Game Soundtracks

[Stormwaltz]

I have an old friend who doesn't believe that games have decent soundtracks. To be fair, he's not a gamer, and hasn't really played anything since we were in high school. I want to burn a CD for him that shows how far game scores have come. I know a number of you are music fans as well as gamers. I'm looking for suggestions on what to include. My knowledge is for the most part limited to PC and RPG/wargames.

Here's the track list I have at the moment:

01 - "Truth and Reconciliation Suite (Edit)" by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori (Halo: Combat Evolved)
02 - "Jade Empire Main Theme" by Jack Wall (Jade Empire)
03 - "Arcanum" by Ben Houge (Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura)
04 - "Lilly" by Richard Vaughan (Medieval II: Total War)
05 - "Bastila's Theme" by Jeremy Soule (Knights of the Old Republic)
06 - "Opening Movie Music" by Christopher Tin (Civilization IV)
07 - "Maiden of Light" by Tenpei Sato (La Pucelle Tactics)
08 - "Godsibb" by Yuki Kajiura (Xenosaga III)
09 - "Unyielding" by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori (Halo 2)
10 - "Crack Your Head With a Tabla" by Jeff van Dyck (Medieval II: Total War)
11- "Theme From Battery" by Amon Tobin (Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory)
12 - "Saavedro's Lair" by Jack Wall (Myst III: Exile)
13 - "Upper Taris" by Jeremy Soule (Knights of the Old Republic)
14 - "Campmap Summer" by Jeff van Dyck (Shogun: Total War)
15 - "The Waterdragon" by Jack Wall (Jade Empire)
16 - "The Spider Spinner" by Jack Wall (Myst III: Exile)
17 - "Auriel's Ascension" by Jeremy Soule (Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion)
18 - "Unforgotten" by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori (Halo 2)
19 - "Rose of Victory" by Jon Hallur (EVE Online)
20 - [classified] by Jack Wall (Mass Effect)
21 - "Wings of Kynareth" by Jeremy Soule (Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion)
22 - "Kiss Me Sunlights (Game Size)" by Heart of Air (Zone of the Enders)
23 - "Engineering" by Eric Brosius (System Shock 2)
24 - "Battle Sequence F" by Christopher Franke (Babylon 5: Into the Fire (cancelled))
25 - "Forever (Rome Total War)" Jeff van Dyck (Rome: Total War)
26 - "World to be Born" by Yasunori Mitsuda (Xenosaga I)
27 - "The Siege of Madrigal" by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori (Myth II: Soulblighter)

[Kail]

20 - [classified] by Jack Wall (Mass Effect)

Yeesh, you can't even tell us the names of the songs?  What is it, "Ode to the world two boss who is secretly your father, but you don't find that out until after he kills the girl" or something?

As for music...  my taste is notoriously horrible, but just off the top of my head:

-Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater has some nice dramatic tracks.  The "sidecar" tracks are nice; the main theme is nice (I mean, the Metal Gear Solid theme, not the "Snake Eater" song)
-Final Fantasy X has "Otherworld," which I kind of like.
-There's some nice music in Katamari Damacy, Jet Set Radio/Jet Grind Radio, and Zone of the Enders 2, but it's really, really Japanese, so if he's not in to that, I'd say skip 'em
-There are some nice remixes of classic Video Game songs in Super Smash Bros. Melee, which might be interesting if he's played the old-school versions of the games.  Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Pokemon, Star Fox, etc.

[Krakrok]

The 'swarm' attack music from Homeworld.

[Stormwaltz]

Yeesh, you can't even tell us the names of the songs?  What is it, "Ode to the world two boss who is secretly your father, but you don't find that out until after he kills the girl" or something?

It includes the name of a planet that has not been mentioned yet. :/

[Trippy]

Some suggestions:

World of Warcraft soundtrack. Most are "ambient" zone tracks designed to loop but there are some "standalone" pieces. My favorite is Seasons of War from the intro movie.

I like the Viewtiful Joe main theme and the Streets of Rage 2 end theme (I played through the game with an emulator just so I could record a copy, heh).

Pick a Final Fantasy sountrack. There's also piano versions of some of them (VII, VIII, X, at least). And there are the Black Mages "rock" versions of many of the FF songs.

The music in the original DOOM rocked. I even bought the soundtrack by the composer redone with actual instruments (rather than the MIDI stuff) though I have no idea where it is now.

Edit: typos

[Signe]

My all time favourite was the soundtrack from the old video game "Wipeout."  You can even buy the soundtrack seperately. 

