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Continuing with the tradition of our Thursday Top 10’s, we decided to look at something very obvious, but yet very distinct. So far we’ve looked at the Memorable Character Deaths, the Best Weapons Featured in a FPS and the Top Ten Nine (don’t ask) Original Game Songs. This week, we’re doing a run on some of the most memorable video game themes.
Why? Because apart from the fact how great games really are (no, really!), gamers themselves often tend to rate a game based first on graphics, game play and artistic appeal (though not necessarily in that order) – which is pretty much what decides whether its good enough to play. But EVERY game has to make use of sound and it’s plain to see that, what with games like Half-Life 2 and System Shock 2. Music forms a crucial component of the game-play experience; get the right music at the right time, and you feel the adrenalin pumping. But while most newer games now use ambient noise and music, a lot of cue based intros and then outros – the games we’ve all grown up on and loved have always had that catchy tune, hook, phrase or riff that made everything that much more captivating!
Hit the jump to read more.
This list here is a tribute to the music (and composers) for all those games that made myself decide on whether I truly adore video games. While I’m tempted to rank these in no order, a Top 10 list says otherwise. So if you feel offended that I’ve got your favorite theme at number 3 instead of 2, feel free to leave a comment or better yet: compile your own list. Trust me, the fat lady will NEVER sing when it comes to these tunes.
10. Fahrenheit’s / Indigo Prophecy’s Theme – Composed by Angelo Badalamenti
This theme is bizarre and beautiful. It’s surreal and yet so real. It’s captivating, and yet downright creepy simply because it’s fits so perfectly with the game! The score is beautiful and expresses each character in a way that no bundled manual could ever do. The game also features music from Teddy Pendergrass, Theory of A Deadman, Ben E. King and Nina Simone. Listen to the score here.
9. Max Payne 2’s Theme – Composed by Kärtsy Hatakka and Kimmo Kajasto
With its brilliant introduction, this cello centric opus had me take my hand away from the mouse till it looped or the game kicked into a demo scene. It’s a sad and haunting piece that completely justifies the tag line – “A Film Noir Love Story.” You know what’s going to happen and you don’t want it to happen, yet you know it must. Besides having a killer theme, this also features the amazing Late Goodbye performed by Poets of the Fall. Listen to the theme here.
8. Contra’s Jungle theme – Composed by H. Maezawa and Kyouhei Sada
Imagine being entrusted to save the world from an alien invasion with high blood-pumping, bit-tunes to help you get through it. They said that music was therapy – yeah baby! The Contra Jungle Theme is therapy to induce warm-fuzziness at the sight of crimson earth! Obviously, the greatness of such a great theme can only be surpassed by what fans do to pay their tributes to them. Chris “VertexGuy” Kline is one such bloke who rips the Jungle Theme with his very own, very rad rendition. Watch!
7. StarCraft’s Terran theme – Composed by Derek Duke, Bill Parcells and Glenn Stafford
I remember downloading the program called MPQEdit, from somewhere, ONLY because I wanted to record and listen to this theme ALL THE TIME. Majestic and futuristic in its sound, this opening number sets the stage for all your battles as the Terran Confederate. Add in James Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan, and you have something of Biblical proportions. This theme makes you feel like you large and in-charge of everything (which you are!). It’s a super full-blown epic score that needs no rambling. It sings for itself, and how! If I had one word to best describe with, you can bet one of them would be close to “heroic.” Check it out!
6. Halo’s Orchestral Score – Composed by Marty O’Donnell
I’m not even gonna say anything here. Anyone who’s alive (or undead, even) and reading this, knows JUST what I’m talking about. Suffice it to say, this screams in your face: “SAVE THE UNIVERSE!”
5. Diablo’s Town Theme – Composed by Matt Uelmen
Okay, so the first time I heard this when playing Diablo – I was like, “FUCK! Are these guys playing 24 string guitars?” This theme has so many layersthat, in my honest opinion, it’s impossible to play this on one guitar. Its complex, shifts tempom and kicks ass. This theme could tell a blind man that it was written to create a gothic-sonic, soundscape for a war and disease ravaged land that had nothing to offer and was begging to be saved. With its haunting intro, uplifting fills, harmonics, devilish use of delay and then gloomy exit… this theme is the epitome of how music helps tell a story. A story of sadness, short-lived happiness and then sadness again. Listen to it here.
4. Super Mario Bros.’ Overworld Theme – Composed by Koji Kondo
If this theme doesn’t mean anything to you, you should probably just fall down and die. From a very steep cliff, with Mortal Kombat spikes on the ground to soften your landing. With a very uppy tempo and a tune that’d just make you smile, this theme has touched the hearts of millions of gamers across different age groups, genres and genders. Check out this video of a very talented bloke playing the theme on an 11-string base! I didn’t even know these existed till the dude here ripped away!
3. Silent Hill 2’s Theme of Laura – Composed by Akira Yamaoka
Right, I think this is played in the key of C. So what, you ask? Let me tell you, almost all great songs are written in the key of C! Pink Floyd’s “Coming Back to Life”, Killswitch Engage’s “Desperate Times”, as well renditions of “The House of the Rising Sun” – ad infinitum ad nausem. But that was just a cheap stunt to show you that this, is quite seriously, Grammy material. Actually, do they have Grammy’s for game music? Shouldn’t they? Cuz if they did, this one would definitely win! I don’t have much else to say, because Laura herself is quite a complex character in the game and signifies a lot in James’ life. But this theme is not something that registers in your ear, but straight in your heart. You’ll feel for the character and you’ll be humming it for days, before you realize you’re still in the shower.
