Topic: Your top five favorite game soundtracks of all (modern) time?

[Quemaqua]

Just curious what people's responses would be.  I was listening to the Witcher soundtrack over the last couple days, and was thinking about game music and the stuff that I've loved over the years... so thought I'd make the post.  I'm limiting this to "modern" game music (i.e. not MIDI shit or SNES music, because most of us are old school enough that we could go on with our lists there for hours), so just stuff in more recent times and by more recent methods.  Sampled, orchestral, instrumental, vocal, whatever, just not Gameboy music and that kind of stuff.

Here are mine, from 5th to 1st:

5. American McGee's Alice
4. Guilty Gear X2
3. Silent Hill 3
2. Elder Scrolls 3: Oblivion
1. Final Fantasy XII

[TheOtherBelmont]

This is really hard but here goes:

5. Silent Hill 2
4. Guilty Gear X2
3. Final Fantasy XII
2. Xenosaga: Episode III
1. Xenogears

[Pugnate]

It is quite hard. The original Rainbow Six and the Baldur's Gate II soundtracks were quite good.

[Quemaqua]

I'd also like to note that I'm completely divided between console and PC here, which is funny.  I have one PC-only game, one console-only game, and three games that appeared on both consoles and PCs (but really this is a lie, I'm still pretty console heavy on this list since GGX2 and SH3 are still almost entirely console games even if they got a port).

[Xessive]

Tough call, so I'll list the ones I actually have once I get home.

[Pugnate]

Damn, forgot about Alice. Great soundtrack.

I am a PC gamer but I'll admit that console games have had more memorable soundtracks.

[Cobra951]

Excluding classic games makes it very difficult to come up with 5 soundtracks that I even remember.  The only one that I know offhand would end up in a top-5 list would be Castlevania: SOTN.  It might well end up on top even.  We Love Katamari has the Katamari Damacy soundtrack plus a couple of new songs of its own, so I'll throw it in as a single nomination.  Okami has some lovely music which enhances the whole experience.  And now I'm drawing a blank.  I'll edit this if inspiration strikes.

[MysterD]

Soundtrack Talk
I dunno' what are my top 5 soundtracks of all time...especially for traditional scores...I'll have to think on that...There's been some really greats ones, over the years...

...But I'd have to say, one of my favorite licensed-music soundtracks of all time has to be Vampire: Bloodlines -- w/ music from Chiasm, Genitorturers, Lacuna Coil, etc etc.
Also, worth noting that Womb Music did a pretty good traditional score for that game, as well.


EDIT:
Witcher soundtrack

Just curious what people's responses would be.  I was listening to the Witcher soundtrack over the last couple days, and was thinking about game music and the stuff that I've loved over the years... so thought I'd make the post.

Que, since you have the entire soundtrack on disc, is the whole entire soundtrack? (must be signed into your Witcher community account to see this) Or just part of it?

Extra Music
Que, have you been here and checked out extra "modern" music inspired by The Witcher? (must be signed into your Witcher community account to see this)

[Quemaqua]

No, MyD, that isn't the whole soundtrack.  The OST with the LE is 29 tracks, but that isn't really complete either.  There are 50-something tracks on the game's music directory, though I think what's on the OST is the best stuff.  It just avoids a lot of the more ambient stuff, I guess.  There were several tracks that I noticed were missing, though, so it still isn't quite "complete" (it's big, though, at 72 minutes... so anything beyond that they wouldn't have been able to fit on a single CD).

Also, I can't check those other songs because I can't register my game.  I'm still on my magical underworld copy even though I have a physical game, and the registration application won't launch.  Given that there's no other way to register the game to my community account other than that, I can't access any of the stuff.

[MysterD]

Thanks for the info, bro -- much appreciated.

[sirean_syan]

I've been trying to think of a proper response the since this came up the other day, or at least something to add.

So far I've only come up with a few that haven't been mentioned yet. You can all probably guess the first.

- Homeworld (and Homeworld 2)
- Metal Gear Solid 2 & 3
- Gradius V
- Zone of the Enders 2

I dunno, those last two just do it for me game-wise. You could probably add something like Icewind Dale to the list, but I never actually played the game despite having the soundtrack. I know as a stand alone soundtrack, it's pretty excellent.

