Outer Wilds takes the cake for me.
That game takes the soundtrack cake for any category it has an entry in
Kingdom Hearts main menu theme. It's absolutely a nostalgia hit for me. That game was one of my "get-away" games while in a rough situation. Hearing that music always makes me feel a little safer, like I'm just one step away from a completely different life.
Dearly Beloved and the variations on it are the best. I'm partial to the version for Kingdom Hearts 2 but they're all great
Civ 4: Baba Yetu
Such a fantastic song. Not at all surprising that it was the first piece of music from a video game to not only be nominated for but to win a Grammy.
Pretty much any halo has the best menu music to me (I haven't played 5 though).
There's a lot of variety between them all too
Skyrim, by a longshot. That theme never failed to get me cranked to get my Nordic adventuring on.
HAH. HUAH. HAHH.
HAH. HUAH. HAHH.
OOOhhhh OHHHHH OUHHHHHH!!!! AUHHHHHHH!!!
Saw this pop up in my replies before I noticed the context and was very confused... lol
Really deep lyrics. A masterpiece of poetry.
I’ll go with Mass Effect, the music in the first 3 games is incredible. Especially in the first game I think. This particular piece is called Vigil.
Dude, I only just played the games for the very first time earlier this year and I absolutely feel what you mean. It's the very first piece of music you hear when you start the game, is used throughout the trilogy in pivotal moments, and is the very last theme that plays in the third game. So awesome
Oh yeah. Leitmotifs are very effective at tying a story together and really help add some punch to those emotional moments.
I absolutely adore Mass Effect. It’s probably my favorite game ever. Top 3 at least.
I do see that the narrative and the gameplay have some flaws, but overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the games and the ~100h it took me to finish the trilogy. The Citadel DLC was probably my favourite part of the entire series. I'd also probably put the games in my top x favourite games.
Probably Metroid Prime. Both the Title Theme and the Menu Theme are fantastic.
Xenoblade games also have brilliant title themes. Here's the one for the first game.
Now, for some spice, let's branch into a type of game I think most people here won't have played - Visual Novels often have great title themes.
- Muv-Luv Alternative's "Crash" is pure hype
- Both Steins;Gate's "Gate of Steiner" and Steins;Gate 0's "Messenger" are great themes too.
- I also love VA-11 HALL-A's "Hopes and Dreams".
Payday 2 really sets the mood with it's music
Metroid Prime. I only played it for the first time this year when the remaster came out and the music blew me away.
Skyrim for sure, nothing gets you more prepared to start a new adventure than that.
Honorable mention to the Last of Us after you've completed the game and are just sitting there, staring at the screen and wondering what to do next.
Elden Ring's main theme is literally the only video game song I have in my normal music rotation.
But only because Lunar Silver Star Story's Wings isn't on Spotify.
Not main menu but the golden eye pause menu music on the n64 was a banger 🔥
No joke about that shit bro
Skyrim and RuneScape 2 (pre-audio update) are both pretty damn iconic
At my wedding we had the DJ play Skyrim and Witcher 3 music during dinner and it worked way better than it had any business working
Super Mario Bros. 2
Super Metroid.
Spooky AF
Bloodborne
Dark Souls 3
Even years later, having completed the game many times, that opening song still gives me the chills! So haunting, so beautiful!
Skyrim has to be on the list for the pure joy of it
Arcanum's main theme gets my vote.
It's weird. It's terrible as music - just random strings with almost no recognizable tune outside of the first few seconds - but it sets a mood better than any other. It's distilled melancholy in music form.
Definitely the original main menu music for Dragon's Dogma.
I remember booting it up on the PS3 back in the day and was like "Wha-?" but after playing the game so many times it's definitely become a favorite. Both for how out of place it is but also how perfect it fits after all the context of the game.
Sad they replaced it for the Dark Arisen version but luckily there is a mod for PC that restores it in all its glory. :P
Syndicate was a really niche entry into the Cyberpunk genre that flopped commercially but had some interesting ideas about corp-ocracy and the way businesses of the future would wage warfare against each other like nations used to.
That main menu music has echoed in my brain for years. Deus Ex: Human Revolution would have been first but Syndicate is less well known and I figured someone already mentioned DE:HR at some point here.
Max Payne. It sets the tone of the game at once.
Crusader: No Remorse / No Regret
https://youtu.be/wwG5BJtZBCU?si=aMMbMveu0s6KltoQ
So many great remixes of it too.
Papers please
The whole collection of music from Stellaris and Cyberpunk are both excellent.
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