2. Doom’s E1M1 – Composed by Bobby Prince
Metal! That’s it. This is all I need to write, really. But if you must know, the E1M1 riff is directly inspired from the intro riff of Slayer’s “Behind the Crooked Cross” from their album South of Heaven. I haven’t ever seen this on any trivia site, so now if someone asks you, you heard it here first. Ladies and Gents, get your chainsaws out and let ‘er rip! Download the MIDIs here – and listen to the Slayer sample clip here: MP3 or OGG
1. Silent Hill’s Theme – Composed by Akira Yamaoka.
With a haunting mandolin tremolo intro, this song suddenly kicks into a mild-paced brooding riff that takes an unexpected turn to sadness, fear and ultimately revelation. This is quite literally one single theme that manages to effectively emote love and hate, affection and rejection, mystery and revelation, dark and light, and ultimately deliverance or purgatory. Yamaoka-san is a genius and it’s no wonder he’s got so many fans all over the world. My love for Japan, its people and its culture just grows exponentially when I listen to this song (but don’t ask me why). Really. Listen to this masterpiece here.
That concludes our list of the Top 10’s “Best Video Game Themes of All Time.” One of the reasons I’ve given links to Youtube videos and haven’t actually posted sound clips, is because I want you to view these fan pages and see related fan work as well. The fans who keep these themes alive MUST be given credit for the love they, you and me have in common.
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November 29th, 2007 at 11:23 am
What?
No Frank Klapecki? The creator of the all-mighty Hellmarch & Hellmarch 2? Those two alone are some of the best and most famous tracks in RTS history!
Where is Supreme Commander or Total Annihalation on this list? The sound tracks for both were near Epic, giving you a damn good feeling of being on an awesome battlefield with thousands of units under your command and ready to blow the shit outta the enemy.
And then there’s other stuff, like Freespace 2. Freespace 2…man, how could you leave out that? The many soundtracks of the game were slightly alternative, granted, but when you played and listened to them – it fit in beautifully. On the creepy missions in the nebula, the scary music would come up and really send shivers down your spine.
This is of course not including the AWESOME tracks that came with Homeworld 1 and made the missions just so much more atmospheric.
My top 10 themes:
10. Total Annihalation’s Orchestral Score
9. Simcity 3000’s Tracks
8. Red Alert 1&2 – Hellmarch 1&2 to be specific
7. The Final Fantasy Themes
6. Super Mario
5. Tetris Score
4. Halo’s Orchestral Score
3. Supreme Commander’s Orchestral Score
2. Freespace 2’s Soundtracks & Chorals
1. Homeworld 1’s Chorals
November 29th, 2007 at 2:05 pm
nice list man
makes sense
though where is deus ex?
November 29th, 2007 at 3:51 pm
It’s not easy, i assure you with so much quality out there. I’ve been asking myself – where’s Quake 2, Where’s the Boogerman Theme, where’s this and that. But then again – i guess the question is, which tracks would be most memorable to multiple audiences across multiple genres. Singh’s list is good, but personally, i dont feel that they stand out distinctly.
November 30th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
While i enjoyed reading the article, i found the list highly controversial. Doom at number 2? and no Deus Ex? are you kidding? and halo at 6? Diablo Town theme…. just coz its complex in composition, that doesnt make it go for a number 5. and Max Payne at number 10.. i wont even say anything about that….. blasphemy…. burn him….
November 30th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
I hate you all! Where is the Unreal Tournament theme? I used to listen to that on Winamp all the time. Heck, I still listen to it, not on Winamp though!
And after playing Homeworld and Homeworld 2 the last couple of days, I can’t get the theme out of my head at all.
November 30th, 2007 at 1:46 pm
And oh, talking about Halo, I still prefer Halo 3’s score over the first and second one, obviously. I still wait on the main menu while that sad score plays all the way to the end.
November 30th, 2007 at 2:01 pm
Hi… I am a great fan of video games for about… oh.. bogus, I dont want to be depressed
My List:
1 – Deus EX
2 – Blade Runner
3 – Starcraft
4 – Supreme Commander
5 – Command & Conquer’s
6 – Grim Fandango
7 – Dune II
8 – Indigo Prophecy
9 – Max Payne
10 – IGI 2
November 30th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
yeah that sad tune is amazing…its called UNFORGOTTEN…its also present in halo 2 but the Halo 3 version is way way cooler. Also just after completing the whole game and actually finishing the fight, it is really something to sit and watch the menu screen as Unforgotten plays in the background, and you realize that All good things have to come to an end. (until you host Valhalla and kick some butt that it:P)
November 30th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
The Diablo town theme is not on this list because it’s a complex multi-layered song! It’s there because it’s a great song and any gamer worth her or his salt would instantly know this theme.
Of course, it’s very important to remember that the tracks here are not about the best game!
And while compiling this list, i had Alice in Chains help me. I kept listining to “The Nothing Song”. And like it goes…’the nothing song sticks to your tongue like peanut butter to your brain….eeyaaaaeeeeeeeee….’. So i just had to think of the themes that stuck to my brain without me having to play the game ‘recently’!
November 30th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
No Ico/Wanda? .FAIL.
December 12th, 2007 at 3:25 am
[...] when you could recognize video game themes by ear. The Angry Pixel recently came out with their list of top video game themes. Super Mario, Final Fantasy and any of the Street Fighter themes are my personal favorites. [...]
June 23rd, 2008 at 10:49 am
WHERES METAL GEAR SOLIDS THEME
September 2nd, 2009 at 9:16 am
You should take a listen to “The Legendary Theme” from Guitaroo Man (a criminally overlooked PS2 music/rhythm game).