2000′s in Review: Top Video Game Music of the Decade Part 1

When writing a list celebrating all the music of video games in the past decade, you come to a realization that, in the last ten years, there has been a metric ton of games released, many of which have at least some tracks within them that could be considered “crowning,” all across the board in terms of style, theme and use. It would be unfair to just throw together a list of the ten overall best songs of the decade; there’d be no consistency, and blatantly show favouritism towards one style of music (for instance, I have a natural fondness for leitmotifs).

So, in the interest of a supposed fairness, (we’re not about to discount the fact that we might have some biases at UNB Studios) we present you with a few lists to compose a greater whole. In fact, the whole is so much greater, we had to split the article into two parts.

Starting with…

The Top 5 Opening/Endings

The opening sequence to a video game tends to be rather overlooked, and it’s a disheartening thing, since it can really set the mood for the game coming up, and really demonstrate what you’re in for. Likewise, like the credits in anything, the visuals (if any) may not be the most stunning, or any more than a highlights real of what you just watched, but the music that accompanies it tends to be one last thematic message of the game you just played. So in celebration of these, the top five opening and ending songs of the past decade.

5. “Katamari on the Swing” We <3 Katamari, Opening (2005)

The Katamari Damacy theme is one that many players of the strange and unusual games will recognize from the opening vamp. It’s not the greatest piece of music ever written, but it’s good, no doubt, and it is definitely the most ear catching. The song has received many variations over the course of the series, although one of the best is still possibly the opening piece in the sequel, which was also used as the song for the final stage. With the classic Katamari feel combined with a swinging jazz beat, complete with lyrics that are equal parts wistful and uplifting, Katamari On The Swing gets you in the right mindset for We <3 Katamari.

{WARNING! SPOILERS!}

4. “Never More” Shin Megami Tensai: Persona 4, Ending (2008)

Credit sequences in both Persona 3 and 4 captured, in essence, the overall feel and mood of the game. In Persona 3, the final song, “Memories of You,” was more melancholic, sad and mournful in spite of its modern horn section. Persona 4 has a credit song like that, but only in the worst ending, where it’s a sorrowful, simple melody on the piano. As a first for the Shin Megami Tensai franchise, though, get an unambiguously good ending in Persona 4, and you’re rewarded with “Never More,” an uplifting and nostalgic piece, where the feel is more of remembering old friends as opposed to “Memories of You,” in remembering the lost ones.

3. “Marietsu Evil Academy” Disgaea 3, Opening (2008)

Normally, openings in video games tend to show clips from the game itself, or be so generically similar to what you’ll see in the game that you can really skip over it, unless the music is that good in capturing you. The case is not the same in the opening to Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice; the opening to the game is an entire dance number, giving the impression of a musical. As people have said, it’s like a strange hybrid of Thriller, This Is Hallowe’en, and Hare Hare Yukai. Ear catching and goofy, just like Disgaea 3, Marietsu Evil Academy is a performance you won’t want to miss.

{WARNING! SPOILERS!}

2. “Wings” Wild ARMs 3, Ending (2002)

Wild Arms 3 still stands out as one of the two best games in the series, with a beautiful cast of characters, a brilliant story, and an epic soundtrack, in particular its opening theme, with visuals that evolve with the game itself. When you complete the game, it all comes together with the credits song, Wings, which is almost like a full length version of the opening theme. Now while the visuals are no where near as beautiful as the opening’s, the credits more than make up for it with the song itself being even more triumphant and Westernly thematic as the opening. This is a piece that’s good in either language, although most (including your’s truly) find that the English version is far and away the better, which is a shame since it’s one of the most difficult songs to find for this game. If you get a chance to grab an mp3 of it, I encourage you to do so.

1. “Snake Eater” Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (MGS3) (2004)

MGS is one of those games: so artistic that it’s impossible not to appreciate it, yet so overblown and bogged down it is in desperate, desperate need for an editor. However, MGS3 is probably the highest point of the series, combining one of the tightest, most enjoyable stories in the series with fun gameplay. The game really hits its stride right from the start with an opening that immediately makes you think of the opening to any James Bond movie. Considering the style of game, character, plot and setting that make up MGS3, there couldn’t be a better choice. Games might still be contested on whether or not they’re art, but Snake Eater is a definite step forward in that direction.

