1. Kid Icarus: Uprising
The composer lineup for Uprising immediately gives its soundtrack presence, with both old themes from the NES game given the orchestrated treatment and many more new tracks making their mark with a variety of styles Pits journey feels both bold and new while also slightly nostalgic.
Stage themes are broken up into two main approaches like the stages themselves are from a gameplay standpoint, the on rails flight sections favour a much more cinematic piece that runs the full 5 or so minutes working in unison with the action in game, meanwhile on ground music is handled more traditionally in looping form with more melodic hooks often drawing their main melody from a portion of the flight sections music though in some cases the track is unique to the ground sections.
While it leans towards more standard orchestration for the majority of the soundtrack theres quite a bit of variety in here from spanish guitar heavy themes invoking an old Western feel to something I can only describe as the splicing of sci-fi and big band music.
It all pulls together cohesively to create a very well rounded soundtrack that hits a lot of high notes, while Id say it stops short of outright knocking it out of the park it comes very close and as a whole earns my top spot this year.
The
Main Theme for Uprising is a more typical orchestrated affair, majestic and rather whimsical, its a great theme to serve as the soundtracks main focal point, what really helps put it over as my favourite is that in a way its not alone,
the second menu theme is a far more relaxed and lovely remix of the main theme and one youll likely hear the most tinkering around Uprisings menus, both are fantastic and which one I prefer really depends on the mood Im in.
You dont think Id mention the whole sci-fi big band without elaborating further, the ground theme from Chapter 15:
Aurum Island instantly stands out among the soundtrack with its distinct approach, the electronic focused slow build thats typical fare for the stages futuristic like theme suddenly explodes into a bold brass band and in turn carves itself a memorable place within the soundtrack.
Magnus Theme is powerful and possibly the most highly regarded track in Uprising if Im not mistaken, it carries a heroic air about it, the mesmerizing vocal chanting works well for when the track briefly slows down and it all comes back together to deliver a grand finish.
To give the more cinematic side of things some representation Id go with
The Ring of Chaos/Three Years, its actually a revamped remix of an earlier theme for the Goddess of Nature with a more chaotic and urgent edge, the slow shift to the choral climax is what cements this as my main cinematic choice.
And that
boss theme, oh my yes!
Uprisings soundtrack feels almost too grandiose for a handheld, it seems like the type of score reserved for big budget console blockbusters but Uprising is anything but a small game, its fully loaded with a soundtrack to match, Pit s return is enhanced further by the grand music accompanying him, to think that its going to be another 25 years until we get this soundtracks sequel.
Related Recommendations: Nintendo's most noteworthy orchestrated work is no doubt the Super Mario Galaxy duo so there's always them but really i'm not sure what i'd put here. Motoi Sakuraba seems to have done the bulk of the music and he's got like hundreds of soundtracks to his name of fluctuating quality, hey you could go look at that Tales of Xillia 2 post over there!
2. Katawa Shoujo
A surprising game for myself for numerous reasons, the soundtrack being one of the most pleasant surprises of them all and pleasant is a term that does well to describe the general feeling I get from Katawa Shoujos soundtrack. KS is pretty piano heavy which is a plus in my book, full of uplifting, soothing and also melancholy themes to compliment the various tales the game tells.
Each of the central characters has their own distinct theme to match up with their personalities from upbeat jazzy numbers to elegant piano pieces, the rest of the soundtrack wraps itself around events, locations and even the time of day with each theme doing a great job of helping set these scenes.
What puts Katawa Shoujo over for me is the feel good vibe it gives me, its relaxing and refreshing and if I may be completely sappy for a moment when it heads down the sombre route it manages to tug on the heart strings, actually it can do that with the more lighthearted themes as well.
Making a good first impression is always a plus, Katawa Shoujos title theme
Wiosna, is a short but oh so sweet piece that joins the elite club of title/menu themes that outright prevents me from starting up the game because I need to stop and listen, a very welcoming theme if I say so myself.
Not every character theme is all sunshine and rainbows,
Painful History is the character theme for the scarred and shy Hanako, a sorrowful song that drives home that shes a more troubled character with a past that negatively impacts her more than the other leading ladies, you know sometimes its almost nice to feel sad.
For a character theme quite unlike the previous,
The Student Council is a jaunty and upbeat piece of music for the duo of Misha and Shizune, I dont know what to say aside from I just really like this one, it makes me jolly so good on it.
