My Top 10 Video Game Soundtrack Songs

Image credit to The-JoeBlack of deviantART

A good game soundtrack is as indispensible as a well-written narrative and solid gameplay mechanics.  The right song can set your heart pounding in a hectic action sequence, fill you with dread before entering a dungeon or abandoned building, or drive you to tears at a tragic ending or death of a beloved character.  Talented composers working with world-class orchestras have made video game music an art form in itself, and concert tours such as Distant Worlds are helping to spread this art around the world in new and exciting ways.

Over the years, I’ve collected a somewhat sizable library of game soundtracks, and this list is a compilation of 10 of my favorites, along with a few honorable mentions.  I thought about just doing a list of my favorite overall soundtracks, but I wanted to dig deeper into specific songs and moments from games that left a lasting impression.  Obviously, this list is just opinion and not meant to be the defining list of the best video game music.  If your favorite didn't make the list, let us know in the comments what additions you would make.

10. Yafutoma Dawn

Game: Skies of Arcadia

Composer: Yutaka Minobe and Takayuki Maeda

Yafutoma has already made my list of favorite video game locations in a previous post, and a big part of that was because of the environment music of the area.  This place feels like a feudal Japan that just happens to be floating in the sky, and if the physical aesthetic doesn’t already take you there, the music will.  In Skies of Arcadia, Yafutoma is a distant and hidden land of mystery that drives the imaginations of intrepid explorers wild.  “Yafutoma Dawn” captures the grand scale of this hidden world with a sound that has a deep oriental feel as well as something below the surface that you can’t quite put your finger on, much like the land of Yafutoma itself.

9. Skyrim Atmospheres

Game: Skyrim

Composer: Jeremy Soule

This is one 42-minute track that makes up the entirety of the last disk of the four-CD Skyrim soundtrack.  “Skyrim Atmospheres” isn’t so much a song as it is a compilation of all the background music and sounds you encounter throughout your exploration of the vast game world.  I chose this over any one song in the massive soundtrack because I think this track fully encompasses the grandeur of the Skyrim experience.  Rain falls and birds chirp over the backdrop of soft ambient music, then for a few moments, the music goes silent, yielding to the sound of wind blowing through the trees.  Listening to “Skyrim Atmospheres” takes you through the entirety of this game’s environments from the frozen coasts of Haafingar to the Autumnal forests of The Rift.

8. All I Want

Game: Crazy Taxi

Composer: The Offspring

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!  Is there anything else to say?  There probably aren’t many songs that can define a game like The Offspring’s “All I Want” has for Crazy Taxi.  This song gets you pumped and in the zone for all the ridiculous stunts you need to perform throughout your fare.  On its own, it’s a good song, but something about speeding down the opposite lane, half on the sidewalk, then doing a barrel roll off a cliff makes it a great song.  With all the fun you have in the game, you almost don’t even notice that the song has played over and over again for a good 20 times.

7. Daughter of the High Summoner

Game: Final Fantasy X

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

This song plays during your viewing of Braska’s Sphere, found on Mt. Gagazet toward the last leg of Yuna’s pilgrimage.  In this sphere, Braska leaves a message of encouragement for his now grown daughter, letting her know that she must choose her own path and that she will always have his full support.  Watching character spheres are some of the more lighthearted, and at the same time, emotional parts of FFX, and this one is my personal favorite.  The track that goes with it is an overall theme for Yuna’s relationship with her long-dead father and the footsteps that she is following in her own pilgrimage to become high summoner.  “Daughter of the High Summoner” is a tale of love and hardship in a world where people like Yuna and Braska are the only ones that can keep a tumultuous peace alive.   

