. I usually despise children'ts choirs yet it works so well creating a song that is both peaceful yet also fits rolling up the entrie wordl into a ball.
14
Game: Rocket Knight Adventures
Song Name: Boss Fight
System: Sega Genesis
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/husc/RKA-Boss)
This is probably the single best song that will ever come out of your genesis. It creates such an evil boss sound. No matter how silly the boss is the music creates this atmosphere of massive danger, which is not easy to get out fo the genesis weak sound system.
13
Game: Gitaroo Man
Song Name: Born To Be Bone
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/zkey/Born-To-Be-Bone)
Gitaroo Man is a fantastic rythm game witha fantastic soundtrack. With only one exception, every song is incredibly good. Picking just one song is difficult. This song manages to edge out all the others with it's unqie percussion and fantastic spanish guitar work.
12
Game: The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Song Name: Gerudo Valley
System: Nintendo 64
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/wihn/68_gerudo_valley)
The N64 was not that great with music. The cartidges did not have much space and really it would have been a waste to put music on them so it not that common to get great music. Despite this, this tune from OoT might be the best tune in any zelda game. Despite it's shabby instruments it's catchy and skillful and the first time I heard it, it quite simply blew my mind.
11
Game: Castlevania
Song Name: Vampire Killer
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/oicg/02---Vampire-Killer)
The Castlevania series is full fo amazing music but really nothing beats the original. This great little tune is so much better than most of the musc that was coming out of the NES at the time and today it stands up aamzingly well. It might not be as complex or as orchestral as modern Castelvania music but it is truly a memorable tune.
10
Game: Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Song Name: Boss Battle
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ucsc/Final-Fantasy-Mystic-Quest---09---Boss-Battle-Theme)
Out of any song on this list this is likely to be the least popular choice. YEs, that's right, out of all the music in final fantasy I chose one from a game that is barely even a final fantasy game. While Mystic Quest might be a horrible game I beleive it has the best music of any game bearing the Final Fantasy name and this Boss music is just a taste why. I mean I played through this horrible game at least ten times just for the music. That's how good it is.
9
Game: Diablo
Song Name: Town
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/wxah/02-town)
This music pretty much has to be as good as it is because you hear it more than any other while playing this game. There's only one village and you will be up there alot. The guitar work is fantastic and the other intruments come in at just the right time and are used to just the right degree to create a truly creppy atmosphere. Diablo II tried simialr things and did not come even close.
8
Game: Maximum Carnage
Song Name: Boss Battle 1
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/rojs/07_-_boss_fight_1)
It's hard for me to justify this being on the list, let alone it being this high, but I just love this song. Everything about it works for me. I used to get to the first boss in this game and leave it running for 10-20 minutes at a time just listening to the loop of this song. Really I would kill to here this song done on real insturments.
7
Game: Donkey Kong Country
Song Name: Aquatic Ambiance
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uzym/08-Aquatic-Ambiance)
When DKC first came out it appeared to have singlehandedly destroyed any doubt about whether the SNES was more powerful than the Genesis. The graphics were amazing and if that weren't enough the music was beyonf anything a cartridge had produced before. While most of the songs were simplistic this song was a CD quality gem in the game that was always amazing to hear coming out of a SNES game. SImply a beautiful adn complex tune that rose the expectation for underwater music that has still not been met since.
6
Game: Odin Sphere
Song Name: End Credits
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uioz/DISC006f)
From the second you start Odin Sphere, the beautiful opening music hits you. You hear many variations of the theme throughout the game and it's always gorgous. It ads emotional weight to an already emotional game. It was hard to pick which verision of the theme to use but I think the end credit version, while lacking the simplistic beauty of some of the other version, is the best overall due to the fact that it sounds like it's the complete version. All other versions of the the theme sort of sound like they're leading up to this one.
5
Game: Shadow of the Colossus
Song Name: Demise of a Ritual
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/eorx/Demise-of-the-Ritual-~Battle-With-the-Colossus~)
SotC it the most beautiful game ever made and the music contributes alot. The game somehow gives you the feeling that something is not right which is not an easy feeling to portray. When you take down a colossus the music is sad rather than victorious. When teh music isn't said it's full of danger but that's it. This track might be one of the most ominous songs I'ver ever heard. This is the music that plays as you apporach the final boss. HEre you are near the dn of your quest, but is the music happy? No, if anything it's tragic. The music is almost beggin oyu not to go forward, yet you do anyways. Even without all that there, it still a beautiful song.