So Tet, I'm guessing they really upped the ante on Xenogears with the soundtracks if you're willing to list the third one. The soundtrack in the first one was sad considering they had... can't think of his name now, the Chrono Trigger guy, working on it. There were far too many silent parts and some overuse of bad elevator music.

[Quemaqua]

I'm very surprised that REZ isn't on your list there, Sy.  I thought for sure it would be.

[NatchDan]

My list will probably draw derision, but here goes:

Jet Force Gemini
Sonic Adventure (1)
Halo 2
...Do the Guitar Hero games count?

[Quemaqua]

Licensed music doesn't really count, I don't think.  Original is really all that matters.  Anybody can throw together a bunch of licensed shit.

[TheOtherBelmont]

So Tet, I'm guessing they really upped the ante on Xenogears with the soundtracks if you're willing to list the third one. The soundtrack in the first one was sad considering they had... can't think of his name now, the Chrono Trigger guy, working on it. There were far too many silent parts and some overuse of bad elevator music.

Yes, she (Yuki Kajiura), did a great job with Episode III's music, and even though I enjoy Yasunori Mitsuda a lot(the guy you were trying to name) and the work he did with Episode I, Kajuira seemed to make music that fit the game a little better.  She did a good job of mixing epic orchestral stuff, with choral and techno-ish music and it all just blended together just right.

[PyroMenace]

Theres so much... these are ones I thought of immediately.

1. MGS 2 & 3
2. Super Metroid
3. Medal of Honor: AA
4. Final Fantasy VII
5. Dawn of War

[sirean_syan]

Yarg. I thought about Rez when I was thinking about what to put on here, but then forgot again this morning. I'll blame that on spending the night on the road on the way to So California for Thanksgiving... yeah.

I also forgot to say Metroid Prime. Of the three Prime's, it's the soundtrack I remember the most with the remix of the Norfair theme and Phendra Drifts. I sorta think I liked Echoes better, but it's been a while since I've heard it. The only real advantage Prime 1 has for me is that I actually have the soundtrack, so I've heard it plenty of times and it's more ingrained in my memory.

I would also say Super Metroid like Pyro, but I didn't think it was new enough to consider modern. If we can include SNES era games, well then the list just gets that much bigger.

Oh yeah, I ripped out all the DoW music a couple months ago, Pyro. I should get the mp3s to you at some point. I guess I'll have to do it for Soulstorm when it gets released as well. It was kind of a pain. Oh well, it should be worth it.

[Quemaqua]

God, Soulstorm.  We need to have just a straight Warhammer month where all we do is play DoW and paint stuff.  Maybe when Soulstorm releases?  We know we can all run it, and we could just play tons of multiplayer games!

Anyway, yeah, I say no SNES games because like you said, that just opens up too many options.  As for Prime, I liked the soundtrack to Echoes a lot more than Prime, though I really enjoy both.  I just don't really find either of them to be the kind of thing I'll listen to outside of the game all that much.

And I should also mention that over the last few days, The Witcher's soundtrack has really started to grow on me.  There's a lot of Diablo 2 / Warcraft 3 type inspiration there, which to me always ends up feeling a little generic, but then there's also some really, really great battle music, which I normally hate.  Very percussive stuff, but in a good way that ends up actually feeling intense instead of canned.  Two guys are listed on the back of the OST, and it turns out that while I greatly enjoy one over the other, both of them are responsible for several of my favorite tracks in the game.  There's a very large list of music, so some of the dungeon stuff isn't as compelling, but in the end I have to say that it's a much better soundtrack than I initially gave it credit for, and it fits the game to an absolutely T.  You can really see the Diablo 2 influence in the game, but also in the soundtrack a bit like I said, and it tailors itself well to such a dark story and setting.

[Cobra951]

Is Jet Force Gemini allowed?  That's N64, and it's definitely tracked music, though usually nicely sampled.  I absolutely loved this game in its day, and that includes the music.

[PyroMenace]

Man its been a bit since I loaded up some DoW. Though the last thing I did with it was watch replays like crazy... damn I loved those.

[Xessive]

I don't have a top 5 list as of yet, but this one would definitely be on it: Neverwinter Nights 2 - Mask of the Betrayer. I really enjoyed the music.