6. Automatic

Game: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Composer: The Pointer Sisters

There’s enough ‘80s here to make your chest hair grow into a wild jungle of retro manliness.  Vice City’s Club Malibu is another location that made my earlier top 10 list, and like Yafutoma, the music played a big role in that.  While the ‘80s isn’t my favorite musical era, the collection of songs chosen for this game’s soundtrack is a great definer of the age.  It was hard to choose a favorite for this list, but when “Automatic” by The Pointer Sisters came on in Club Malibu, all bets were off.  I would come down from Tommy Vercetti’s totally badass office wearing the bank robbery hockey mask and jumpsuit, then jump around in the orgy of people in the best attempt at dancing I could muster.  Then I’d toss a Molotov on the floor because why the hell not?  This is GTA.

5. Mafia Main Theme  

Game: Mafia

Composer: Vladimir Šimůnek

Played during the opening cinematic of the game, the main theme of Mafia is as dramatic and sweeping as the story itself.  The theme plays out as the camera pans over rocky cliffs, open farmland, and the sprawling city where you will play as a cab driver turned Mafioso in what is, in my opinion, one of the best gangland-themed games of all time.  This track, performed by the Czech Symphony Orchestra, sets the stage for a grand tale of Prohibition-era gang life on par with great movies like "Road to Perdition" and "The Godfather."  I loved starting a new game in Mafia just so I could watch the intro again.  To this day, it’s one of the few opening cinematics to a video game that still gives me chills.

4. Symphony No. 9 in E Minor

Game: Catherine

Composer: Antonín Dvořák/Shoji Meguro

For the Catherine soundtrack, composer Shoji Meguro remixed several classical music pieces which are played during the puzzle levels of the game.  While all of these remixes are exceptionally well done, Meguro’s reimagining of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 in E Minor is hands-down my favorite in the game.  This song plays during the Quadrangle stage, which is a frozen tower riddled with ice blocks that could send Vincent sliding to his untimely demise with one wrong step.  Parts of the song are fast-paced and tense, much like the difficult and often frustrating puzzles themselves, but there are also parts where things slow down, and the whimsical, somewhat chilling (pun intended) piano work does an amazing job of feeding off the ominous, freezing atmosphere.  This song, much like the game itself, is an emotional roller coaster that, by the end, will have you feeling like you’ve just completed a truly epic journey.

3. A Chapel ~ Battle Theme #3

Game: Final Fantasy Tactics

Composer: Hitoshi Sakimoto

I’m not a big fan of random battles in RPGs, and FF Tactics was no exception, but if this music was playing during my battle, then I didn’t mind so much.  Out of all the battle themes, this one was my favorite.  Even during minor skirmishes, the song made me feel as though I was in an epic boss fight.  Battle music has always been a gem of the FF franchise, but with random battles, it can get pretty repetitive (I grew particularly bored of it through my many hours in FFX).  FF Tactics having so many different battle songs helped keep the fights a little more fresh.  As I grinded my way through Ivalice, I always hoped in every random encounter that I might hear this song playing as the camera rotated around the square, blocky map (which nowadays could probably be mistaken for something out of Minecraft).  

2. Vigil

Game: Mass Effect

Composer: Jack Wall and Sam Hulick

Fans of the series will recognize this as the main menu song from the first Mass Effect game.  More importantly, however *(minor spoilers inbound)*, it also plays during your conversation with the Prothean V.I. named Vigil in the ruins of Ilos (the music track for Ilos also being one of my favorites from this OST).  While this track makes a few appearances in ME2 as well and could really be considered another theme for the series, I felt it had a particular impact during the conversation with Vigil.  It comes near the end of the game, but the things you learn from the ancient V.I. confirm that this is only the beginning of a mind-blowingly huge journey that will take you through every spiraling arm of a wondrously vast galaxy.  The track “Vigil” is at the same time soothing, ominous, sentimental, and reflective.  After the conversation with the V.I., you can’t help but listen to this track on the main menu with new ears.  The emotional weight of that moment comes back every time as the history of the Prothean war with the Reapers and a cycle of galactic extinction that has lasted for millions of years is encapsulated in one song.  “Vigil,” I think, is a perfect example of what any good video game soundtrack song should be.