4
Game: Mega Man 2
Song Name: Wily Stage 1, 2
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/urqo/17_-_wily_stage_1-2)
Picking a song from a megaman game is hard. I was almost urged to make it a tie but in the end this is the best song a megaman game ever produced and it comes out of what is probably the best megaman game ever made. Nothing says "final stage music" better than this song. The sens of urgency and danger are so neatly wrapped up in this cool little tune. What put it over the edge is when the second layer comes in. It just works so well
3
Game: Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Song Name: Metallic Madness Present
System: Sega CD
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/fhnw/SonicCD-21)
Sonic CD overall is my favorite game score of all time and I mean the american version. Sure the sonic boom theme is cheesy but so is super sonic warrior. WHen I first heard this it was so beyod anything I had ever heard in game music. It was sonic music except done with good keyboards. My mind was blown and has never fully repaired itself.
2
Game: Guilty Gear X
Song Name: Awe of She
System: Arcade/Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/dehs/Guilty-Gear-X-18_Awe_of_She_Dizzy_)
If you like Metal Guilty Gear is the game soundtrack for you. Every track is beautifully written guitar metal without those horrid vocals getting in the way. The cream of crop is Dizzy's theme which manages to be dramatic as a boss of the game should be and still so rockin that it almost hurts. There was a remake of this in GGX2 but it was not nearly as good.
1
Game: Silent Hill 4: The Room
Song Name: Room of Angel
System: Playstation 2/X-Box
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/afqf/Track-21)
This song is just flat out beautiful. It is th emost traditional song on the list yet it manages to perfectly manages to capture the silent hill. This series in generla has fantastic msuci and the themses are usually goof but they don't have the sad, haunted and even a little bit angry aspects that this song has. It's amazing that sucha beautiful song fits such a disturbing game but it does. But even if you've never played a video game this song is beautiful and can be appreciated just as much if someone has never heard of silent hill
Well...there's my list in all it's glory. If you like ti feel free to comment. If you don't like it feel free to comment. If you think this post is a waste of time I don't care, so don't comment if that's all you have to say. If you post your own list feel free as well. If I want to add more I will alter but as of right now I'm am very tired.
1) Only one song per game franchise. Even if a song I pick is part of a the franchise by name only and most people would not consider it to be an official entry in said franchise. If the games name has Final Fantasy on it, then that's the only Final Fantasy game I can use. This made certain games very though (Sonic, Final Fantasy, Castlevania). This is to make the list more diverse and toprevent it from being the same few games over and over
2) The version of the song has to be from an actual game. No covers or remixes. If a song has a really good remic but the actual song isn't very good then it's useless.
3) Songs will not be allowed on for sentimental or iconic purposes alone. Sure the door unlocking tune from zelda fills me with joy everytime I hear it. That doesn't make it a good song on it's own. Basically the songs have to hold up out of the context of the game. This rule can be slightly bent but I will note it when that happens. This also means don't expect to see many iconic themes on here
4) The song must have been made for the game. Alot of games have great soundtracks that are just collections of good music. This doesn't mean I won't allow music by bands or established artist on, they just need to have composed the music for the game and the game only.
And thems the rules. Songs should be good for a week. After which point, I might replace the links with more less temporary services. Here's the songs starting from #30
30
Game: Rez
Song Name: Area 5
System: Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/viyz/06_area_5)
Out of all the songs on this list, I was the most reluctant to put this one on. Rez is a game that is very much about the music and when you play Area 5 the music is so good it's almost like a religious experience. The problme with putting it on the list is it's not nearly as good without all the the little sounds you make while playing the level. The song is much better in the game. Still, after listening to it a couple dozen times I have determined that it still contains enough of what makes the song great to be on this list. Be warned it takes a long time to get stared and the sound is very scarce early on. However, if you are patient you'll see why this made it.
29
Game: R-Type Final
Song Name: Stage F-A (Baido is...)
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xfrd/Stage-F-A--Baido-is-...-)
This is another song that I was reluctant to put on the list. Overall it is hard to seperate it from the stage it comes from. Still, once again, I think it stands up on it's own. Most final stages have a sense of action in them. A sense of true danger. This music is very unusual because if anythign it contains a sense of wonder. It's slow and thoughtful rather anything that would fit the hordes of enemies you face and it just adds this eery quality that isn't found in most video game music.
