In about a week I’m going to be going to Video Games Live. For those of you who don’t know, Video Games Live is a concert that performs famous video game music. You can look at it here. I am extremely EXTREMELY pumped for this. Not only am I a lover of games, but also of soundtracks in general. It’s what most of my music collection is comprised of. And lest you think that the music being played here is Mario music, think again. Game music has come a long way from the original 8-bit glory, and now often requires full orchestras to perform them.
So while I wait in insane anticipation, I figure I’d do a Top 10 (10!) list of memorable music pieces from the games I love. Sure, I could do my favourite full soundtracks in general, but there are those songs and pieces from games that I listen to over and over again and they deserve attention too. Rules! I will try to keep it limited to one song per game. The song has to be in-game, so songs like "Still Alive", which were made for the game but weren't actually in the game, don't make it. Most of these will be obscure adventure games, and there is actually no particular order to them as I just add them as I think of them, soooooo...
10. Atrus' Theme- Riven: Okay, I might as well begin with the most predictable one (at least for me). yes, Riven. Always with the Riven. If there is a Top 10 list, Riven and the Longest Journey will make it in some capacity. This is a song I listen to over...and over...and over again. And I have yet to get sick of it. It's probably the most vague and atmospheric of the group. When I listen to it, it makes me feel as though there's something going on far bigger than I could possibly comprehend. Also, like I'm in a cave. Two different things, but still two awesome things. This is pretty much my perfect writing music.
9. Madison's Theme- Heavy Rain- Heavy Rain is full of some great suspenseful music as well as some more intimate pieces. But for some reason, it's this one I like the best. After a while, the tense heavy murder strings start to get to you, and the mournful piano piece is appropriately sad but does in fact make me feel melancholy. This piece sort of has the best of both worlds. It's suspenseful and full of mystery, with just a hint of doubt and sadness to it.
8. Achenar- Myst IV: Revelations: I've always felt mixed about Myst 4, the beautiful but somewhat plot holey game with some of the most unintentionally hilarious acting jobs I've ever seen. But one thing I don't have any doubts about is the music. This was the hard one for me, as the epic intro music to the game is noteworthy as well. This one though literally sent shivers down my spine. As a Myst fan, I'm more biased in my choice here. There's clear allusions to the first Myst game's theme for Achenar, and the haunting lullaby feel to the whole thing just oozes with the regret and history of the family and the madness that is plagued by this character. Like I said, I have issues with the game, but this piece of music is one I continually listen to.
7. Myst 3- Main Title- I said one song per game, not per franchise! So clearly I'm going to go Myst crazy. Myst 3 was the first Myst game to have a full orchestral soundtrack with music composed by Jack Wall. The sheer difference in music styles between the first two games more synthesized atmospheric sound and Jack Wall's...well, extremely epic soundtrack is quite noticeable, but none moreso than the theme. It starts out quiet and slightly mournful, then by the end has a whole choir backing it up in a fantastic climax. If this song doesn't get you excited about puzzle solving, I don't know what will.
6. The Lost Woods- Zelda Ocarina of Time: Another Zelda game, yes, and choosing a piece for this one was difficult. But lest you all start to think that I'm a dour, somber hater of life, this upbeat tune should definitely prove otherwise. It's present in almost every zelda game since Ocarina of Time, and with good reason. I can't help but bop my head to it when it comes on. It pretty much perfectly reflects the playful mood of the woods, and the character of Saria who the song was originally written for.
5. Highlands- Beyond Atlantis- This game is one I have not mentioned yet, but is one that I've played often. It's an obscure little title from years back that remains one of my favourite games, and this piece of music? Is one of the main reasons it is. In the game, this level takes place on a remote island in Ireland and you play as a monk attempting to make sense of all the weird supernatural things happening around the island. This is the sort of musical piece that I'd just turn on the game for and leave it on to listen to it. It was great study music, it was great writing music, and hell, it's just great music. If you're going to listen to it, you have to wait until about 1:30 in when the music begins to swell and really take off.
4. Main Title- Longest Journey: I mentioned this before in the Top Opening Cinematics, and so it stands to reason that I'll mention it again. This is the kind of mysterious, epic, fairy tale music that just sticks with me the most out of all the music in the game.
3. Validelene- Syberia: It's whimsical! That's all...okay, more than that...the waltz-y old timey feel to the beginning of this game hints at a golden age gone by combined with the feel of a small sleepy village. It's near the beginning of the game and there's tons of more awesome music to come but it was always this song that got into my head the most.
2. Promise (Reprise)- Silent Hill 2: If there is a game dedicated to haunting pasts and life regrets, it's this one. Well, it's also dedicated to scaring the living crap out of you, but when it's not doing that it's delving deep into some pretty complex characters and even though the main theme of Silent Hill 2 is very well known, it's this simple little piano piece that serves as Angela's theme that gets me every time. It properly displays her own fragile and shattered soul and feels like a character itself. Despite being a minor character, Angela and this song are definitely some of the more memorable ones.
