Katana314:

People will be surprised at me for saying this, but my favorite song from Portal is actually much earlier in the game. From the game content files, you can see it's called "Self Esteem Fund". It was a very somber melody that got across the feeling of loneliness and fear in Chell, and a little sense of "Am I going to make it out of here?"

I'm not. I absolutely loved the entire soundtrack. In fact, like you, I prefer some of the other songs to Still Alive. I personally love "4000 Degrees Kelvin", "No Cake For You", and "Stop What You Are Doing".

Andrenavarro:

PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME - Stuart Chatwood's music is great without being generic, and there's some memorable tracks.

I also have to agree on this point as well. I felt the soundtrack accentuated the game very well. It was atmospheric, had a hard edge when needed, and remained true to the games story (thematically).

I think Audiosurf wins by definition. It is YOUR music.

Guilty Gear and Katamari Damacy's soundtracks.
And the Devil May Cry series

Nerdfury:
For music that seems to instantly alter my mood, and make even the worst day into something wonderful for me, I'd have to say the Okami soundtrack. Especially the Shinshuu Plains one. I dare anyone to listen to the soundtrack and not find one song that makes them happy.

QFT, how did I forget Okami?

Super Smash Brothers Brawl was hands down best songs ever. Being born in the era of pixelated heroes and 16-bit noises. Other than that:

BioShock (yes, I own the music score)
EarthBound (if you don't know it, you need to get out of your rock)
Mario (ridiculously overplayed, but still awesome)
Kirby (remix galore, and still good)
Silent Hill (scary and still good)
Resident Evil (same as above)

One complaint about BioShocks music, it had only 12 tracks, and each one of them only played at specific times, and usually in only one area:

1. Main Theme (played during the intro)
2. Welcome to Rapture (played during the intro)
3. Dr. Steinman (played during bossfight with Dr. Steinman/Peach Wilkins)
4. The Docks (for some reason, while wandering the Smugglers Cave)
5. The Dash (played after the submarine was blown up)
6. Step Into my Gardens (played at recurring moments when a houdini splicer attacked)
7. Dancers on a String (played during the first encounter of Cohen)
8. Cohens Masterpiece (what Kyle Fitzpatrick "attempts" at playing, also played in the atrium when you return from retrieving a picture)
9. The Engine City (when you get attacked at Ryan Andrews doorstep, prior to opening it)
10. Empty Houses (while rummaging through Olympus Heights, in Suchongs Apartment)
11. This is Where they Sleep (while rummaging through Apollo Square, in a random apartment)
12. All Spliced Up (once, during the final battle, and somehow, NOT repeated!)

Four pages and no mention of Chrono Cross. That's just not right. Maybe the average person here is too young to appreciate it? =)

Seriously though, there hasn't been a game to date that has matched up a soundtrack to art design and atmosphere as well as well as Cross did. It was nothing short of a triumph in sound editing and design. The individual songs themselves were high quality, too.

Shadow of the Colossus and Final Fantasy Tactics are also good choices that have already been mentioned.

shinseitori:
Four pages and no mention of Chrono Cross. That's just not right. Maybe the average person here is too young to appreciate it? =)

I liked the Chrono Cross music, I even imported the OST CDs. It's just hard to remember how great the music in a game was when the game itself was so very blah.

And from reading posts I remembered that I should have mentioned Guilty Gear too.

Vampire Bloodlines... briliantly atmospheric with a bunch of fantastic wierd rock/metal type tracks thrown in for good measure.

Such a shame that game tanked.

PurpleRain:
Bioshock
Half Life 2
Halo
Mass Effect

There is absolutly no way you can argue with that list. You must be either stupid or deaf.

someone with a damn fine taste in music

Skies of Arcadia, Shenmue and Headhunter. Yeah, I know, all on the same system, but C'MON. Skies of Arcadia has some of the best battle music ever, it's a privilege to hear Jack's theme in Headhunter, and Shenmue's music is just.... lovely.

RedSigma:

But to name a different peice of work, I'd have to say Roar of the Earth. Its the OST for Shadow of the Colossus and it is amazing. Definitely right up there next to Silent Hill in my list.

Completely agree with that. shadow of the colossus soundtrack is just amazing, matches the moods of the game perfectly.
For a pure entertainment soundtrack, I would vote for Tony Hawks 2.

Meshakhad:
I think Audiosurf wins by definition. It is YOUR music.