28
Game: Shadowman
Song Name: I Don't Know
System: Playstation/Nintendo 64/Dreamcast
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xwoo/lvlbak14)
This is probably the least listenable song on the entire list. What it does more than anything is create a sense of atmosphere. In creating a scary world music is key in many cases it's all that is neccessary. Given that thsi song from Shadowman is amazing. I dare you to sit in a dark room with this playing on loop. I dare you to listen to this on loop period. Out of any game music I've ever heard nothing has even come close to being this unsettling. After a while you just want to make the music stop. It's actually worse in the game because you can't eunitl you leave the area but ti's still quite effective on it's own.
27
Game: Nightmare Creatures
Song Name: Sewer Snake
System: Playstation/Nintendo 64/PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/xjnq/07-sewer_snake)
Most of the music on this list comes from good games. This was not a good game and most of the music wasn't even that good but this one song almost made playing the entire game worth it. WIth it's mixture of hard rock guitars and epic organs this makes for an amazing song. Luckily it appears pretty early in the game so you don't have to play it much...or you can just listen to it here.
26
Game: Descent II
Name: Crush
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ukwh/07_crush)
Descent II was one of the first games I played where I actualyl bought it for the music. From the full orchestral intro to the insanely heavy rifts of the title screen, when I saw my friends playing this I was in love. While the soundtrack included songs by member of Skinny Puppy and an instrumental of a Type O Negative songs, the real highlights were the ones made by the game composers. These songs sersiously just rocked. Here's what might be the best one.
25
Game: The 7th Guest
Name: Opening Theme
System: PC/Mac/CD-i/3D0
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/oisu/Track-02)
This might be the greatest unsung game theme of all time. You start up the game and are trated to the sound of rain as this lonely violin plays its heart out and slowly fades you in slowly sucking you in. Really the emotion in the notes of this intro song were better than any acting the actual game contained. Simply beautiful, especiallyt in an era when most game music was still 16-bit or midis
24
Game: Super Mario Bros. 3
Name: Bowser Battle
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/pqfi/3-29_bowser_battle)
I'll be honest with you: I find that overall the mario games are seriously lacking in the music department. Most of it is just to happy go lucky for my tastes. Still there are some songs that are enjoyable. There were a few I could have picked for this but I think the best overall is Bowsers music from mario 3. Mario 3 was unique amongst nintendo games as it had an extra chip to make the drum sounds in the music. That ship in on full display here and really it does help add to this little tune that really gives you a sense of Danger which is absent in much of mario. The tune is very catchy and cool and manages to carry that sense that this is final fight music without being too overdramatic. Afterall, this is just mario music.
23
Game: Space Channel 5 Part 2
Song Name: Ulala's History
System: Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/dcfw/02_-_demo_-_ulala-s_history)
If you've ever played Space Channel 5 you'll know this song well. You really have to if you wanna do well at all because this tune is integrated throughout the span of both games. It really helps that this tune is so good. There are many versions of it but this is really the best one. As funky as most of them are this one just one just seems to overflow be the most well put together and most complex while still having that fun fanciness that ll music of the series has.
22) Tetris
Song Name: Music B
System: Game Boy
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/tykl/tetris-gameboy-02)
Out of all well known game themes this is the one I like best. If I get this stuck in my head it doesn't annoy me. It's just a great and catchy tune and the fact that it manages to sound good on the game boy speakers is a testament to how good the tune actually is.
21
Game: Hunter/Hunted
Song Name: Wired
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/obix/11_-_wired)
This is probably the most obscure game on this list. I only heard about it because I got Sierra's official magazine and it was featured and I thought it looked cool . The games itself was pretty weak but the music was really good overall. This song is particularly good. It has quite a complex feel while still manages to be video game music.
20
Game: Godzilla
Song Name: Title Screen
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ojkm/Track-01)
This was the first game that had a sound test that I'd listen to for hours on end. Really I probably spent more time with the sound test then I did with the actuall game. For a crappy Godzilla hard to control game the music in Godzilla was topnotch all around. From the various planet music to the individual themes each monsters had. Still nothing actually beat the title screens music which prepared you for a better game than you actually got.
