Favorites - Favorite Soundtracks from Video Games

You know, there is one thing I haven’t talked about here in a while: music. I guess it got lost in the shuffle of comics, books, movies, and TV. Heck, I’m still not letting go of a couple of those things in the next couple of posts. I started to wonder about my favorite movie scores and started to run into blanks. I got them, but I really couldn’t call up many except for a few. Then, a lot of the ones I could think of are from the same dudes.

Then, I began to wonder about my favorite musical scores from video games. I shockingly had more luck there. Music is one thing that helps enhance gameplaying. It can help you get hyped up at the big moments and it can make you pretty annoyed at the low moments. I can’t count how many times I heard Saren’s theme when I died in the first Mass Effect. So, here are my ten favorite musical scores from video games. It’s not completely in order, but I do have the best up front.

1. Deus Ex: Human Revolution

This is quite possibly one of my favorite video game soundtracks. HR is a great game and the music is just one of the great things about it. Composer Michael McCann took various genres and made something that was very awesome. The music sits right there with Vangelis’ music for Blade Runner, one of the inspirations for the music in HR. The ambient music you hear in the main menu and during gameplay is nice. The music for the action scenes is awesome. I know I need to stop gushing this one, but it is one of the best out there.

Favorite Tracks: “Icarus,” “Singapore Ambient,” and “Main Menu”

2. The Mass Effect Trilogy

Here, I had to make a compromise. The Mass Effect series has had great music along with great gameplay. Jack Wall was the main composer for the first two games while ME3 had a variety of folk on it. The music was all over the place. It was like someone threw music from Blade Runner, Star Wars, Dune, Star Trek, The Terminator, and other sci-fi properties into a blender. Of the three games, I’d say that ME1 had my favorite music. They’re all good, though.

Favorite Tracks:

Mass Effect 1: “Vigil,” “Saren,” and “Ilos Battle,” and “Normandy”

Mass Effect 2: “Suicide Mission,” “The Normandy Reborn,” “End Run,” and “The Illusive Man”

Mass Effect 3: “Leaving Earth,” “Credits,” and “A Future for the Krogan”

3. Batman: Arkham City

The Batman Arkham series put out some good music. Arkham City is probably my favorite, though. The music really stuck out to me on that game. It’s like a perfect combination of Danny Elfman’s, Hans Zimmer’s, and Shirley Walker’s music from the movies and animated series. The music gets pumping when you’re kicking butt and it gets moody when you’re sulking around the dark places in Gotham City.

Favorite Tracks: “Main Theme”, “It’s Initiation Time”, and “I Know What You Guys Are Thinking”

4. Sonic 3

Yeah, I’m going back to the 90’s for this one. The Sonic games (well, the good ones) always had fast-paced, groovy music with them. It meshed well with the fast gameplay. While the first two games had nice music, this game probably has some of the best music in my opinion. There’s also another thing about the level music I like. Apparently, some of it was composed by Michael Jackson and some of the songs sound like MIDI versions of his 90’s songs. Seriously, check this out and be surprised like I was few years ago

Favorite Tracks: “Credit Roll,” “Ice Cap Level 1,” “Hyrdosity Level 1,” and Hydrosity Level 2”

5. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

The Metal Gear Solid series always had nice music. Of the bunch, MGS3 probably has my favorite music. The composers did their best to make the music fit the environment. They made it fit the jungle feel the game had. When the moments got big and bombastic, it did that. When you get to the stealthy spots, they made it fit that too. They even tried to make some of the music fit the timeline since MGS3 takes place in the early 60’s. Lastly, since it is a game about a spy, the music homages the James Bond franchise in a big way.

Favorite Tracks: “Snake Eater,” “Battle in the Base,” “The Fury,” and “Way to Fall”

6. Tekken Tag Tournament

The Tekken franchise has always had good music. Even in the beginning, the music was pumping. You could definitely exercise or fight to this music. It’d be tough to say which game had the best. The original Tekken had some nice music, Tekken 3 had some awesome tracks, and the later installments were great as well. Still, I think I’ll have to go with Tekken Tag Tournament as my favorite. It had some great tracks to get your fight on to. Also, here’s a compilation of a lot of the best tracks from the franchise.

Favorite Tracks: “Intro,” “King’s Theme,” “Ogre’s Theme”, and “Embu”

7. Elder Scrolls: Skyrim

You know something from Bethesda would have to be on here. Skyrim’s score is magnificent. It definitely goes for that “Lord of the Rings” vibe. Of course, you had the epic, adventurous battle music going down. You get that when you put the game in with “Dragonborne.” It also succeeds in giving soothing music that’s nice for traveling the land.

Favorite Tracks: “Dragonborne,” “Wind Guide You,” “Watch the Skies,” and “From Past to Present”

8. Halo 2

While I didn’t own an Xbox back in college, I was able to play the Halo games through roommates. That was when I first ran into that pretty cool music. This soundtrack was one I tried to keep an eye out for. Let’s just say I was quite happy when I found this in Hasting years ago. There was just something about the music that kept me listening to it.

Favorite Tracks: “Impend,” “Halo Theme (Mjolnir Mix),” “Heretic Hero,” and “The Last Spartan”

9. Dragon Age: Origins

DAO is another score that has a “Lord of the Rings” vibe to it. The main theme definitely shows you that.  You have powerful pieces as well as some nice soothing tracks. It’d be tough for me to say if the music here is better than Skyrim’s though. This would be the better game, and yes, I’ll stick to that.  By the way, whatever happened to Bioware when it concerns music? The music for Dragon Age: Inquisition and Mass Effect: Andromeda was fine but not on the level of other previous entries. At least their

Favorite Tracks: “Dragon Age Origins,” “Leliana’s Song,”, “I Am The One,” and “The Deep Roads”

I think I’ll just cut it off here since I’ve gushed on for far too long. If you have any favorite music scores from video games, let me know. Well, we’re getting to that cheery time where sleigh bells are ringing, children are singing, and folk are a-clashing. Yay… 2017 was a weird but fine year. I don’t know what I’ll have next time but I bet it’ll be related to this holiday season. Until then, Peace, God Bless, and take care of yourself.