1. Empty Loneliness

Game: Valkyria Chronicles

Composer: Hitoshi Sakimoto

In Mr. Sakimoto’s second appearance on the list, we have “Empty Loneliness” from Valkyria Chronicles at number one.  I had a feeling a song from this game would be number one, but choosing which one was almost another top 10 list in itself.  While the regal, gut-pounding “Main Theme” and tear-jerking “Those Who Succeeded” were strong competitors, “Empty Loneliness” is an emotional slap in the face every time I hear it.  Like other songs on this list, I chose this particular track because it always takes me back to my favorite moments in the game.  Listening to this song, I become reminiscent of Alicia and Welkin’s nighttime chats on the Edelweiss or their perilous stealth trek through the Kloden Wildwood.  Like Mass Effect’s “Vigil” (which really was almost a tie with this track), “Empty Loneliness” is an example of a song that, for me at least, fully encompasses the range of emotions that the game brings to the table on the journey from start to end.  Hitoshi Sakimoto has composed the soundtracks for some of my favorite RPGs, and I think he’s at the top of his game in Valkyria Chronicles.

Honorable Mentions

Chop Chop Master Onion Rap

Game: PaRappa the Rapper

Composer: Masaya Matsuura

Honestly, the only reason this isn’t in the top 10 is because I’ve never actually played this game myself.  I have watched friends play, though, and this song is undeniably a classic in the video game world.  When I talk to friends about this game, “Chop Chop Master Onion” is the first thing that everyone starts to sing.

Danketsu

Game: Beautiful Katamari Damashii

Composer: The iDOLM@STER

This song is just a musical form of squeal-inducing happiness, much like the game it’s featured in.  I like to imagine that JPop was playing during the formation of all the planets.

You’re Not Here

Game: Silent Hill 3

Composer: Akira Yamaoka and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn

This song was featured during the end credits of the “Silent Hill” movie, but it first made its appearance as what is likely considered the theme of Silent Hill 3.  While you don’t hear this song during the actual game (at least not that I remember. I could be wrong), listening to it takes you right back to the game’s opening at the eerily quiet Central Square Shopping Center, the dark corridors of the subway level, or to the hellish Silent Hill amusement park.  While “You’re Not Here” doesn’t define any particular moment of the game, it’s just one of those songs that can make a player reminisce over their entire journey through Silent Hill 3’s story.  It’s also a really good song on its own.

Cartoons You May Have Missed, Part 1

Don’t get us 90s kids started on our cartoons.  We’ll never shut up about them.  If you ask us about our favorite cartoons that are no longer on the air (or at least not on Nickelodeon anymore) we’re bound to spout off the usual Rocko’s Modern Life, Hey Arnold, Ren & Stimpy, Rugrats, Invader Zim, etc.  These shows are certainly worthy of the not so objective praise we give them, but I sometimes find myself thinking of other cartoons that I loved watching but didn’t last long enough to really make a name for themselves.  None of these are 90s shows, so nostalgia doesn’t factor in quite so much with these.  I don’t believe that any of these air on Nickelodeon anymore, but a couple of them can occasionally be found on the Nicktoons network or other channels around the world.

My Life as a Teenage Robot

This is a show that I didn’t really get into at first.  A show about a superhero robot with the personality of a teenage girl trying to fit in at high school just wasn’t something that appealed to me.  I was never big into superheroes, and I didn’t care about high school problems when I was in high school myself.  But once you get past that premise, My Life as a Teenage Robot has some great, often subtle, humor.  The world building in this show is also something that is delivered very well so that it flows naturally throughout the series.  You aren’t beat over the head with constant reminders or explanations as to the fact that the story takes place sometime in the future.  The presence of crime-fighting robots, Skyway Patrol law enforcement, and races of alien beings is treated as normal occurrence for the world of the show, allowing it to become a natural part of the environment.  The creator, Robert Renzetti, also spent two years as a story editor for My Little Pony, which is pretty awesome.  My Life as a Teenage Robot still airs at least once a week in the early A.M. hours on Nicktoons Network, and all three seasons are also available from Amazon on DVD.

