Controller Crusade Roundtable: Favourite Video Game Soundtracks
Hey everyone, and welcome to another Controller Crusade Roundtable discussion. Every Friday our team of writers tackle a different gaming topic or question, and the topic this week is favourite video game soundtracks. Let’s see which soundtracks the Controller Crusade staff couldn’t get enough of.
Josh: Back in my younger rap-loving days I was always a big fan of the soundtracks from the Def Jam series. Classic songs from Method Man & Redman, Outkast, Ice-T, LL Cool J, and Busta Rhymes always got me pumped up to beat the crap out of rappers I disliked. Now that I’ve grown out of that phase, I find myself digging all sorts of soundtracks I never thought I’d be into.
A perfect example of this is the soundtrack to DMC, the Devil May Cry reboot. The music of the game was super intense, and fit the action in the game perfectly. Music from Combichrist and Noisia usually aren’t my kind of thing, but the soundtrack to DMC definitely added an extra element to the game that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Justin: For this one I’m going to leave out rhythm games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band, because they’re both obvious choices and a little unfair. In this case I’m going to focus more on games that offer original soundtracks. When I think of “videogames” and “awesome original soundtracks” the first thing that pops into my head in The World Ends With You. It’s just so damn stylish and far away from the usual RPG fare – mostly J-Pop and J-Rock that fits in perfectly with the game’s modern Japanese setting. If you haven’t been fortunate to play it, the least you can do is have a listen to it’s awesome soundtrack.
Wedge: There are a lot of video game soundtracks I like from a variety of genres and systems (both new and old), although the most memorable ones for me are the epic orchestral soundtracks. There is one game in particular that deeply affected me on a personal level, with a very involving story-line, intense fast paced game-play, and a of course an emotionally charged soundtrack that tied everything together. That game was Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War. Everything about this game was absolutely amazing. Its narrative was captivating enough on its own, surpassing the efforts of most Hollywood films, but it also happened to have very involving game-play that had the perfect balance of an arcade game and a simulator. Then there was the music, which was elegantly composed to give it such a powerful impact, whether it was in the midst of action and overhearing the dramatic radio chatter between your comrades, or watching a beautiful story-driven cut-scene. Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War was truly an extraordinary experience I shall never forget, and partly because of its excellent soundtrack.
That’s a wrap on this edition of Controller Crusade Roundtable. As always we love when our readers join in on the discussion, so let us know what your favourite video game soundtrack is. Also if you have any questions that you would like our team to answer for next week, let us know! Check back next week, and each and every Friday for more Controller Crusade Roundtable Discussions.
