Anyone who pays attention to my Twitter will notice that I tend to post a lot of music. Among these posts are pieces of game music, usually under the context of belonging in a compilation set up for IL sessions. Another thing you may or may not know is that I haven’t always had such a broad taste in music, living the entirety of my teenage years being a dedicated metal-head. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t change that experience for the world, I got to do and see some pretty crazy shit within the metal scene. I’d highly recommend it.
I couldn’t pin-point the moment I opened up to music in entirety, but it was about 3-4 years ago, same year as my entry into speed running. I’ve enjoyed so many different feels of music now that I don’t know how I went 20 years without doing it.
Ramble aside, this isn’t about general music. No, it’s about Video Game OSTs. They very easily could have changed my views on music alone, it’s hard to tell. What I can do is point out what I think are some of the most unique and special soundtracks shipped with a game. This isn’t a definitive best-of by any means, but they are definitely pieces that I hold very relevant in regards to my transition into different types of music.
Sonic CD North American Version [Sega CD/PC – 1993]
Spencer Nilsen / David Young / Mark Crew
It may come as a shock to see me throwing the original soundtrack aside, no dislike intended. I quite like it honestly. That doesn’t change the fact that I grew up with the NA soundtrack, because I played this game on the original PC release in 1996.
Say what you will about tone oddities compared to the other 3 Sonic games of the time, the work put into the NA OST was tremendous and incredibly ambitious. They actually had taken advantage of what CD-audio could do. Seriously, go listen to Collision Chaos Present. This was 1993. Every track within tugs a heart string for me. Beautifully mixed as well.
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest [Super Nintendo – 1995]
David Wise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbreFmRDN3E
I had to drop this one in. My love for the DKC games all the way up to Tropical Freeze isn’t much of a mystery. I played all 3 of the originals within the release month and they honestly hold the majority of my childhood gaming memories. In many ways I adore all 3 of the SNES soundtracks as well. They all hold their own separately and together they form a cohesive work, with each one having their own tone. The first game was ambient, second was more bombastic and orchestral. The third one was a super jaunty beast with a huge gradient of styles.
I have to include Diddy’s Kong Quest in particular just because it was the most complex game music I had heard by far at that point, essentially embedding itself into my taste from a young age. I am one of a humongous army online that will never shut up about how good Stickerbrush Symphony is. For bonus points, check out OverClocked ReMix’s huge album-wide cover of DKC 2, involving Wise himself in parts.
Jet Force Gemini [Nintendo 64 – 1999]
Robin Beanland / Graeme Norgate / Alistair Lindsay
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPjIlXKu1fU
This right here is a one-of-a-kind soundtrack. Jet Force Gemini’s OST is easily among the all-time deities of video game music to me. It had something so special to it’s pace and range. You would land on a planet with the typical landing orchestra, the music would start and instantly an emotion was transferred, you already knew what the atmosphere of the planet was. Landing at Ichor Military Base filled you with dread as you knew you were at the bottle neck of Vela’s unique path. When touching down in Water Ruins the most surreal sense of wonder is given, possibly the most emotional application to a setting I have ever heard.
Through and through this soundtrack is a superb example of how music can actively increase the quality of a game. It tells an unspoken story to you as you play, you understand what it isn’t saying. Also, wickedly under-appreciated game in general.
Sonic Unleashed [Wii/PS2 – 2008]
Tomoya Ohtani / Fumie Kumatani / Kenichi Tokoi / Hideaki Kobayashi / Takahito Eguchi
You saw this coming. Yes you, the person reading who knows me even in the smallest degree. An incredible mix of huge orchestra pieces, high-pace energetic tunes and then the real kicker. Night levels, simply the best compositions of music ever applied to Sonic (go listen to Jungle Joyride – Night right now it is possibly my favourite video game track ever). It doesn’t have the mind-blowing range that some Sonic OSTs before it had, but I think that’s for the better honestly. The composers dropped their hearts into the soundtrack’s feel and it shows. An OST they will not top for many Sonic games to come.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance [X360/PS3/PC – 2013]
Jamie Christopherson
I don’t care that this soundtrack is constantly praised and highlighted already. Still not enough people realise it’s quality. Simply the highest energy brawling soundtrack ever put together, when Revengeance makes you feel like a bad ass, 50% of the time it’s because of music cues working with the action. I hold it as the standard of what a game with fast combat should put in it’s soundtrack. Listen to The Only Thing I Know For Real and The Hot Wind Blowing, try to tell me that better sword fighting music exists.
Perfectly constructed, it strives to give every boss fight it’s own character, which it succeeds at in spades. Just like JFG, a hallmark on why video game music has it’s own unique charm when combined with synergistic gameplay.
These are merely a sample, the whole range of OSTs I love would take consecutive days to just link let alone type thoughts on, so I’ll leave it here for now. If curious about my tastes in non-VG music and you don’t have Twitter, I may put out a piece in regards to that. Boy, if you think I have a lot to say about just VG music, wait till you see the thoughts I could pen up about music as a whole. Maybe next time, later, never. We’ll see.
Glitching Is Art 
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