Catscratch

This series didn’t make it very long (it only aired for one season from 2005-2007), and that’s a shame, because Catscratch is one of those rare shows that is genuinely funny from opening theme to end credits.  Created by Doug TenNapel and based off of his graphic novel Gear, the show follows the antics of three cats: Mr. Blik, a money-hungry egomaniac (think Cat from CatDog), Waffle, the lovable oaf with a heart of gold (think Dog from CatDog), and Gordon Quid, a pudgy, Scottish cat with a thick accent and plenty of often unbelievable stories from when he supposedly lived in Scotland (even though he was born with the other two in a broom closet far from Scotland).  The trifecta of these personality types is something that is seen often in cartoons, but it works incredibly well in Catscratch.  Also, if you think a show about a few cats sounds boring, they own a monster truck, fight zombies, stop an alien invasion, and battle a kraken.  It’s pretty badass.  As far as I know, Catscratch doesn’t air currently on any networks, and its only DVD releases are scattered episodes on old “Nick Picks” volumes.

My Dad the Rock Star

This is what happens when rock stars get too much time on their hands.  Created by KISS member Gene Simmons, My Dad the Rock Star is a Canadian cartoon that follows the story of Willy Zilla, a 14-year-old middle schooler who tries to live as normal a life as possible, despite being the son of legendary fictional rocker, “Rock” Zilla.  Rock is an eccentric, make-up wearing metal star who tries to balance the responsibility of being a good father with the rock and roll lifestyle he’s lived his entire life.  I don’t remember this show really being anything special, but its premise was interesting enough to keep me watching.  Imagine if The Osbournes was a cartoon.  My Dad the Rock Star originally ran for two seasons on Nickelodeon, Nicktoons and Teletoon (Canada) from 2003-2005, and according to its Wikipedia page, still airs on Pop and Kix in the UK.  The only DVD release was “Dad’s Debut” in 2006, featuring the first six episodes.

Corneil and Bernie

This show, among others, is one reason why I find Nicktoons Network to be far superior to today’s Nickelodeon.  Nicktoons was able to take chances with lesser-known and even foreign cartoons such as this one.  Corneil and Bernie is a cartoon that was produced, written, and animated in France.  English dubbing was done in London, and it also aired in the UK under the title Watch My Chops (Corneil’s catchphrase).  The show is about an intelligent talking dog, Corneil, and his bumbling dog sitter, Bernie.  Favoring his pampered lifestyle as a pet to wealthy owners, Corneil does everything he can to keep his abilities a secret, but this is often threatened by the antics of Bernie, who is the only one who knows the dog’s secret.  Corneil and Bernie had an original run from 2004-2006, and aired on Nicktoons until 2008.  After a long hiatus, the show was cancelled in 2009.  A region 1 DVD of the first season was released, but is now discontinued and out of print.

Shuriken School

This one is apparently Spanish, British, and French.  I’m not sure how that works, but it works well.  Shuriken School follows a group of three young ninjas in training at the school, named “Shuriken,” in Tokirohama.  Students of the school train in ancient ninja arts, hoping to one day become masters themselves.  As well as trying to overcome their scholarly challenges, the students regularly face competition from their rivals, the Katana school.  This is one of those cartoons that anyone who’s interested in Japanese culture should see for themselves.  While it certainly plays loose with the history and culture of the ninja (it is a cartoon, after all), there are hidden snippets of things to learn about Japan and the ways of this mysterious warrior class.  There’s plenty of action as well, which is never a bad thing when it comes to ninjas, and an art style that creates an interesting blend of western and anime chibi design.  Shuriken School ran on Nickelodeon in 2006 and on Nicktoons from 2006-2008.  It still airs on foreign channels around the world, and there was even a movie that aired in 2007 on Disney Channel Asia.  