[MysterD]

Mask had some great music.

PS:T was pretty good musically, as well.

[Cobra951]

I guess I'm going to have to add Assassin's Creed to my list.  The music does not play all the time, but when it does, in combination with the epic visuals, it's breathtaking, like being in a remake of Lawrence of Arabia.  Some things kick it in, like walking into the grandeur of Damascus, or running for your life.  IGN is sharing Jerusalem Horse Ride.  Love it.

[MysterD]

Que, was it you once who said Anachronox had some great music...?

[Quemaqua]

Did I?  Nothing's coming to mind, but it's been a while since I've played that one.  A long while.  I do remember a few themes being pretty good, but I really don't remember much.

[MysterD]

Hmmmm...Maybe it was someone else raving about that soundtrack from Anachronox back from the AOG days?!?!?

Or maybe it was you who did mentioned you likes a few themes??

*shrug*

It's been forever, damned if I know...

[Xessive]

Anachronox had some alright music, but it wasn't memorable.

I still love the Monkey Island theme

[nickclone]

Good idea for a topic, let me see if I can whittle it down to only five.

1. Mafia
2. Chrono Trigger
3. Zelda 64
4. Quake 2
5. System Shock 2

Thats not in order.

[Quemaqua]

System Shock 2 is an excellent choice.  I remember Mafia having a good soundtrack, but it's been so long since I've played it I can't even remember it very well.

[Pugnate]

Diablo for me had a very memorable soundtrack.

[nickclone]

System Shock 2 is an excellent choice.  I remember Mafia having a good soundtrack, but it's been so long since I've played it I can't even remember it very well.

Thanks, I still listen to "Med Sci 1" everyday. SS2 is just that good. I only have a few Mafia mp3s, but if you like I could send them to you or something.

[Xessive]

Oh here's another one: Unreal! The original Unreal has music that still lingers in my mind today!

[MysterD]

Oh, yes -- Mafia had some outstanding music.

[idolminds]

Top 5 is hard...Im just going to list out 5 off the top of my head:

Jet Set Radio (original and Future)
Okami
Katamari Damacy
World of Warcraft
Shadow of the Colossus

[PyroMenace]

I forgot about Shadow of the Colossus, amazing stuff.

[Quemaqua]

I just realized today I forgot the soundtrack to Arcanum.  And believe me, I'm doing you a favor providing that link.  It really must be listened to.  I don't know where exactly it'd fit into my list here, but seriously, listen to it.

[MysterD]

Arcanum's soundtrack was great.
I defiintely can't argue that one.

And it's a very underrated game, I might add, too.

Game basically plays like Fallout in an Industrial Revolution setting, with a medieval vs. technology theme going on.

If you ain't got Arcanum's soundtrack and/or the game, do yourself a favor -- get 'em both!

Que, I'm so glad you brought Arcanum up...

[K-man]

Number 1 has to be Chrono Cross.  The soundtrack blew me away, and it was the first one I actively sought out and purchased.

2.  Super Metroid.  Utilized the limited resources of the SNES to make some wonderful music that really added to the environment and overall feel of the game.

3.  Chrono Trigger.  I don't know about 'best', but for me it's very memorable.  The tunes conjure up all sorts of memories.  I was playing through this at an admittedly tough time in my life.  BTW, true story.  I finished this game in a day.  I was very depressed at the time and needed the constant interaction to keep my mind off things...so I literally just blew through the entire game in a day.

4.  Morrowind/Oblivion soundtracks.  I'll group these together because they're similar.  Jeremy and Jillian Soule created music that isn't intrusive, but is instead a nice compliment to the game. 

5.  Castlevania:  Symphony of the Night.  Could be that i've played this game a billion times, but I think this soundtrack is just amazing.

Honorable Mention:  FF VI.  On par with Chrono Trigger, but I had to give Chrono Trigger the edge. 

[Xessive]

Ooooh good call on the Castlevania SotN soundtrack! That was definitely one of the few that just sticks with me. Alucard's theme occasionally rings in my head.

[TheOtherBelmont]

Number 1 has to be Chrono Cross.  The soundtrack blew me away, and it was the first one I actively sought out and purchased.

Thanks, now I have Scars of Time stuck in my head.  That is one of Yasunori Mitsuda's best pieces.