Music in games isn't just background noise. It’s actually the glue. Think about it. You’re trekking through a frozen wasteland in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and those low, chanting voices kick in. Suddenly, you aren't just a person sitting on a couch in sweatpants; you’re the Dragonborn. That’s the power of good video game soundtracks. They do more heavy lifting for immersion than 4K textures or ray-tracing ever could. Honestly, some of the best music being composed today isn't happening in Hollywood or on the Billboard charts—it’s happening in recording studios for interactive media.
The weird thing is how we talk about this stuff. People usually just list their favorite tunes and call it a day. But there’s a massive difference between a catchy song and a functional score. A soundtrack has to react to you. It has to breathe. If you stand still, the music might settle into a low drone. If a dragon drops from the sky, it needs to explode into brass and percussion without missing a beat. That’s called dynamic or adaptive scoring, and it’s why gaming music is a completely different beast compared to film or pop.
The Secret Sauce of a Good Video Game Soundtrack
What actually makes a soundtrack "good"? Most people think it’s just about having a banger of a main theme. Sure, everyone knows the Super Mario Bros. theme. Koji Kondo is a genius for a reason. But a truly effective score works on a psychological level. It tells you things the UI doesn't.
In Bloodborne, the music is terrifying because it uses dissonance. The strings feel like they’re screaming. This isn't just to be "scary"—it’s to keep you on edge, mirroring the frantic, high-stakes combat. When the music shifts in a boss fight, it’s a cue. It tells you the boss has entered phase two. It’s information.
Contrast that with something like Stardew Valley. ConcernedApe (Eric Barone) wrote that music to be a warm blanket. It’s repetitive in a way that feels safe. It encourages the "one more day" loop. If that music were too complex or aggressive, the game’s cozy vibe would shatter.
The Evolution from Beeps to Orchestras
We’ve come a long way from the 8-bit era. Back then, composers like Nobuo Uematsu had to work with massive limitations. You only had a few channels of sound. You couldn't have a sweeping violin solo; you had to simulate the feeling of a violin with a square wave. Paradoxically, these limitations created some of the most memorable melodies in history. Because they couldn't rely on texture or high-fidelity recordings, they had to rely on "earworms."
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Final Fantasy VII is a masterclass in this. The "Main Theme" or "Aerith’s Theme" are harmonically sophisticated, even when played through a primitive sound chip. Today, we have full orchestras. Austin Wintory’s score for Journey was the first video game soundtrack nominated for a Grammy. That was a huge moment. It proved that the "gaming" label didn't mean the music was lesser.
Why Mick Gordon’s DOOM Changed Everything
You can’t talk about good video game soundtracks without mentioning DOOM (2016). Mick Gordon basically reinvented the wheel here. He didn't just write "metal music." He used a technique called "sine compression" and ran synthesizers through chains of analog pedals until the sound started to break. It created this industrial, crunchy texture that felt like the game looks.
But here’s the kicker: the music is tied to the player’s heart rate. As you get more "glory kills," the music intensifies. It rewards you for being aggressive. That’s something a movie score can never do because a movie is a linear, fixed experience. A game is a conversation between the player and the software.
The Psychology of Environmental Storytelling
Have you ever noticed how some games use silence? The Last of Us uses Gustavo Santaolalla’s sparse guitar work to emphasize the emptiness of the world. It’s lonely. If that game had a constant, swelling orchestral score, it would feel like a generic action movie. By keeping it minimal, the music makes the world feel bigger and more dangerous.
Then you have Persona 5. Shoji Meguro went in the opposite direction. Acid jazz. J-pop. Lyrics in the background music while you’re just walking to school. It’s bold. It gives the game a "cool" factor that most RPGs lack. It treats the city of Tokyo as a character. You aren't just playing a game; you’re inhabiting a specific aesthetic.
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Don't Overlook the Indie Scene
Big budgets don't always mean better music. Some of the most influential good video game soundtracks of the last decade came from tiny teams.
- Hollow Knight (Christopher Larkin): It’s melancholic and vast. It makes the underground kingdom of Hallownest feel ancient.
- Outer Wilds (Andrew Prahlow): The use of a simple banjo theme is brilliant. It’s "space campfire" music. It grounds a complex sci-fi mystery in something human and small.
