After much musing here's my list of soundtracks from an N64 kid, headlined by a PS1 classic because there's just no denying it.
1. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The masterwork of Michiru Yamane, in a series already renowned for its music she stepped up here and delivered a soundtrack dripping with atmosphere, delving into genre variety and yet always managing to fit the tone.
And who'd have thought Draculas Castle could be home to such a selection of musical styles? Sure a whole creature compendium in there is a given in his abominable abode but choral hymns and baroque pieces alongside some wailing guitars and whatever the heck is going on with Rainbow Cemetery is the variety one may not have expected but boy do I love it..
It's almost the perfect example in its generation of why PS1 discs would handily trump N64 carts for sound any day, except for that they went one step too far with "I am the wind" vocal track so double edged swords and all that. It's okay Yamane, one dud among a ton of classics is forgivable.
This is truly a case where I find the music elevates each area of the castle with how well it fits and therefore the game as a whole. In fact I may have enjoyed the inverted castle a bit more if there was more music variety, even so Finale Toccata gets a bit of a bad rap from some, shame it never really gets to get going.
Draculas Castle: A dramatic leap across the closing castle drawbridge, you land at Dracula's doorstep and the wind howls, the music picks up and then you slash a warg so hard in the face he combusts with fiery bombast and all the time you're nodding your head along to this pumping tune.
Wood Carving Partita: This harpsichord makes me feel like the fancy fellow, though its hard to settle down and read in this library when half the books are trying to kill you.
Crystal Teardrops: A gloomy cavern theme with a great slow burn heading to that glorious finishing combo of choir and organ.
2. Banjo-Kazooie
I can tell you right now, this soundtrack has Banjos and Kazoos so expectations are well and truly met, even the games opening scene is
this lovely little musical number so its off to a great start on the music front.
Joy explodes from every angle of Banjos OST, it revels in its jauntiness and the playful cartoony style, I mean really theres not enough xylophones and trombones making the rounds in my game soundtracks or at least thats how I feel having grown up with the Grant Kirkhope style.
This was also one of the first games I found to really take advantage of dynamic music tracks that would shift in style depending on your location, sure I had some run ins with this in Super Mario 64 but well if SM64 was doing something then Im pretty sure Rares aim here was for Banjo to do it better which it certainly did in this department.
BK at times makes use of environmental sound effects to accompany the music which as a man who loves his DKC2 OST a little too much I like a lot, of course this is banjo so this goes from the addition of Bee buzzing to the growling of a mechanical sharks stomach.
This is a game where youve even got a story for some sound effects like how Grant going ooh my knackers led to Mumbos omanaka voice clip, I like to think that says it all.
Freezeezy Peak: The most Christmassy thing to ever Christmas on the N64 and thats even facing stiff crimbo competition from Diddy Kong Racing. A huge part of why this world was a festive favourite for myself as a kid.
Mr Viles Game: I love when you replay a game and take notice of a track you didnt before, so what Im saying is it wasnt until this year I realized that the Mr Vile Minigame has a catchy tune, also increases in tempo towards the end of the time limit for that extra level of frantic scrambling.
Inside Clanker: Belching, tummy rumbling and a Theremin among other things including catchy rhythmic clicking, delightfully mad is how Id describe it.
3. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The game that made Ocarinas kinda cool to many kids who hadnt even heard of one beforehand, alas we were all disappointed that ours couldnt summon storms and repair busted signposts, I should never have destroyed that post
Okay so I never had an Ocarina but this game made me want one, before you even get to the bulk of the OST theres the smaller tracks that you play with the Ocarina itself that stand as some of the most enduring brief tracks in gaming. Of course some of these like Sarias Song and Eponas Song have fuller versions used in the game but the unsung heroes to me will always be the tracks Sheik teaches the player and I theyre pretty much committed to memory, give me some C buttons and I can still warp away (though I may have to play by ear for a bit, 3DS controls switching things up).
So making music was a fun and integral part of the game and one that would stick around in the series to varying degrees of success (screechy wolf howling and dodgy harps dont quite scratch the same itch) but how about the soundtrack itself? Zelda is a series often praised for its memorable music, I even went to the Master Quest symphony where my ears took more of a hammering from the roars of a crowd that were waaaaay too happy to hear Dragon Roost Island but I digress. The thing about Ocarina of Times OST to me is that it kinda spoilt me in regards to future entries in the series, Ocarina had so many tracks that just burrowed their way into my mind and while future games certainly had their moments they never felt as well rounded in the music department as this entry.
