The end of the year is fast approaching and, with it, its usual batch of balance sheets and other best-ofs. But before drawing a line under 2021 and electing the soundtrack of the year, video games still have some nice surprises in store for us.
As necessary to the emotion as the image itself, video game music will have struggled to emerge from its case. If it makes hearts beat, cry hot tears or sometimes knows how to push us to crime, it is not only utilitarian and deserves to be listened to out of play.
We therefore offer you a journey to the heart of the most significant or least known video game music. A journey of enthusiasts concocted with the heart and, of course, with the ears: Now Playing.
The month of November was also particularly marked by a martial atmosphere. And for good reason: Call of Duty Vanguard and Battlefield 2042 have just launched – not to mention the Halo Infinite multiplayer beta. In short, a blessed month for fans of pan-pan and other pew-pew, in which we will still manage to find some sweet escapes thanks to some independent titles that are worth the detour. Put on your headphones, and good listening.
Battlefield 2042 - Hildur Guðnadóttir & Sam Slater
In many ways, Battlefield 2042 is a weird game. In rupture, the new DICE FPS divides its player base by the most curious game design choices. And as if to support this reversal, the soundtrack of the title is undoubtedly the most noisy we have heard this year in a video game.
Sure, it won't appeal to everyone. But we must recognize the audacity of having entrusted the composer of Joker or Chernobyl with the motherhood of the OST of such a warlike game. The result is titles with rough textures, not very melodic, which seem to have been designed above all to encourage the movement in play. A curiosity, certainly, which however has the merit of shaking up our habits. And in this regard, the making-of of the soundtrack is worth a detour to understand how the composers arrived at such a result. - pc
Call Of Duty: Vanguard - Bear McCreary
It's been years since I've touched a Call of Duty game. But for Vanguard, I might make an exception. Mostly for his music (surprising, no?). Composed by Bear McCreary (God of War, Battlestar Galactica and many other things), the soundtrack of this new opus is unsurprisingly completely to my taste.
From its opening theme, heaviness and epic flights are in order, but also the breaks and finer passages of which the talented composer has the secret. - AR
Ruined King - Gareth Coker
What a month for League of Legends fans. In addition to the box of the Netflix Arcane series, no less than two games inspired by the universe created by Riot Games were released in November. One of them, Ruined King, also pays for the musical services of Gareth Coker, who we know in particular for his work on the two Ori.
The Briton signs an extremely rich fantasy soundtrack, which combines epic flights expected in the context of an RPG with more sedate and bewitching pieces like the present Mountains of Boats and Houses. If you like the style, know that a second album entitled "Inns of Bilgewater" brings together all the "tavern" music from the game for a playful medieval atmosphere by the fireside. - pc
Forza Horizon 5 - Ian Livingstone
I have a confession to make: when I play any Forza Horizon, I very quickly turn off the in-game radios to listen to my own music (with a playlist soberly called “VROOM VROOM LES VOITURES”). However, some nuggets are hidden there and, above all, the soundtrack signed in this Forza Horizon 5 by veteran Ian Livingstone (F1 2021) is very solid.
This is particularly the case for the absolute banger that is the Tulum track. Accompanied on guitar by Glenn Sharp, drums by Joel Barford and marimba by Kai Stensgaard, the composer delivers 8 absolutely incredible minutes. - AR
Exo One - Rhys Lindsay
Shooting star of this month of November, Exo One is a title like no other. A contemplative space exploration game, it puts us at the controls of a strange alien ship that we have to “bounce” on different surfaces to make it pick up speed. We thus cross incredible landscapes, on the parsimonious compositions of Rhys Lindsay.
A few notes of electric guitar and, above all, a lot of reverberation are all that Exbleative's game has to offer us. The twenty pieces fit perfectly into the process of discovering the game, and systematically punctuate the many moments when a panorama takes our jaws off. As beautiful to look at as it is to listen to, and the promise of an unexpected journey. - pc
Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One - Viacheslav Pakalin
I can't wait to get my hands on this new Sherlock Holmes game. Because I really like mystery games and the famous character of course, but also because he put Viacheslav Pakalin on my radar.
The Ukrainian composer and sound designer, who hasn't done much before apart from The Sinking City, signs here a soundtrack perfectly suited to the hero. I can't wait to enjoy its strings, its piano and its tension directly in play. - AR
Unpacking - Jeff Van Dyck
In the family of the most unexpected great musical deviations, I ask for Jeff Van Dyck. Historical composer of Sega's Total War saga, the Canadian offered himself a well-deserved parenthesis by signing the OST of the very relaxing Unpacking.
Very clever, the Witch Beam game mixes puzzle game and environmental narration to silently tell us about the life of the character we play. Benevolent and inevitably welcoming, Unpacking allows Van Dyck to deliver haunting and playful titles - a thousand leagues from the battlefields to which he is accustomed! - pc
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Shota Kageyama et Junichi Masuda
Originally composed by Junichi Masuda, Go Ichinose, Hitomi Sato and Morikazu Aoki, the music of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl is of course back in the new Brilliant versions.
What can we say except that it's Pokémon as we like it? Among the dozens and dozens of songs, there is something for everyone: intensity for the fights, chill for the exploration, and lots of different sounds to go hunt creatures until the end of the night. - AR
Bright Memory Infinite - Jeff Rona, Cody Matthew Johnson
Widely put forward by Microsoft during the promotion of its Xbox Series X, the very pretty Bright Memory Infinite is not only an effective FPS that flatters the retina. The titles composed with four hands by Jeff Rona and Cody Matthew Johnson underline the supercharged action of this DOOM-like (yes I am a child of the 90s), while honoring the Chinese origins of its developer Zeng Xiancheng.
A short soundtrack, certainly, but which only increases in power to reach an expected climax. - pc
Undungeon - Stone From the Sky
Just released at the time these lines are written, Undungeon has nevertheless partially listened to its OST several years ago. Composed by the Spanish group Stone From the Sky, which is the first video game, it is quite varied.
This is in any case the case for the few tracks available on YouTube. Riding the Void and Wasteland Law are rather chill and airy for example, while Itinerant and The Shift, above all, are certainly more intense. In any case, they are all of good quality. - AR
The editor also likes:
- Les Démons du Midi: hosted by the passionate and fascinating Pipomantis of Gamekult and now Twitcher Gautoz, this monthly podcast on video game music is an unmissable event.
- The Ongaku : Website (also a Twitter account and a subreddit) very active on all things video game music. Recommendations, the release schedule and the arrival of OSTs on legal listening platforms. A must-follow account!
- Blipblop : Twitter account relaying announcements of video game music releases in physical format (CD or vinyl). Unmissable for any collector who does not want to miss a restock.
- Video Games Music Daily : lacking inspiration? VGM Daily offers you several times a day recommendations of OST to discover, with the links that go well to listen to all this legally.
- I am ashamed : DJ passionate about video game music who creates, once a month, incredible mixes from songs from yesterday and today. As a bonus, each video is accompanied by subtitles providing a lot of context on the composer or the difficulties of mixing VGM. To listen without moderation.
