Music is an integral part of video gaming. It sets the mood for what the player is doing and can sometimes convey emotions through a storyline better than words. Throughout the history of our favorite media, there are a number of games that push their music to its fullest potential, leaving tunes playing in our heads for days, or even years, after we put the controller down.
Follow the jump to find out what I think are the top 5 video game soundtracks of all time. Oh, and you can be sure that music-based games won’t make the list, that’s just too easy.
5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) – The folks over at Nintendo and Hal did everyone a service by releasing this. It means that only one game on my list will be from Nintendo instead of the entire thing. Nintendo’s music is legendary, from The Legend of Zelda to Super Mario Brothers and Metroid. I have Smash Bros Brawl on the list because it has just about every single Nintendo melody on the disc, some in original form and others remixed. If you only know one song from a video game from heart, there’s a good chance it came from a Nintendo game.
4. Final Fantasy VIII (PSX, PC) – I know there’s going to be some people that disagree with me singling out 8 from the series, but of course they all deserve to be on the list (except for 10×2). 8 just happens to be my favorite. Nobuo Uematsu, the former composer for Square, is a genius in every sense of the word. Even back in the days of 8 and 16-bit consoles, Uematsu was making memorable music that could get stuck in your head for days. He’s also the brilliant man who came up with the Final Fantasy victory theme. If you don’t know what that is, you’ll need to turn in your Gamercard on the way out.
It should also be noted that he wrote “Eyes on Me” for Final Fantasy VIII, which was performed by Faye Wong. The song sold over 400,000 copies, breaking records and making history as the best selling video game soundtrack until “Hikari” from Kingdom Hearts was released.
3. The Orange Box (360, PS3, PC)- Half Life 2, Team Fortress 2, and Portal. The music in all three of those games is outstanding, and completely different from one another. The Half Life 2 soundtrack is an all around ambiance that blends perfectly with the world around you, and ramps up at the right times to convey what’s happening. Team Fortress 2 is the complete opposite, with the music fitting the outlandish style of the game. Portal is where the game shines though, and not just because of “Still Alive,” though that’s a huge plus. The entire Portal soundtrack has something special about it, even though it’s mostly instrumental.
2. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2, Xbox, PC)- Out of all the GTA games, it’s apparent that a majority of the internet believes Vice City had the best soundtrack. I’m inclined to agree with that. Now, the GTA IV selection isn’t that bad, and San Andreas had an alright soundtrack, but I don’t think either of them top the 80’s sounds of Vice City. There’s something special about stealing a cab to get away from a 4 star wanted rating only to have “Video Killed the Radio Star” playing, or shooting down the street on a bike that was blasting “Sister Christian.” Classic.
1. Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete (Saturn, PSX) – I wanted this on the list, but didn’t at the same time. From my experience, not a whole lot of people know of the Lunar series, and even less like it as much as I do. Back in the day, I was a sucker for a good story, and even more so for a good Soundtrack. The Lunar series delivered on both ends, with Lunar 2: Eternal Blue being the pinnacle. Eternal Blue was focused around a love story, and the soundtrack portrays this perfectly, but there’s also more emotion than that in the music. If there’s one thing I can say about the Eternal Blue soundtrack, it’s that it manages to tell its own story through the music, and that’s why it deserves the top spot on my list.
So there you have it, my personal 5 favorite game soundtracks of all time. I tried to think of something else, but I couldn’t leave Final Fantasy or Lunar off the list, so I apologize for the two RPGs. As for the games that came very close: Halo 2, Resident Evil 2, Mega Man 3, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
I’m sure you’ve got something to say about it, whether you agree or disagree with my list. Be sure to head over to our forums and let me know just how wrong I am.
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Stubbs the Zombie soundtrack was so good, I had to buy it.
But what about Halo???!
i vote Kingdom Hearts and FFXII (there were some awesome french horn and xylophone runs in that)
How could you not have any of the Metal gear theme´s?
Halo is probably my favorite soundtrack of all time. I mean, its just sweet!
Donkey Kong Country? Wipeout 2097(XL)? Hard to pick a top 5 really, but good job all the same.
Final Fantasy Tactics and Parasite Eve for me.
@Freefile19: Super Smash Bros. Braw contains many of the good songs from the metal gear series. Also the maine theme to SSBB was composed by none other then Nobuo Uematsu.
Prefer San Andreas, but that might be more out of its depth and the number of classics.
One big omission that no one else has mentioned is Bioshock. There’s some really good tracks on there, especially The Ocean On His Shoulders and Cohen’s Masterpiece
I’d have to say:
5.NiGHTs into Dreams… (Saturn)
4.Halo 3 (360)
3.Medal of Honor (PS1)
2.Halo 2 (Xbox, PC)
1.Medal of Honor Frontline (PS2, GC, Xbox)
Oops, I messed up. The Japanese soundtrack for Sonic CD should be in my 4th place.
My personal favorites…
1) Ocarina of Time
2) Shadow of the Colossus
3) Mega Man 3
4) Okami
5) Mega Man X5
I haven’t purchased GTA IV yet, so can’t comment on it, but I agree with GTA:VC being on the list. That soundtrack was GREAT! Of course I was in my 20s during the 80s, so that might have something to do with it.
1. Silent Hill
2. Lunar 1&2
3. Final Fantasy X (Even imported the 4 disc Japanese version)
4. All Zelda games
5. Katamari Damacy (I don’t care what anyone says. This game is awesome!)
Hmmm of all time? Great topic! GTA VC should not count as it is not true video game music, just my opinion. Here are my pics:
1. Blaster Master NES
2. Mega Man 2 NES
3. Final Fantasy VI
4. Eternal Sonata XBOX 360
5. Castlevania III NES
oh my god is everyone forgetting patapon?
Orange box soundtrack is just too damn good
Just so good
Orange Box is awesome. I really liked the Ghouls n Ghosts tunes.
Methinks a top 5 is too small; I’d personally have a top 10, but in no particular order, of:
Patapon
Loco Roco
Final Fantasy VIII
Metal Gear Solid 2
GTA: Vice City
Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
Katamari Damacy
Gitaroo Man
Everyday Shooter
PixelJunk: Monsters
Some of them are just epic, some of them plain silly yet memorable, and some of them are just plain damn awesome.
what about gta san andreas that had a more superior soundtrack to vice city in my opinion
I still love the soundtracks to Super R-Type and Uniracers (SNES) and StreetFighter 2 (coin-op). Along with Killer Instinct, those are still my favourites of all time.
Megaman 2 (dr wily stage 1 is the greatest video game song ever in my book)
Megaman 3
Final Fantasy VI (the opera scene etc)
Secret of Mana (best intro music ever)
The Halo series
The MGS series
Super Metroid
Lumines
Fallout 1 & 2
Oblivion
The Baldur’s Gate series
Duke Nukem 3D
I like the orange box soundtrack, although mainly for the Episode 2 electronica.
Also, na-naaa-na-na-na-na-na-na-naa-na-na-na-nana-naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
KATAMARI DAMACYYYY