Video games and music, top 10 soundtracks of all time

Music is a powerful tool in every storyteller’s baggage. Even if you won’t remember a specific boss fight or cutscene from a game years after you beat it, there’s a good chance that an exciting battle theme or piece of music will stick in your head.

Top 10 best video game soundtracks —

Almost every game has a song or two that stand out as its musical masterpieces, but if we were to talk about each specific case, we should probably take a month off (and we don’t rule out doing so, one day).

What makes an experience truly special is when an entire soundtrack combines with a strong theme to create a wide range of powerful and memorable tunes that you’ll want to add to your playlists instantly.

Shadow of the Colossus

Shadow of the Colossus is a powerful experience, mixing unique and epic boss fights with a deceptive and exciting story. It’s always a slow start, when you first catch a glimpse of the beast, to keep calm and let the gravity of what you’re about to do absorb. Then, an overwhelming sense of dread engulfs the runway as the behemoth spots you and tries to attack you – the odds are truly stacked against you, until you finally make it through. Climb onto his back as the triumphant roar of “Revived Power” makes you feel like a true hero. Then you slay the creature, and instead of a victory note, you’re struck by a somber tune that seems to mourn the slaughter of this monster – a beautiful twist that becomes all the more powerful when you know how it ends.

Octopath Traveler

Many classic JRPGs have memorable soundtracks, such as Chrono Trigger or the old Dragon Quests. Octopath Traveler composer Yasunori Nishiki had the daunting task of creating a soundtrack that would recall the gameplay feel and style of those classic soundtracks while still living up to modern standards. A task that Nishiki has done excellently, using a full orchestra to create one of the most brilliant soundtracks in the history of video games. Not only are all the battle themes rocking, but the city themes are memorable as well and the big story moments make a bang. Most impressive, however, are the eight themes of the protagonists, all focusing on different instruments and masterfully embodying each traveller.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

The Zelda series is filled with great scores – whether it’s the subtle, chaotic piano of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, or the strong, assertive 16-bit tracks of A Link to the Past. However, we think that it is Ocarina of Time that does the best job with the music of the series: it presents a great mix of styles, with now iconic themes and leitmotifs, and with the addition of fantastic new tracks such as “Gerudo Valley” or “Zelda’s Lullaby”, which will be reused and also mentioned in the following chapters.

Phoenix WrightAce Attorney

Ace Attorneys, especially the original, have managed to do a lot with a little. As a visual novel on a shoestring budget, it’s a small miracle that no aspect of the first Phoenix Wright goes to waste: it uses powerful poses, limited animation, and stunning music to bring his story to life. The bombastic, melodramatic courtroom scenes wouldn’t be as entertaining without the soundtrack to back them up: there’s the slow-paced, thought-provoking, clever-strategizing cross-examination theme that will eventually leave the place to the “Pursuit” theme, when you reach your moment of glory and you manage to turn the tide of the dispute.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3

All Xenoblade know how to make a highlight with an epic soundtrack, and all three main installments of the series have outstanding music, but the third one is the most complete of the lot. Battle tunes like “You Will Know Our Names – Finale” transform the toughest battles into divine encounters; emotional songs like “Where We Belong” still make us cry every time we hear them; and remixed old songs like “Time to Fight” and “Drifting Soul” reference the history of the series while creating something new with old fan-favorite songs.

Heavenly

Chances are you’ll spend a lot of time in Celeste’s levels, as this punishing platformer forces you to retry the same rooms over and over again. So the background music better be satisfying to listen to on a loop, right? Each level has a unique feel in Celeste, and music is one of the main factors in creating an ever-changing atmosphere. When we think of the strangeness of the Hidden Temple, the emotional battle of Reflection or the determination of The Summit, the music of these levels is the first thing that comes to mind: it brings these characters and these emotions to life more than dialogue can , which is really special.

Pokémon Diamond and Pearl

As with Zelda, it could be argued that any Pokémon game has the best soundtrack, but Diamond & Pearl is our pick. The soundtrack of Diamond and Pearl is the strong point of the game, in which the technology of the DS allows to have a retro atmosphere and at the same time to introduce a great musical complexity. Almost every battle theme will make you jump out of your seat, every city theme encapsulates the feel of that area, and even has the best Routes theme in the series. If you then look at specific songs such as the battle themes of Cyrus or Dialga and Palkia, you notice the great effort to capture the essence of each character through the music. Cynthia has two distinct themes and they are both great – few other characters can match such an achievement.

Sayonara Wild Hearts

Sayonara Wild Hearts is a special game because it was created specifically to tell its story through music. This pop soundtrack combines with the game’s rather crazy visuals to create a 90-minute roller coaster ride that will take you on a story of heartbreak and finding yourself. Delving into the aspects that make it so good would ruin the experience completely, but you will be completely absorbed in the game from the very beginning, trust me.

Sonic Mania

There is perhaps no franchise that has as many great songs in as many different genres as Sonic the Hedgehog. The Classics have some of the best 16-bit tunes of all time, the 2000s have cheesy rock songs that are still heart-pounding today, and the 2010s chapters have dived into pop music as well. We will always enjoy “Escape From The City”, the classic songs are still the best and Sonic Mania offers the best selection of them, introducing numerous modern musical elements without destroying the original feel of each song. It adds more layers without taking anything away, which is hard to do.

Person 5

All the songs are memorable, and they all rock: it’s very simple. Persona 5’s soundtrack isn’t particularly rich. The game is already based on a unique visual style and the soundtrack only enhances it, inserting elements of jazz and swing in a rock soundtrack that will stick in your mind after just one listen. Add Persona 5 Royal to the mix and you get even more incredible songs, like the party vibe of “Takeover”, the epicness of “I Believe” and the heartbreaking emotion of “Throw Away Your Mask”. It could have been released as a standalone album and still have been a masterpiece of music, but the way it serves the story and world of Persona 5 makes it all the more impressive.

Written by Ryan Woodrow for GLHF