Music plays an instrumental, pun intended, part in any modern game. Over the years, we have been treated to some absolutely monstrous soundtracks. Below are some of the best.
FIFA Football 2004:
Featured Artists: Caesars, The Dandy Warhols, The Jam, Kasabian, Kings of Leon, The Stone Roses
Without question the greatest ever FIFA soundtrack. How can you not enjoy a game that features “Jerk It Out” (Caesars), “Town Called Malice” (The Jam), “L. S. F” (Kasabian), “Red Morning Light” (Kings of Leon) and “Fools Gold” (The Stone Roses)? The ferocious riffs from Kasabian and Kings of Leon got you pumped while the funky notes of The Stone Roses and the lyrical genius of Paul Weller made FIFA Football 2004 equally enjoyable to listen to and play.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City:
Featured Artists: Blondie, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Grandmaster Flash, Hall & Oates, Iron Maiden, Kool and the Gang, Michael Jackson, Motley Crew, Roxy Music, Toto,
We could sit here and wax lyrical about any of the GTA soundtracks but the definitive one has to be Vice City’s, which is insanely good. The game benefits from being set in 1986, which was a time rife with various musical geniuses. The 1980s were a period where the compact disk, something that would have set you back a whopping £12.99, was growing in popularity, as such the music industry diversified hugely due to the larger influx of new listeners and portable music players. As with all other GTA games, the fact that there are seven music playing radio stations helps to give the gamer a diverse taste of music. The game has more than 50 individual songs in total, most of which are fantastic. You could go from the dulcet tones of Lionel Richie, who recently played at Glastonbury, to the thrash metal of Anthrax in a matter of seconds.
Pokemon Blue/Red/Yellow:
Composer: Junichi Masuda
For anyone of a certain age, the original Pokemon score is almost always instantly recognisable. Not only was Junichi Masuda tasked with composing the score for the game but he was also the main man in creating the sound effects and noises made by Pokemon. What made the soundtrack to the original Pokemon so brilliant was how it changed ever so slightly in various places on the map. In the towns and cities of Kanto the score is upbeat but the second you enter Viridian Forest or Rock Tunnel the sound would become far more ominous, warning the user that danger was only lurking around the corner. Lo and behold a wild Zubat appears!
Call of Duty: Black Ops II:
Composers: Jack Wall and Trent Reznor
Trent Reznor is one gifted dude. The musical leader of Nine Inch Nails, an industrial rock band, has made a very successful foray into the world of soundtracks. Reznor started to make a composing name for himself thanks to his relationship with director David Fincher, who employed him to score the soundtrack to The Social Network, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and Gone Girl. Since then Reznor moved into the video game world with COD, in which he created a hellacious soundtrack that suited the action perfectly.