I find this especially notable with dungeon themes which became something of a weak spot in the future of the series, here in OoT though youve got stuff like the mystical ambience of the Deku Tree interior and the unnerving and memorably bizarre Forest Temple.
Its no surprise to me that Ocarina delivered a host of recurring tracks to the series like A Link to the Past before it (probably what Id consider the best in the series), they didnt even need to bring in the series main theme as backup!
Onto my picks, all quick loops these ones
Potion Shop: Always made me feel like I was in a shadier shop than the normal, granted that may also be because the three places its plays involve two rather grotesque old folks and some ghoul chap selling ghosts so that may have tainted my perspective.
Sheiks Theme: Ive always thought it a theme that reflects the character of Sheik as opposed to his/her appearance, which makes it actually a bit jarring the first time you hear it.
Kaepora Gaeboras Theme: See the rest of the world just cant wait for this Owl to close its beak but I mustve been the one guy who would leave him lingering so I could listen to his little theme, why yes I would like to hear that again!
4. Diddy Kong Racing
Something, something David Wise.
Okay theres more to this than that, from the man himself
In all honesty, for Diddy Kong Racing, I was unashamedly paying tribute and showing respect to some of the great Nintendo compositions from Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64. I was trying to keep them even more in the desired genre, with every cliché I could lay reference to, with a bit of added Diddy Kong icing on top.
Which helps explain why this Kong based venture just goes full into happy land for the most part.
Ah I still remember putting Jukebox into the cheat screen so I could listen to these tunes, though I had no idea what a jukebox was at that point.
Title Theme: I really dig how each character is represented with their own instrument which plays into both this opening and the character select screen where the theme changes to match the character focus, considering that most of the roster are a bunch of one off characters never to be seen again it helps add just a little more character to their mostly flavourless selves.
Pirate Lagoon: The standout track of DKR in my mind, its like a fabulous tropical holiday commercial got out of control in the best possible (and cheesy) way.
Boss Challenge 2: Man Im not sure how to describe this, it starts like a sorta playful boss track that then goes almost surfer esque when that guitar kicks in, really its just one big catchy hodgepodge.
So Im listening to Darkmoon caverns right now (or at the time of typing) and its like a space disco. Theres also quite a few more tracks lurking in the DS port but honestly nothing too special unless you really want more DK Island Swing remixes and the inferior replacement for Pirate Lagoon (why Wise? Why?).
5. Pokemon: Red/Blue versions (and Yellow and Green as well I suppose)
Nothing quite like the cacophony of a coach full of schoolkids playing Pokemon, the battle theme burned into the minds of so many of us echoing through many GB speakers all at once and probably causing the adults to go slowly insane, its not even In sync!
Ah but what a classic soundtrack it is, nostalgia to the max most certainly but thats not to take away from it, mainline Pokemon games are a pretty consistent bunch with their music and this is the one that set the tone, all the trainer battle themes across the generations still carry a distinct style that originated here.
Route 4: Manages to sound grand and adventurous even through with Game Boy limitations, its also got a glorious orchestrated take in the anime.
Vs Gym Leader: somehow after so many years I swear Ive never heard a remix of this theme that matches the originals 8 bit intensity. dont get me started on Fire Red which starts promising and then devolves into something that makes me a bit sad.
Never really got why the OST version just throws random attack noises and pokemon growls into the second loop but yeah.
Really though I just want to plug the anime OST again for delivering some definitive versions of this games soundtrack, if only my Magmar encounters
sounded like this on the GB.
6. Donkey Kong 64
Youd probably figure as a big fan of Kirkhope and the DK series this soundtrack had no problem getting onto this list but in all honesty I spent years being underwhelmed by it and it wasnt until I went back this year I accepted it for what it was and realized that I liked it a lot.
I suppose a bit of background wouldnt go amiss here, theres no mistaking that DK64 feels and sounds oh so similar to Banjo Kazooie and in turn it loses that uncanny yet classic earthy vibe the DKC trilogy had, in short the game and its soundtrack never felt quite right to me being like the Kong based reskin of Banjo.
I do wonder how the music wouldve turned out had it been handled by Eveline Fisher (mostly noted for doing the vast majority of DKC3s atmosphere heavy soundtrack) as originally planned but for whatever reason Grant the workhorse Kirkhope had to step in here.