19
Game: The Neverhood
Song Name: Skat Radio
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/tfco/06._skat_radio)
The Neverhood might have the single strangest game score in the history of games. It's all skat that sounds like ti was done by a drunkard and new orleans style blues. Yet soemhow it seems to work perfectly with the strange claymated world of the game. Here's one of the best songs.
18
Game: Quake
Song Name: Title Screen
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uwst/02--untitled-)
Nine Inch Nails is my favorite band, so this was gonna be in here somewhere. Quake was a big game in amny ways. It changed the way first person shooters worked, it was full of interesting stuff to explore and it had a soundtrack by a known musician. Form th moment it started it's clear Trent Reznor was involved in this. Every inch of the game scream industrial. MOre indutrial then NIN has ever actually been. Most of the game isn't even very musical except this track which slams you right into the game as the demo starts.
17
Game: Metroid
Song Name: Title Screen
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/hxxj/01_-_metroid_title)
In making this list I found it suprisingly hard to come up with a good metroid song. Metroid music is all atmosphere and on it's own it loses alot. Still, there's something eerie and almost hypnotic about the single repetive drone of the original's title screen. It paints the picture of an scary alien wordl but as it goes on the music gets lighter and maanges to to contain the adventure that lies within.
16
Game: Chrono Trigger
Song Name: Battle With Magus
System: Super Nintendo
Link: http://download.yousendit.com/E23CC9D53E67BCAB
Screw Lavos. The battle with Magus is the highlight of Chrono Trigger. A thorn in your side most of the game yet and amazing badass it takes a helluva an epic tune to really go with a battle like this and this game delivers on what is probably the best song in a game full fo great songs.
15
Game: Katamari Damacy
Song Name: Cherry Blossom Color Season
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/hojz/Cherry-Blossom-Color-Season)
Choosing a song from the two Katamari games was hard. Both represent two of the best soundtracks ever made. They both contain an amazingly diverse amount of music that also somehow fits the action fo rolling up the world into a giant ball. Overall, I find this song to be best. I usually despise children'ts choirs yet it works so well creating a song that is both peaceful yet also fits rolling up the entrie wordl into a ball.
14
Game: Rocket Knight Adventures
Song Name: Boss Fight
System: Sega Genesis
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/husc/RKA-Boss)
This is probably the single best song that will ever come out of your genesis. It creates such an evil boss sound. No matter how silly the boss is the music creates this atmosphere of massive danger, which is not easy to get out fo the genesis weak sound system.
13
Game: Gitaroo Man
Song Name: Born To Be Bone
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/zkey/Born-To-Be-Bone)
Gitaroo Man is a fantastic rythm game witha fantastic soundtrack. With only one exception, every song is incredibly good. Picking just one song is difficult. This song manages to edge out all the others with it's unqie percussion and fantastic spanish guitar work.
12
Game: The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Song Name: Gerudo Valley
System: Nintendo 64
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/wihn/68_gerudo_valley)
The N64 was not that great with music. The cartidges did not have much space and really it would have been a waste to put music on them so it not that common to get great music. Despite this, this tune from OoT might be the best tune in any zelda game. Despite it's shabby instruments it's catchy and skillful and the first time I heard it, it quite simply blew my mind.
11
Game: Castlevania
Song Name: Vampire Killer
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/oicg/02---Vampire-Killer)
The Castlevania series is full fo amazing music but really nothing beats the original. This great little tune is so much better than most of the musc that was coming out of the NES at the time and today it stands up aamzingly well. It might not be as complex or as orchestral as modern Castelvania music but it is truly a memorable tune.
10
Game: Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Song Name: Boss Battle
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/ucsc/Final-Fantasy-Mystic-Quest---09---Boss-Battle-Theme)
Out of any song on this list this is likely to be the least popular choice. YEs, that's right, out of all the music in final fantasy I chose one from a game that is barely even a final fantasy game. While Mystic Quest might be a horrible game I beleive it has the best music of any game bearing the Final Fantasy name and this Boss music is just a taste why. I mean I played through this horrible game at least ten times just for the music. That's how good it is.
9
Game: Diablo
Song Name: Town
System: PC
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/wxah/02-town)
This music pretty much has to be as good as it is because you hear it more than any other while playing this game. There's only one village and you will be up there alot. The guitar work is fantastic and the other intruments come in at just the right time and are used to just the right degree to create a truly creppy atmosphere. Diablo II tried simialr things and did not come even close.