Don't make it more than what it is

I saw an article on the Escapist a couple weeks ago that had the words “Jiggle Physics” and “Japanese Culture” in the title, and I thought, “well, hell, I’m not going to pass that up.”  The article discussed comments made by Team Ninja head Yosuke Hayashi about Dead or Alive 5.  With the series’ reputation for overly-sexualized female characters, he was asked what this portrayal would be like in the latest installment.  You can read the original article for the full details, but his answer essentially boiled down to a justification that DoA’s portrayal of women was an established norm of Japanese culture.  Now, I’ve been studying Japanese culture for a while now, and while, historically, they don’t have the best track record for women’s equality (really, though, what country does?), I have yet to come across anything about jiggle physics and busty women fighting each other in bikinis being an integral part of Japanese society. 

Yep. That seems uniquely Japanese

This article is just the latest piece of a puzzle I’ve been trying to figure out for quite some time about the issue of female representation in video games.  If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you probably have some idea of my stance on this.  Here’s a brief recap: I think there should be more female protagonists, and I think there should be a broader range that goes beyond the female tropes we’re all used to.  The issue of how women are physically portrayed, though, is something that’s been a little greyer for me lately.  This has come about, partially, due to how much I’ve been playing the Saints Row games lately.

In both Saints Row 2 and Saints Row: The Third, I played as a female protagonist.  The level of customization in both these games gives you plenty of freedom in how you want your character to look.  Male or female, you can create a character of supermodel proportions, or you can create a morbidly obese transsexual with Joker lips and eyes the size of marbles.  Now, if I was going to be playing as this character for the entire game, I wanted to enjoy what I was looking at, so I made my avatar reasonably attractive.  One thing that caught my attention in SR:TT was the “Sex Appeal” bar.  I was hoping it would have some sort of interesting function for my overall character, but all it does is adjust boob size. I’m not sure what, if anything, it does for a male character.  I set this bar to around 70: pretty big, but not too big.  Like I said, I want to enjoy what I’m looking at. 

Playing through the game with this character, I took her to the different clothing and tattoo shops, looking to find ways to make her even more attractive.  As I shopped through one of the stores’ selection of underwear looking for the one I liked most, I stopped and wondered: is this exploitation?  Am I sexualizing my character in a way that I would be ashamed to admit to?  By doing this, am I supporting the same objectification of females that I’ve championed against in the past?  Then I remembered what game I was playing, bought the damn G-string, and moved on.

I’m becoming less and less bothered by hyper-sexualization of women in games like Saints Row or Dead or Alive because those games aren’t asking me to take them seriously to begin with.  I have no problem with ogling Sarah Bryant or Hitomi (I looked ahead of time to make sure those characters were 18 or older) because the circumstances of their game environment are unbelievable to begin with.  It’s just meant to be fun and visually aesthetic. 

On the other hand, you have a character like Madison Paige from Heavy Rain.  She’s a character that I like, but I would like her a lot more if her role in the game was handled a little better.  Her very first appearance in the game has her getting into the shower, and then fighting off three masked intruders while in her underwear.  She is later roofied by a mad doctor, then, in a different chapter, forced to strip at gunpoint.  Madison has qualities that make her a strong character.  She’s resourceful, intuitive, quick-thinking, and handles herself under pressure, but I have a hard time appreciating this when the game is literally forcing me to undress her every chance it gets.  It’s characters like this that bother me when it comes to female portrayal in video games.  The circumstances and tone of the game is begging for them to be taken seriously, but their behavior makes it hard to do so.    