1. Room of Angel- Silent Hill 4- Another problematic game, but one in which this song makes the death of an otherwise annoying character very tragic. It's the only song in this list that has lyrics to it, and can be included because it is a song that happens in game. It's the song that's most associated with the game, and with good reason. It's so haunting and moving and the lyrics are just so bizarrely intense. It's the most recent one I've found, so I'm still in the "listening 10 times a day" phase of it.
Special Mention- These are soundtracks that either I haven't gotten a hold of or games that have great music, but that I haven't felt the urge to listen to outside of the game: Grim Fandango, Gabriel Knight 2, Gray Matter (a bit of a lie, I just couldn't think of one song in particular to put in there), Myst (what would I choooose), Zelda: Majora's Mask, Egypt 2: Heliopolis Prophecy, The Lost Crown and Syberia 2
8. Achenar- Myst IV: Revelations: I've always felt mixed about Myst 4, the beautiful but somewhat plot holey game with some of the most unintentionally hilarious acting jobs I've ever seen. But one thing I don't have any doubts about is the music. This was the hard one for me, as the epic intro music to the game is noteworthy as well. This one though literally sent shivers down my spine. As a Myst fan, I'm more biased in my choice here. There's clear allusions to the first Myst game's theme for Achenar, and the haunting lullaby feel to the whole thing just oozes with the regret and history of the family and the madness that is plagued by this character. Like I said, I have issues with the game, but this piece of music is one I continually listen to.
7. Myst 3- Main Title- I said one song per game, not per franchise! So clearly I'm going to go Myst crazy. Myst 3 was the first Myst game to have a full orchestral soundtrack with music composed by Jack Wall. The sheer difference in music styles between the first two games more synthesized atmospheric sound and Jack Wall's...well, extremely epic soundtrack is quite noticeable, but none moreso than the theme. It starts out quiet and slightly mournful, then by the end has a whole choir backing it up in a fantastic climax. If this song doesn't get you excited about puzzle solving, I don't know what will.
6. The Lost Woods- Zelda Ocarina of Time: Another Zelda game, yes, and choosing a piece for this one was difficult. But lest you all start to think that I'm a dour, somber hater of life, this upbeat tune should definitely prove otherwise. It's present in almost every zelda game since Ocarina of Time, and with good reason. I can't help but bop my head to it when it comes on. It pretty much perfectly reflects the playful mood of the woods, and the character of Saria who the song was originally written for.
5. Highlands- Beyond Atlantis- This game is one I have not mentioned yet, but is one that I've played often. It's an obscure little title from years back that remains one of my favourite games, and this piece of music? Is one of the main reasons it is. In the game, this level takes place on a remote island in Ireland and you play as a monk attempting to make sense of all the weird supernatural things happening around the island. This is the sort of musical piece that I'd just turn on the game for and leave it on to listen to it. It was great study music, it was great writing music, and hell, it's just great music. If you're going to listen to it, you have to wait until about 1:30 in when the music begins to swell and really take off.
4. Main Title- Longest Journey: I mentioned this before in the Top Opening Cinematics, and so it stands to reason that I'll mention it again. This is the kind of mysterious, epic, fairy tale music that just sticks with me the most out of all the music in the game.
3. Validelene- Syberia: It's whimsical! That's all...okay, more than that...the waltz-y old timey feel to the beginning of this game hints at a golden age gone by combined with the feel of a small sleepy village. It's near the beginning of the game and there's tons of more awesome music to come but it was always this song that got into my head the most.
2. Promise (Reprise)- Silent Hill 2: If there is a game dedicated to haunting pasts and life regrets, it's this one. Well, it's also dedicated to scaring the living crap out of you, but when it's not doing that it's delving deep into some pretty complex characters and even though the main theme of Silent Hill 2 is very well known, it's this simple little piano piece that serves as Angela's theme that gets me every time. It properly displays her own fragile and shattered soul and feels like a character itself. Despite being a minor character, Angela and this song are definitely some of the more memorable ones.
1. Room of Angel- Silent Hill 4- Another problematic game, but one in which this song makes the death of an otherwise annoying character very tragic. It's the only song in this list that has lyrics to it, and can be included because it is a song that happens in game. It's the song that's most associated with the game, and with good reason. It's so haunting and moving and the lyrics are just so bizarrely intense. It's the most recent one I've found, so I'm still in the "listening 10 times a day" phase of it.
Special Mention- These are soundtracks that either I haven't gotten a hold of or games that have great music, but that I haven't felt the urge to listen to outside of the game: Grim Fandango, Gabriel Knight 2, Gray Matter (a bit of a lie, I just couldn't think of one song in particular to put in there), Myst (what would I choooose), Zelda: Majora's Mask, Egypt 2: Heliopolis Prophecy, The Lost Crown and Syberia 2
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