- Undertale (Toby Fox): It uses "Leitmotifs" (recurring themes for characters) better than almost any AAA game. Every character has a musical identity that evolves as the story changes.
Why Technical Sound Design Matters
Sometimes, the "soundtrack" isn't just the music. It’s the soundscape. In Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, the developers used binaural recording. If you wear headphones, the voices in the protagonist's head sound like they’re standing right behind you. It’s incredibly uncomfortable, which is exactly the point. It’s a literal representation of psychosis.
Is it "good" music? Maybe not in the sense that you’d play it at a party. But is it an incredible soundtrack? Absolutely. It achieves the creative goal of the project.
Common Misconceptions About Game Music
One big mistake people make is thinking that a soundtrack is only good if it’s "epic." We’ve been conditioned by trailers to think that loud horns and pounding drums equal quality. But "epic" can be exhausting. If a 60-hour RPG is constantly at an 11/10 volume, you’ll get ear fatigue.
The best soundtracks know when to shut up. They know how to use "negative space." In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the music is often just a few piano notes scattered in the wind. This was controversial at first. People wanted the big, sweeping Zelda themes. But Manaka Kataoka realized that in a game about exploring a lonely wilderness, silence is more powerful. It makes the moments when the music does swell feel earned.
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How to Curate Your Own Experience
If you want to dive deeper into good video game soundtracks, don't just look at the "Best of" lists on Spotify. Look at the composers. If you like Darren Korb’s work on Hades, check out Transistor or Pyre. He has a very specific "vocal-forward" style that is rare in gaming.
If you’re a fan of orchestral weight, look for Yoko Shimomura. Her work on Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy XV is legendary for its emotional complexity. She can write a battle theme that makes you want to run through a brick wall and a piano ballad that makes you want to cry, all within the same thirty minutes.
The Role of Licensed Music
We also have to acknowledge the "Curated" soundtrack. Games like Grand Theft Auto, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, or Cyberpunk 2077 use licensed tracks. This is a different skill set. It’s about being a world-class DJ. Choosing the right song for the right moment is an art form. Think about the first time you rode into Mexico in Red Dead Redemption and "Symmetry" by José González started playing. It’s a scripted moment, but it feels organic. It’s a perfect marriage of gameplay and licensed audio.
Assessing the Future: AI and Procedural Music
We’re starting to see a shift toward AI-generated music in games, and honestly, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. While AI can create endless "lo-fi beats to study to" for a procedural space explorer, it lacks the intentionality of a human composer. A human knows when to break the rules. A human knows how to create a "payoff."
The industry is leaning more into "generative" scores—where a composer writes bits of music, and an engine assembles them in real-time based on your actions. This is likely where the most innovation will happen in the next few years. It’s not about replacing the artist; it’s about giving them a more complex instrument to play.
Actionable Steps for Better Gaming Audio
If you actually want to appreciate these soundtracks, you need to stop playing through your TV speakers. Most TV speakers are garbage. They’re thin, they lack bass, and they crush the dynamic range.
- Invest in open-back headphones. If you’re playing at home in a quiet room, open-back headphones provide a wider "soundstage." It makes the game world feel like it’s around you, rather than inside your ears.
- Turn off the "Midnight Mode" or "Loudness Equalization." These settings compress the audio so that loud noises are quieter and quiet noises are louder. It ruins the intended dynamics of the soundtrack.
- Check the "Music" slider in the settings. Sometimes, default mixes are bad. If the dialogue is drowning out a brilliant score, don't be afraid to bump the music up to 90% and drop the SFX to 70%.
- Listen to "GamerIP" or high-fidelity versions. YouTube compresses audio heavily. If a soundtrack blows you away, find the FLAC version or the official vinyl release. The level of detail you’ll hear in the percussion and lower frequencies is night and day.
The reality is that good video game soundtracks are often the unsung heroes of your favorite gaming memories. You might remember the final boss fight, but what you’re actually remembering is how the music made your heart race during that final 10% of the health bar. Start paying attention to the layers. Listen for the recurring motifs. Notice when the music disappears. When you start listening to games rather than just playing them, the whole experience changes.