This is why I am very excited to play the Tomb Raider reboot being released next year.  I was never really into the Tomb Raider series, and, let’s face it; Lara Croft has always been a double-edged sword when it comes to female representation in video games.  However, the new Lara looks as though she’s going to be, for lack of a better word, more human than her busty, short-shorts wearing predecessors.  The rebooted Lara Croft, for now, at least, looks as though she wants to be taken seriously as a capable character with her own strengths and weaknesses.

I believe that there is room for all kinds of gender representations in video games, from hyper-sexualized street fighters to capable action heroines.  At the end of the day, it’s meant to be entertainment and escapism.  It all depends on how it’s handled.  If a stripper is naked and riding a pole on stage, don’t expect me to believe it if you say she’s really practicing dance as an interpretive art form.  She’s taking her clothes off for money, and that’s the end of it.  Likewise, don’t include adjustable boob-jiggle mechanics in your game and try to pass it off as a justifiable cultural representation of women.  That, I think, is far more insulting than the jiggle physics themselves.      

Before I call this argument closed, though, I’m willing to admit that I could be wrong.  I write this through the perspective of a white male who has never really had self-image issues.  It’s easier for me to ignore the pressures of constant media bombardment that forces its beauty standards on the world.  So if there are any feminist gamers reading this, I’d like to hear your thoughts.  Do you agree with my thoughts on gender representation, or is there something I’m missing here? 

Since this post focused on female portrayals, I plan to do a future post on masculine representations and why the “men are also objectified in the media” argument doesn’t hold up so well.  Until then, I will continue to enjoy my character creations on Saints Row, and I’ll make her look as good as I damn well please.  

Rosetta Rock: Altan Urag

A friend of mine recommended Altan Urag when I mentioned that I was looking for a Mongolian band for the next RR segment, and I’m glad he did.  They’re a bit different from what I usually write about since they are much more heavily influenced by traditional folk music, but they still have enough of a contemporary blend to their music to make them a popular band worldwide.  Formed in 2002, the name roughly translates in English to “Kin of the Kahn,” or “Golden Lineage.”  The band has had songs featured in two movies – Khadak (2006), and Mongol (2007).  Altan Urag has described their mission as to promote Mongol culture to the world, as well as exposing Mongolian youth to more traditional music.  The seven members are all trained in traditional and classical Mongol music and employ throat and long song singers. 

The lineup and instruments are as follows:

B. Erdenebat (Erka), yoochin, piano

M. Chimedtogtokh (Chimdee), pipe, vocals (throat singing)

Ts. Gangaa (Gangaa), great fiddle, bass

P. Oyunbileg (Oyunaa), moriin khuur, vocals (throat singing)

B. Bolortungalag (Tungaa), drums, percussion

B. Burentogs (Burnee) moriin khuur, vocals (throat singing)

Kh. Erdenetsetseg (Erka), vocals (long song)

You can find a link to their website (which is very cool) here.  For those of you not well-versed in the Mongol language, it has an English option.  Below is the video for their song “Blue Mark,” which was featured on the Mongol soundtrack.  Prepare for throat singing. 

Rosetta Rock: Urker

I never would have guessed that there was popular rock music coming out of Kazakhstan, but, then again, we rarely hear much from this often overlooked part of the world.  Urker was formed in 1994 as a pop-folk band.  They released their first album in 1997, and their song, “Nauryz,” won the Golden Disk award.  Musically influenced by The Beatles (who haven’t they inspired?) and cinematographically inspired by Peter Gabriel, Urker has attained international recognition with six albums and 15 music videos. 

I particularly enjoy the line-up of this band, which includes:

Aydos Saghat (vocalist, keyboardist, songwriter): studied in a conservatory in his youth and originally dreamed of being a conductor.

Rustam Musin (guitarist): no formal music education and a trained engineer.

Nurlan Alban (vocals, dombra, bass): graduate of the Almaty Academy of Arts and an actor in several movies.

Here’s the video for their song “Tugan Elim.” It’s well worth the watch.