Whether you're tired of always listening to the same music or you want to discover what was best for the ears in October on the side of video games, there is no doubt that you should appreciate our selection of the month.
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.
But if you're looking for something to liven up your Halloween party, check out our previous selection of the best tracks to scare yourself.
Inscryption - Jonah Senzel
Still alongside creator Daniel Mullins after The Hex and Pony Island, composer Jonah Senzel signs a remarkable soundtrack for the very recent and no less remarkable Inscryption. Frightening and oppressive at will, the music of the American undoubtedly contributes to the solid and gloomy atmosphere of the title.
In The Trapper & The Trader for example, the slowness, the percussions and the humming work wonders, but the rest of the soundtrack is not stingy with striking passages and using original sounds. It could also have been found without forcing in our special Halloween selection. - AR
Far Cry 6 - Pedro Bromfman
Failing to renew the formula of its FPS in the open world, Ubisoft takes care more and more of the musical part. After a Far Cry 5 brought to the firmament on this point thanks to Dan Romer, his successor follows suit brilliantly.
It is that Ubisoft has teamed up with a big name: Pedro Bromfmam, the composer (among others) of the soundtrack of the Narcos series. The Brazilian musician signs for Far Cry 6 a lively soundtrack with multiple influences. Everything you need to carry out a guerrilla war worthy of the name. Ah, and if you are curious and curious, also listen to the titles from the radios of the game. I discovered Bomba Estereo there and my life will never be the same again. - pc
Darkest Dungeon II - Stuard Chatwood
Just launched in early access on the Epic Games Store (we also offered you a preview recently), Darkest Dungeon II looks more than promising. Because the first was a gem and its developers took their time with the sequel, but also because the composer Stuart Chatwood (also already mentioned in our selection of horror music) is back in business.
Only the main theme of this new opus has been officially unveiled for the moment. Perhaps a little less creepy but more epic than usual, the track is nonetheless effective and makes you want to hit the road with these adventurers to loot dungeons, kill monsters and go crazy. Anyway, I'm already crazy waiting for the distant version 1.0. - AR
They Always Run - Deallry
On the radar of those who fell in love with its pixel art and refined animations, They Always Run seems to deliver all its promises. At least according to the rare tests already published on the game of Alawar Premium.
I haven't played it myself, but the mere mention of the terms "metroidvania" and "space cowboy" was enough to pique my curiosity. Suffice to say that I did well, because the OST initialed by a certain Deallry (unknown to the battalion) hit the mark. Apinging, as in this excerpt, a few notes to Mass Effect, she is actually polymorphic. We particularly recommend the title āEvening in Gigapolisā for its badass rhythm, or āInvisibleā for the big difference it represents. Not impossible that I let myself be tempted by the adventure, me. - pc
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hinokami Chronicles - Yuki Kajiura et Go Shiina
Is selecting a game that uses the music of the anime it is based on cheating? I'll let you make up your own mind, but anyway I've retained the soundtrack of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Hinokami Chronicles, the versus game inspired by the excellent manga/anime by the same name.
Composed by Yuki Kajiura and Go Shiina, the soundtrack is one of the reasons the anime works so well, and I imagine the game does the same (which I haven't played). I retained the solid music played during the end credits, as it marvelously mixes the drama and the epic and thus pays perfect homage to the work. - AR
Moonglow Bay - Lena Raine
The "fishing-RPG", as Bunnyhug Games likes to call it, does not have much to remember. If not his music, composed by the incredible Lena Raine (Guild Wars 2, but especially Celeste and more recently Chicory).
Through some forty pieces navigating between chill ballads and more disturbing compositions, the musician from Seattle signs her second major participation of the year. Not enough, unfortunately, to save Moonglow Bay from sinking, but delicious enough to make us listen to its OST on repeat. - pc
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Richard Jacques
The ultimately fairly positive reviews of the predicted disaster Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy made me want to play it. Well, it won't be for right away despite everything, but I still logically took a listen to the soundtrack, since it's one of the strong points of the films and the music is the very core of the Guardians' DNA.
Here, it is Richard Jacques (Headhunter, Mass Effect) who is in charge of the soundtrack, apart of course from the iconic pieces of known artists slipped here and there. The Englishman offers, unsurprisingly, the vast majority of epic and lively tracks, worthy of a Marvel film, and it worked perfectly for writing this paragraph. - AR
Tandem : A Tale of Shadow - Guillaume Nicollet
A few months after the good surprise Shady Part of Me, another Spanish studio is playing Chinese shadows. And if it does not necessarily mark the spirits for its academic gameplay, Tandem: A Tale of Shadow is a great artistic success.
A success in which Guillaume Nicollet actively participates. In addition to signing the creative direction of the title, the co-founder of the Monochrome studio composed the music for Tandem. And as much to say that the man was inspired, for his very first musical effort.
In an interview with ScreenRant, he says he learned a lot from an uneventful little guy named Danny Elfman. And when you cross the discography of the man, who has composed for almost all of Tim Burton's films, and the artistic direction of Tandem, you say to yourself that the planets have aligned well. - pc
Age of Empire IV - Mikolai Stroinski
As of this writing, Age of Empires IV is coming to Game Pass in two hours. Moment that will correspond to the end of my working day. Coincidence? Absolutely not. Anyway, all that to say that I haven't played Microsoft's latest RTS yet, but it will certainly be soon.
I still listened to a few pieces of the soundtrack by Mikolai Stroinski (The Witcher 3), and I really liked what I discovered. This is particularly the case of the pieces dedicated to the Roman Empire, which evolve with each passage of age. What do you mean there's still 1h55 left before the release?! - AR
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars - Keiichi Okabe
After the resounding success of NieR: Automata with the general public, to say that Yoko Taro is among the most important directors of the medium is an understatement. Suffice to say that his actions are closely scrutinized by fans, many of whom have already jumped on Voice of Cards, his brand new game.
But if this is an āintermediateā project for the creator before, perhaps, continuing the NieR saga, this deck building RPG is obviously set to music by his lifelong partner Keiichi Okabe. Already responsible for the unforgettable soundtracks of Taro's previous titles, Okabe spoils us with new titles with very varied sounds, some of which, like this main theme, remain faithful to the composer's habits. - pc
The editor also likes:
- Les DĆ©mons 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.