Lastly Ill highlight
Innocence, an event theme that I think manages to be uplifting with almost a hint of sadness behind it or maybe thats just me, sentimentally satisfying, okay thats enough of my mushy antics.
The enigmatic box of sound is one of the more unexpected choices out there thatll likely drift under the radar not just this year but in the grand scheme of game soundtracks but it stands as one of my highlights from this year with its enchanting pieces of music that offers a nice change from what Im used to.
Plus it's FREE like the game itself, bargain!
Related Recommendation: At a stretch i'm going to say Kirby's Epic Yarn with its emphasis on soothing piano tunes.
3. Skullgirls
I love this art by the way
The Skullgirls soundtrack could be considered a slightly unexpected take on a soundtrack within the fighting game genre, a moody mix of jazz and grim Castlevania like themes leads me to coin the exciting and clearly inspired term of Jazzvania, not too surprising considering Machiru Yamanes work on the soundtrack, she may have stepped out from Draculas domain but her signature style remains and more importantly it does very well to fit the mood Skullgirls is going for.
Alongside Yamanes stage themes theres a host of tracks to fit various story mode scenes by Vincent Diamante who brings in a greater jazz emphasis in various forms from upbeat, somber and tense approaches and lastly theres the menu themes by the duo of Brenton Kossak and Blaine McGurty which have a rather relaxing toned down jazz (again) style which do well to set the scene and style of Skullgirls.
So as you may have gathered Jazz is kind of a thing here in the Skullgirls soundtrack and one of the main reasons it clicks with me, on top of that Im a big fan of Yamanes Castlevania soundtracks so getting to hear her music once more made this a soundtrack that instantly grabbed my attention.
Paved with good intentions is a laboratory stage theme from Yamane that gives me some major Portrait of Ruin vibes in particular and is my top track from Skullgirls. Its pretty unique compared to most of the soundtrack due to dropping the jazz stylings for a sinister electronic approach
On the other side of the coin
Return to Normalcy is a relatively upbeat piano focused theme from Diamante, the percussion here alongside the piano work makes it my favourite non stage theme in the game and one that I think falls to the wayside in the wake of the various other jazzy themes in the soundtrack.
Jumping back to stage themes,
The Seat of Power feels like the furthest away Yamane moves from the Castlevania style I keep speaking of and headfirst into Skullgirls more jazz orientated themes (how many more times am I going to say Jazz?), while perhaps not a theme that immediately fits with a brawl it eventually won me over being that one track that I initially didnt think that much of before creeping right up my ranks, what can I say? I really like that organ.
One more tune to represent Kossak and McGurty, the main menu theme
Pedestrians Crossing, I was trying to think of a way to describe it and then noted youtube comments coming to my rescue with classy, why yes thatll do nicely.
Skullgirls creates a moody jazz fueled experience that manages to find itself working quite well with zany characters knocking the hell out of each other, as a new fighting game IP it has a hard time getting attention with this years stiff competition within the genre but it's got a lot of (skull) heart and soul in it and that certainly extends to the strong soundtrack as well.
Related Recommendation: In a not so unexpected example, Yamane's Castlevania soundtracks but specifically the DS entries that have a stronger style match up.
Honourable Mentions
Hotline Miami: A soundtrack strong enough that i've actually yet to play the game at all yet I still feel the need to give it a shout out, while it's mostly licensed music meaning that i'd probably just drop it down here in HM's anyway the soundtrack has undeniably made an impact with people, i'd like to say it suits the game perfectly but well I wouldn't know, I have to just take other peoples word for it but I can tell it packs a wallop.
Fez: Chilled out music with a retro inspiration that perfectly compliments the world Fez takes place in.
Dust: I gave this one the works earlier so
here it is.
New Super Mario Bros 2 and Sonic 4 Episode 2: Because Schala would be upset if I missed out on these! memorable Dying Duck synths for Sonic and rehashed Bah filled bonanzas in NSMB2, platformers have never sounded so unique!
Okay a serious final one, while I haven't played the game i've noticed I enjoy most Gravity Rush tracks people have linked in music threads, it would possibly be a contender for me but I haven't really taken the time out to listen to it, but here's a mention anyway.
Right I think i'm done, thankfully, that was bloody exhausting, NEVER AGAIN!