Honourable Mention: Valkyria Chronicles, Opening Theme (2008)

Like Wings, Valkyria Chronicles’ opening piece is better viewed in English than in Japanese. Unlike Wings, though, the Japanese version isn’t nearly as good as its English counterpart. In this case, less is more, and the softer, instrumental piece that goes along with the imagery you see allows a better appreciation of the unique art style of the game, while still being a beautiful and idealistic score to be set to one of the most idealistic games ever to draw inspiration from World War 2.

The Top 5 Overworld/Town/Dungeon/Stage Themes

This is the music you’ll be hearing the most of, barring battle themes, so you’d better get used to them. A common weakness of these pieces is that they have to loop, and thus it’s really easy to get sick of them, really fast, forcing you to turn the music off, or at least down very low. However, sometimes, you get music like these, where you give them a free pass and listen to them again and again in their glory.

5. “Joe the Hero” Viewtiful Joe (2003)

The song that plays both as Joe’s leitmotif in crossovers and spin offs, and, more importantly, the opening stage of the first game. It sets several moods in just one song: the mood of the character of Joe himself, the music that will be playing for the rest of the game, and, most importantly, the sense of awe and excitement that comes with being a fan, and having your secret dream come true, allowing you to become nothing short of a badass.

4. “Besaid Island” Final Fantasy X (2001)

The soothing and calming strings of the first spot in the game where you can finally relax, and feel safe, after the action packed and rather unsettling first twenty minutes. Besaid Island looks like a tropical paradise, and has the perfect music to go along with it, the kind you can curl up on the beach and watch the sun, trees and waves to. The only downside is, as a Final Fantasy game, it’s juxtaposed with the rather bombastic and action filled battle music whenever you hit the random encounter, which the island is no stranger to. To say “mood whiplash” would be appropriate.

3. “Dragon Roost Island” The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2003)

Playing on the island of bird people, the song of Dragon Roost Island stands as an interesting contrast to the above Besaid Island. While still undeniably an island song, it’s less about being a paradise and more about being a sailor’s theme, almost a pirate tune, complete with acoustic guitar and pipes. When the wind instrument starts playing, you get a real sensation of the reverence that the inhabitants of the island show and deserve. Also, like Besaid Island, it gets unfortunately juxtaposed with combat, but in its appearance as arena music in Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Fortunately, the whiplash is not nearly as great.

2. “Flash in the Dark” Megaman 9 (2008)

In the game that was essentially a great big love letter to the 8-Bit Era of gaming, we have the first stage music of Dr Wily’s Fortress from Megaman 9. Not only does Flash In The Dark stand as a call back to the 8-Bit style of music in general, but a particular shout out seems to go to the song of Wily’s Fortress from Megaman 2, considered to be one of the greatest Megaman stage songs in the history of the franchise. Combining the feel of old school electronic beats with modern music ears, Flash In The Dark stands as a testament to proper musical tribute: not to parroting, but to expanding, and all around showing that we may grow as gamers, but we never forget our roots.

1. “Heaven” Persona 4 (2008)

The hauntingly beautiful background theme to the hauntingly beautiful November Dungeon from Persona 4, Heaven hits that magical sweet spot between glorious on its own, and completely unsettling in context. Drawing inspiration from JPop, R&B and Jazz, Heaven has entranced many a Persona 4 player to stop what they were doing to just sit back and enjoy the heart and effort the composers put into this beauty. While technically outside the game, a live performance of this song really highlights just how much it’s influenced and pays tribute to jazz. As the sweetest icing on the cake, while a Japanese song written by Japanese writers and sung by Japanese performers, the English is impeccable. A testament to the distractingly beautiful stage themes.

