Video game music

[bullethell]

Video Game Music are most of the time soundtracks.If you are into Films Soundtracks then you can probably enjoy them everytime you play them.However ppl listen to them for nostalgic reasons.Nostalgia, repetitive 8/16 bit sounds, instruntmental rich awesome OSTs, sounds and melodies connected to our favorite hobby.

So..Do you listen to Video Game Music?Which are your favorite albums?

I will post the best five VGM albums ever, at least for me.

1.Seiken Densetsu 2 - Secret Of Mana
2.Akumajo Dracula X - Symphony Of the Night
3.Panzer Dragoon Elements
4.Shadow of the Collosus
5.Radiant Silvergun

....Vagrant Story, Lost Odyssey, Ikaruga, Final Fantasy 6, Akumajo Dracula X (Super Famicom), Panzer Dragoon Saga, Otogi, Streets of Rage 2, Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Mario World.

[icycalm]

I can't say about the best videogame albums ever, because I haven't listened to all of them. Right now, the track that I would like to listen to most if I had it available, is Mushihime-sama Stage 4.

Still, I really prefer listening to videogame music while playing the actual game. That track I mentioned loses a lot when not accompanied by the manic in-game action.

[CosMind]

Still, I really prefer listening to videogame music while playing the actual game. That track I mentioned loses a lot when not accompanied by the manic in-game action.

That actually brings up a great expansion to this topic. There are a number of game OSTs that I enjoy much more while not playing their associated game. The sound tracks for the Donkey Kong Country (SNES) games are some examples. I really don't enjoy those games at all. I don't enjoy how they play, and I don't enjoy how they look. But, man, do I love their musical scores - some of my favorite game music ever.

If I listen to DKC songs while playing/watching the game, they get "tainted" by the vanilla play mechanics and eye-scorching visuals. Outside of the game, I could listen to a lot of the songs over and over again, and get swept into the deepest daydreams.

[U-Rat]

I am not a big fan of video-game music in general. I mean, I appreciate it and definitely enjoy a good sound and atmosphere when I play... but I have never bought an OST. (I have listen to some from my friends and the demo ones in the shops though)

I prefere to spend my "music listening time" to listen to a good artist / band who is not related to games. (I usually train my Guilty Gear combos or play shmups listening to DragonForce and Wintersun... ^^)

But, for me the best game music is:
1. you take your NEC "Winds of Thunder" CD-Rom...
2. you stick it in your favourite CD player
3. you push play! (start from track 2... as track one will be the "over-cuted" J-girl voice explaining to you that this is not a music CD...)

But you just better put the CD in a Duo and play the game while listening IMO.

[Mr.Stevenson]

Video game music is the purest form of music.

That is the ideal I held as an adolescent, as I was only exposed to music that was uncreative; that is, music that was carefully contrived and manufactured, so it could have the largest appeal to the market which it was sold in. Needless to say, a majority of music only amused me with its ridiculousness (a large amount of music today, still, does exactly that.)

Video game music filled my music gap until I was able to more thoroughly explore non-video game music. I'm thankful for the composers who passionately developed some of the greatest music ever produced and fostered the respect and the interest that I have in music today.

A few video game OSTs that I will mention as my favorites are:

Kenji Yamamoto - Metroid Prime
Hideki Naganuma - Jet Set Radio Future
Rockman Series
Rockman X Series
Gran Turismo Series
Ridge Racer Series

[DaleNixon]

The music from OutRun works surprisingly well in any racing game. (Test Drive Unlimited, anyone?) Heck, pretty much any 80's AM2-developed arcade game has excellent music that works great as custom soundtrack material for even the most modern games.

I can't listen to this stuff during my drive to work. All I do is sit in traffic. It really takes from the excitement.

I have to put a shout out to Galbadia Hotel here. Google it if you've never heard of it.