8
Game: Maximum Carnage
Song Name: Boss Battle 1
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/rojs/07_-_boss_fight_1)
It's hard for me to justify this being on the list, let alone it being this high, but I just love this song. Everything about it works for me. I used to get to the first boss in this game and leave it running for 10-20 minutes at a time just listening to the loop of this song. Really I would kill to here this song done on real insturments.
7
Game: Donkey Kong Country
Song Name: Aquatic Ambiance
System: Super Nintendo
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uzym/08-Aquatic-Ambiance)
When DKC first came out it appeared to have singlehandedly destroyed any doubt about whether the SNES was more powerful than the Genesis. The graphics were amazing and if that weren't enough the music was beyonf anything a cartridge had produced before. While most of the songs were simplistic this song was a CD quality gem in the game that was always amazing to hear coming out of a SNES game. SImply a beautiful adn complex tune that rose the expectation for underwater music that has still not been met since.
6
Game: Odin Sphere
Song Name: End Credits
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/uioz/DISC006f)
From the second you start Odin Sphere, the beautiful opening music hits you. You hear many variations of the theme throughout the game and it's always gorgous. It ads emotional weight to an already emotional game. It was hard to pick which verision of the theme to use but I think the end credit version, while lacking the simplistic beauty of some of the other version, is the best overall due to the fact that it sounds like it's the complete version. All other versions of the the theme sort of sound like they're leading up to this one.
5
Game: Shadow of the Colossus
Song Name: Demise of a Ritual
System: Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/eorx/Demise-of-the-Ritual-~Battle-With-the-Colossus~)
SotC it the most beautiful game ever made and the music contributes alot. The game somehow gives you the feeling that something is not right which is not an easy feeling to portray. When you take down a colossus the music is sad rather than victorious. When teh music isn't said it's full of danger but that's it. This track might be one of the most ominous songs I'ver ever heard. This is the music that plays as you apporach the final boss. HEre you are near the dn of your quest, but is the music happy? No, if anything it's tragic. The music is almost beggin oyu not to go forward, yet you do anyways. Even without all that there, it still a beautiful song.
4
Game: Mega Man 2
Song Name: Wily Stage 1, 2
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/urqo/17_-_wily_stage_1-2)
Picking a song from a megaman game is hard. I was almost urged to make it a tie but in the end this is the best song a megaman game ever produced and it comes out of what is probably the best megaman game ever made. Nothing says "final stage music" better than this song. The sens of urgency and danger are so neatly wrapped up in this cool little tune. What put it over the edge is when the second layer comes in. It just works so well
3
Game: Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Song Name: Metallic Madness Present
System: Sega CD
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/fhnw/SonicCD-21)
Sonic CD overall is my favorite game score of all time and I mean the american version. Sure the sonic boom theme is cheesy but so is super sonic warrior. WHen I first heard this it was so beyod anything I had ever heard in game music. It was sonic music except done with good keyboards. My mind was blown and has never fully repaired itself.
2
Game: Guilty Gear X
Song Name: Awe of She
System: Arcade/Dreamcast/Playstation 2
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/dehs/Guilty-Gear-X-18_Awe_of_She_Dizzy_)
If you like Metal Guilty Gear is the game soundtrack for you. Every track is beautifully written guitar metal without those horrid vocals getting in the way. The cream of crop is Dizzy's theme which manages to be dramatic as a boss of the game should be and still so rockin that it almost hurts. There was a remake of this in GGX2 but it was not nearly as good.
1
Game: Silent Hill 4: The Room
Song Name: Room of Angel
System: Playstation 2/X-Box
Link: Click here to listen! (http://www.tindeck.com/audio/my/afqf/Track-21)
This song is just flat out beautiful. It is th emost traditional song on the list yet it manages to perfectly manages to capture the silent hill. This series in generla has fantastic msuci and the themses are usually goof but they don't have the sad, haunted and even a little bit angry aspects that this song has. It's amazing that sucha beautiful song fits such a disturbing game but it does. But even if you've never played a video game this song is beautiful and can be appreciated just as much if someone has never heard of silent hill
Well...there's my list in all it's glory. If you like ti feel free to comment. If you don't like it feel free to comment. If you think this post is a waste of time I don't care, so don't comment if that's all you have to say. If you post your own list feel free as well. If I want to add more I will alter but as of right now I'm am very tired.