    * Leftfield: "Afro Ride"
    * Chemical Brothers: "Chemical Beats"
    * New Order: "Blue Monday (Hardfloor Mix)"
    * The Age Of Love: "The Age Of Love (Jam & Spoon Mix)"
    * Orbital: "Wipeout (P.E.T.R.O.L)"
    * The Prodigy: "One Love (Edit)"
    * Manic Street Preachers: "La Tristesse Durera (Scream To A Sigh)"
    * Sunscreem: "When (K-Klass Pharmacy Mix)"
    * B.B. feat Angie Brown: "Good Enough (Geminis Psychosis Mix)"
    * Robert Armani: "Circus Bells (Hardfloor Remix)"
    * Dreadzone: "Captain Dread"
    * The Shamen: "Transamazonia (Deep Dish Rockit Express Dub Mix)"

Not all of these were in the game in this form.  Excellent sound track.  I suppose the game might have been fun for people with coordination and reflexes.  Unfortunately, that's not me.  Like most racing games, I can only manage to hit one side of the circuit and then the other side, over and over again, endlessly.  I never get better at it, either.  Don't make the mistake of thinking that means I don't drive well.  In a real car, I always hit what I aim for.

[bhodi]

Parasite eve?

[schild]

There's some Tenpei Sato stuff I like more than Maiden of Light, but I can't be arsed to dig up my game soundtrack collection at this time.

Also, Etro Anime's "Danger" - the FMV track from Digital Devil Saga is a must. Hell, all the music from DDS1/2 is great.

Don't forget "Burn my Dread" off the upcoming Persona 3.

I could probably make another 30 track list of console stuff to fill in the gaps.

Not having Nobuo Uematsu on that list is a damn crime. If you can dig it up in MP3 form, teh new Uematsu stuff from Lost Odyssey is just amazing. Of course, you can NEVER go wrong with any of the music from FFIV or VI in the orchestral versions.

[Zonk]

Totally agree about Uematsu. My suggestions would be "Grand Duchy of Jeuno" from XI, "Dancing Mad" from VI, "Rydia" from IV, "Vamo Alla Flamenco" from X, or "To Be a Sky Pirate" from XII. Of these tracks, Flamenco and Dancing Mad have been done by Uematsu's band 'The Black Mages', if he wants his game music a little more kickass.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Mages

[Teleku]

Metalman's Stage - Megaman 2!

[schild]

Totally agree about Uematsu. My suggestions would be "Grand Duchy of Jeuno" from XI, "Dancing Mad" from VI, "Rydia" from IV, "Vamo Alla Flamenco" from X, or "To Be a Sky Pirate" from XII. Of these tracks, Flamenco and Dancing Mad have been done by Uematsu's band 'The Black Mages', if he wants his game music a little more kickass.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Mages

The Sountrack to Final Fantasy 12 was done by Sakimoto, not Uematsu. Uematsu was already with Mistwalker when production on FFXII began.

[Chimpy]

I spent a couple of late night cram sessions studying for Chemistry exams in college listening to the Battle Arena Toshinden 2 disc. Literally put the game disc in my discman and hit play.

I could not tell you a damn thing about what was good about it, but it helped me study.

[schild]

Ahem, the theme song to Ridge Racer by Hiroshi Okuba (...I think). To be nice I've attached it. That's just the kind of guy I am. It's a direct rip from the game (Specifically Ridge Racer 4).

EDIT: This does not give people the right to link to or post theme music from games! I've only done this because it's nearly impossible to find Ridge Racer music in America. Which is wack, since it's the best music in the genre and a monkey could find CDs for Gran Turismo.

Edit 2: Stormwaltz, I just noticed you had a track from Mass Effect on there. Comeon. Don't use music from games that aren't out yet. That doesn't prove a point. It's a lot more impressive to use music from old games to show how much he's MISSED OUT on. Today we have full studios and real bands doing music for games, it's just so... so.... Hollywood sanitized.

[Xuri]

Town - Matt Uelmen
Anything by Philipe Vachey

Now guess the games. ;P

[schild]

I didn't know the town music was just called Town, but you're talking about Diablo 2.

Also, there's no way to Just Guess on Philipe Vachey. But considering you posted Diablo 2, I have to assume you'd pick Alone in the Dark.

[Xuri]

Oo. Alone in the Dark. Also a good choice. But I was thinking of the music for LBA (Little Big Adventure).

There are two versions of the "town-music" for Diablo; the original is called "Town" and is featured in Diablo 1, while the one in Diablo 2 (played when you visit the ruins of the Diablo 1 town) is called Tristram.

[DraconianOne]

Even while I didn't think that much of the film, I did like the soundtrack to "Silent Hill" which I believe is taken directly from the games. 

Also, link to a live version of the Zelda theme, allegedly played by NIN.  I'd suggest the Quake 1 soundtrack by NIN too but it's been a few years since I listened to it and it's probably not very good.