Its subtle but I do find theres a hint of the old series spirit alive within the soundtrack even if it can be hard to notice among the Banjo influence. I suppose you could say that DK64s soundtrack is like a bit more of a reeled in version of that musical style, its more likely to be a touch more reserved or even for lack of a better phrase mischievous sounding as opposed to full on jaunt.
Really though DK64s soundtrack is always worth trumpeting for it cementing the Kirkhope boss theme style where you take a worlds main theme and just make it full of bombast, Im pretty sure DK64 boss style was a term back on that old video game music site with the midi remakes, you know in the days before Youtube took off?....man I feel old.
Gloomy Galleon: An example of something that leans more DKC than Banjo, mainly because its suitably gloomy, with a stage name like that you kind of have to be.
Mad Jack: The boss version of Frantic Factorys theme, complete with maniacal laughter because that goes well with sinister jack in the boxes. Slightly related, the windup and music box effect of the intro to the standard stage theme for the factory is pretty slick.
DK Isle: A favourite hub world theme of mine, like a few things from DK64 its actually a Banjo-Kazooie leftover which may also explain why it's my favourite track here.
And after all of this its enduring musical legacy
is the DK rap, well bugger.
7. F-Zero X
So many electric guitars wailing away and a lineup of just plain bizarre song titles, that basically sums up the F-Zero X OST for me.
You know I think that usually this wouldnt be the kind of OST to be that much of a hit with me but maybe its that more retro style to F-Zeros shredding that hits this sweet spot and man it just fits the game perfectly.
Climb Up and Get the Last Chance: the reason I look forward to White Land tracks more than the rest
Crazy Call at Cry: The random English name generator working its magic here.
Title Theme: Just title? not something more zany like the ecstasy of momentum or Turbo through the Terror of Dark? well okay then.
8. Heroes of Might and Magic 3
Dont adjust your screens, this is indeed a PC game sneaking onto my list, all those hot seat multiplayer sessions left their musical impact after all. Home to a bunch of fantasy themes with that pseudo orchestra touch, Im happy to see it mentioned a few times already in this thread.
Fortress: My friend almost always took the swampy Fortress so it was rarely my home base theme, yes Im totally bitter, their monster selection is tops.
Anyway I like the rather mischievous vibe this track starts with as it swells up to something really quite grand and sweeping.
Stronghold: You could say it has a strong hold on me, and this is why I shouldnt type things up at 1AM.
Combat 4: Not exactly the most inspired of track names but oh my that percussion of WAR, really makes you feel like a dramatic ruck is about to go down.
9. Banjo-Tooie
Hey remember Banjo Kazooie and DK64 already mentioned above?
Yeah its pretty much more of that, now with more stage theme variance than ever before.
I could've gone with Perfect Dark for varieties sake but I guess I'm just a sucker for this style.
Racin With Mary: Banjoing Banjos
Also Canary Mary might just be the strangest looking NPC in these games.
Weldar- visually impaired welding torch: Because they can slap a pair of eyes on anything, even for a boss battle. Also it's the return of
DK64 Banjo Tooie style boss theme.
Cloud Cuckoo land: Ive slowly grown to love how fittingly loony this tune sounds, especially the various instruments taking turns hitting the sequence of ascending notes a bit before the loop.
10. Final Fantasy IX
Ive still yet to actually play this game, as such Id usually just not list it but my flimsy loophole here is in playing both Final Fantasy Theatrhythm games this entry had my favourite selection of tracks behind FFVI which I went on to play afterwards and was rewarded with a killer soundtrack.
So maybe Im just gonna give number 9 the benefit of the doubt here, unfortunately this leaves me with little to say about it seeing as Ive got no context.
Well I need more PS1 in here anyway so as for why I went with 9 over say 7 or 8, well 7 has this odd soundfont that sometimes sounds a bit ear splitting despite strong melodies, 8 is an improvement on that front and often touted highly by fans if Im not mistaken yet 9 has that extra level of fun and playful to it from what Ive heard so it gets my nod.
I can at least say that Ive tapped my stylus a fair amount to Something to Protect, Crossing Those Hills and You are Not Alone in particular
Im almost positive all three have been mentioned before in this thread so Im sure those fine folks have better summaries than I could give.
Ahhhh, what a lukewarm way to finish up, for now at least, I mean I might throw out random tracks I dug this gen under the guise of honourable mentions but this post at least has enough music in it already...
Screw it, I need to give
Ultimate Koopa its props right now.
I'll do better with the 16 bit gen I can promise you that.
Out of all 10 there's probably only two games most of you haven't heard of.