Honourable Mention: “FFI – Town” Dissidia Final Fantasy (2009)

What is possibly the biggest cheat on the list, the Town theme from the very original Final Fantasy for the NES was lifted straight from its home and brought in to the big crossover fighting game Dissidia. It’s old school electronic. It’s virtually unchanged. It’s used as a joke battle theme. And yet, it’s still nostalgically beautifully. While Dissidia is built entirely around nostalgia and fanservice of the “Hey, look at this!” variety, the inclusion of the original Town song was really all we needed to be happy.

The Top 5 Event Songs

These songs don’t play consistently throughout the game like many of the other songs on these lists. They tend to play only once or twice, or only under certain conditions to highlight the scene. When people think of crowning music from video games, it tends to be either combat themes, or songs like these.

5. “Together We Ride” Fire Emblem 7 (2003)

This song comes from the first game in the Fire Emblem franchise to hit English shores, after realizing how much fans would be willing to play it after the immense amount of love Marth and Roy received in Super Smash Brothers Melee. Together We Ride is the song that played whenever you recruited an NPC or enemy unit to your side, where they would help you out for the duration of the current battle, and any future one. Since the NPC tended to come in just at the nick of time with the strength you need to pull through, wonder what that makes them? Big damn heroes. Ain’t they just?

4. “Main Theme” Valkyria Chronicles (2008)

This song plays at the title screen and main menu of Valkyria Chronicles, so most players would overlook it, instead breezing through “Press Start” and “Load Game.” However, if you let it play, you realize just how triumphant and heroic the music is. Like any good war anthem, it has an equal effect of rallying you, and reminding you just how mournful the situation will be when its all over. This song stands as testament that, no matter what you’re writing the music for, you don’t just phone it in.

3. “Just You And Me (And Ted E. Bear)” Sam and Max: Season One (2007)

This song plays a few times in the third episode of Sam and Max Season One: The Mole, The Mob, and The Meatball. It plays in full during the credits, but the best way to hear this song is through the interaction with the animatronic bear heads in Ted E Bear’s Mafia Free Playland and Casino. It certainly cements the fact that the Toy Mafia is rea-a-a-a-a-ally bad at setting up a subtle front organization. This song is the punchline to a ludicrous premise that makes the episode worth purchase, and demonstrate the chops that comedic adventure games got, being a powerful ear worm as well as being a good tune on its own merits.

2. “Aria di Mezzo Carrtere” Final Fantasy VI Advanced (2006)

Many of you will recognize this as the big opera scene from Final Fantasy 6, “O My Beloved,” a beloved piece from the SNES days of gaming. You may also ask why I attribute the song to the Advanced release. Truth be told, the SNES version of the song is not without flaws. The original “voice acting” for it was hilariously awfully, sounding somewhere between a big dog barking, and a fat gentleman belting out “oh” again an again. While the Anthology did a fine job of its own, the Advanced version of the scene managed to combine what made the scene so beloved back on the SNES, while touching up on the music and voice bites (at least it sounds like something that could come out of Celes’s mouth now). A beloved piece of nostalgia cleaned up nicely for a different generation.

1. “You Are Not Alone” Final Fantasy IX (2000)

Played during a moment of great emotional turmoil for the main character Zidane, You Are Not Alone manages to capture the quiet conviction that the characters so desperately need at the moment. The rest of the party confront the main character on how he’s always helped them in their hour of need, and now, they’ll return the favour and be there for his. No better piece could have been penned for this scene, combining a mix of sad melancholy with an uplifting rally, making You Are Not Alone a song perfect for one of the most heartwarming moments in Final Fantasy history.

Honourable Mention: “The Virgin Child Makes Her Wish Without Feeling Anything” No More Heroes (2008)

Sung by Dr. Peace before your battle with him in the Rank 9 match, this proves to be his real character establishing moment as an affably evil gentleman who just likes kareoke. Unfortunately, you come in at the tail end of the song, and while it’s certainly a good part of the song, it robs you of the full pleasure of this rather short piece, leaving you to find it in the supplementary material. Still, it just goes to show that truly, Dr. Peace has the voice of a gunslinger angel. Play us out, lawman. We’ll see you in part two.