[Trippy]

The Quake soundtrack was made by Trent Reznor, sans the rest of NiN. It's mostly just a lot of noise.

[Engels]

Two esoteric ones;

The NOD final cut scene movie from Command and Conquer, the first one, had a rockin theme. Sorta sounded a bit like Ministry.

And the Japanese theme for IL2 Sturmovik (a ww2 flight simulator by Ubisoft) is really creative.

[Signe]

The Quake soundtrack was made by Trent Reznor, sans the rest of NiN. It's mostly just a lot of noise.

Trent Reznor!   

[Chimpy]

The Quake soundtrack was made by Trent Reznor, sans the rest of NiN. It's mostly just a lot of noise.

How can one make music sans oneself?

[Trippy]

The Quake soundtrack was made by Trent Reznor, sans the rest of NiN. It's mostly just a lot of noise.

How can one make music sans oneself?

Lots of drugs?

[Teleku]

Actually, the first C&C game had an awsome soundtrack, the whole way through.  I remember being really suprised when I first played the game.  Seemed way ahead of its time.  The Hellmarch from Red Alert was also a great tune.

[Sky]

My favorite music from video games was probably HoMaM 2, with 3 a close second.

Civ 4 has some nice tracks. I think Age of Wonders and Disciples 2 were ok, too. I used to use the Quake soundtrack for sessions with willing females.

I won't count Vice City and San Andreas ;)

[voodoolily]

The theme from Ico (Michiru Oshima) was played at our wedding. Very beautiful song (don't know which track it is, I just call it the "theme" from Ico).

I also thought the music from Metroid Prime was pretty fantastic.

[DraconianOne]

The Quake soundtrack was made by Trent Reznor, sans the rest of NiN.

This is the old philosophical discussion about "Lois Lane doesn't love Clerk Kent but she loves Superman" isn't it.  Or is it the Philosopher's axe paradox?  Either way, as far as I'm concerned, Trent Reznor == NIN.  The rest are interchangable. 

Just listened to it again and if you like that NIN sound, then the first track is worth having.  The rest seems heavily influenced by John Carpenter movie themes and Coil's Hellraiser themes.  Kinda appropriate.

Didn't White Zombie do music for a game as well?

[Stormwaltz]

Edit 2: Stormwaltz, I just noticed you had a track from Mass Effect on there. Comeon. Don't use music from games that aren't out yet.

I also have one from a cancelled game. I grabbed my favorite songs from what soundtracks I had available. That particular track is (IMO) the most moving one in the game.

That doesn't prove a point. It's a lot more impressive to use music from old games to show how much he's MISSED OUT on. Today we have full studios and real bands doing music for games, it's just so... so.... Hollywood sanitized.

I'm trying to prove that good music is being made for games, stuff equal to any great film score. Pieces that run the gamut from a full orchestra with chorus (Xenosaga I) to kind-of-danceable electronic (System Shock) to folk (Medieval) to string quartet (Arcanum). What he remembers is the fairly repetitive bleepy stuff from the early 90s, like Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda.

So I don't mind stuff with quality production. Real bands (i.e. the first Halo 2 soundtrack) i'm less impressed with - I'd rather have the equivalent of film score than the "insert/image" songs by popular bands. The Graeme Revell score to The Crow, rather than the soundtrack with The Cure, Jane Siberry, etc.

[Sauced]

The list needs more Koh Otani (Shadow of the Colossus).  Also, the Douglas Sirk vibe from the DQVIII orchestral score is worth noting as well.

And, as much as I like Jeremy Soule's stuff, it starts to sound the same after a while.  If I were doing it, I'd probably just include the main theme from Morrowind and leave it at that.

[Simond]

The Hellmarch from Red Alert was also a great tune.

Thanks. That's exactly the earworm I didn't need at work today.
Anyway...I found a torrent, a while back, of four hour-long mp3s which were basically game theme mix tapes. I'll see if I can find links when I get home.

[Bokonon]

While the pieces are short, you can't go wrong with any choice off the Grim Fandango soundtrack. Probably different from anything else you might have on your list (yeah jazz/Latin beats!)

What can I say about F13?  It's really my favorite website in the entire universe!  I love the irreverent banter and sly wit these keyboard jockeys produce.  And I especially love the staff, they're AWESOME.

[Chenghiz]

The intro theme to Hitman 2 was a pretty neat orchestrated piece, if I recall correctly. Descent had some great industrial instrumentals, and the cinematic suite from the Warcraft III soundtrack is a keeper too.

[Simond]

OK, the collection is called "Best in Modern Game Music" by someone called Kinggi...but good luck finding an active download for it. :(
Also, not all early 90's game music sucked...some of us owned Amigas.