Actually, I think it loses because it only has one track and that's not that good. Otherwise, every 360 game there is (and possibly PS3/Wii; not experimented with those consoles to date) wins the same victory, since you can customise the music for every game. In fact, I recommend getting the track "Libera me" from hell from the Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann OST (called BEST SOUND), and playing the first level of DMC4. Skip the cutscene where Nero fights random scarescrows, skip to the 2nd one, where Dante jumps in through the glass roof. I somehow made it sync perfectly to the cutscene and the fight. Most enjoyable single-player experience to date on my 360.

tofutiles:
And the Devil May Cry series

I'm genuinely surprised that someone actually likes that music. Good for you, but I can't stand it.

Halo's music is good, but the themes were repeated too often. I listened to the OST's for both Halo 2 and 3, and they're soooo similar.

I assume that Final Fantasy's been mentioned somewhere between this post and the first page? If it's not... then, I dunno. I think I'd need to go check if things still fall down when I drop them.

I liked the music in Fable. Very nice sound that really reinforced the whole "story" or "faerie-tale" art theme. Just very appropriate. Sort of samey after a while, though.

Team Fortress 2, I loved the music of. That said, it only had music on the main menu, where it picked out of 4 or 5 tracks randomly. But those tracks are marvellous. They add soooo much to the theme.

EDIT: Huh, I somehow doubleposted. Apologies.

I'd like to add some great ones:

- Xenogears
- Jets'n'Guns
- Myst IV
- Advent Rising
- Outcast

In before Nobuo Uematsu fanboy circlewank.

I'm surprised someone else mentioned Colony Wars, thought I was the only old-timer who remembered the good old PS1 days. Especially CW1's 'good' ending, the music was downright cinematic.

I also remember a strategy game for PS1, whose name escapes me at the moment - you had 3 each of a Humvee, a helicopter, tank, and APC, and the point was to capture the enemy's flag with the Humvee. Every vehicle had as its own theme music different classical music, 'Ride of the Valkyries' was the heli theme (natch) and the Hummer had 'Flight of the Bumblebee' until you captured the other guy's flag, and 'William Tell Overture' on the mad dash back to your own base.

...

Get off my lawn you damn kids.

Awkward Turtle:
I can't believe no one's said Ocarina of Time yet.
Sure, it has almost(?) no orchestrated music, but the music just kind of sticks with you. I can still whistle all the ocarina songs by heart.
Even the music that played in dungeons was memorable. I remember being scared to death the first time I went in the Shadow Temple because of the music(and wallmasters...).

The Hyrule Field theme is on my iPod. That's how awesome it is. (...and how much of a nerd I am.)

Hey don't worry about it, when I heard the Zoras Domain music for TP I wept with joy- its a perfect update of a really good soundtrack. To me the music from most of the zelda games had been of a very high quality, so much that i bought the soundtracks for all the N64 games and WW. Its a real shame that they haven't done a proper one for TP yet. \as long as they don't include the wolf parts ;).

As a generally relaxed and laid back soundtrack i would recommend the killer 7 soundtrack. Also because its inter spaced with some of the beast boss music I've heard in a while- and that dance track is amazing (those who have heard it will be fully aware of what i mean!)

As a horror soundtrack (before inherent cynicism sets in) the resi remake is of a high standard, with some tracks in particular just creeping you out.

First thing that pops into my head is the themes to sonic 1,2,3 and knuckles. Rediscovered this stuff being played on piano and guitar on Youtube, was absolutely blown away by the quality of the stuff.

Mine would have to be from Yutaka Minobe, Takayuki Maeda, from "Skies of Arcadia". At the time, I thought it was the first game to be completely orchestral. I even have the official sound track from japan beside me. Next would be Jerry Martin, from Sim City 4. I've always loved the sound tracks from sim city. It routinely fit the game in every way, allowing you to feel relaxed and feel as if you were touring a contemporary urban metropolis. Simcity 4 however, had the best soundtrack of the series though. Lastly; as much as I dislike the game, Grand Theft Auto Vice City. The sound tracks really did establish the 80's and it was grotesquely entertaining to be mowing down thugs to "I ran".

Chrono Trigger by a long shot.

Half Life (and its sequels and related games) has always had a good sound to it.

I'm going to have to disagree on Mass Effect. Dramatic moments received the same dramatic music, and I dreaded hearing the map song because it took too damn long and I didn't want to hear it again.

1. Silent Hill: Canīt argue with danosaurus' points, the music is one of the references when it comes to subtile terror and emotion

2. Lost Odyssey: In my opinion one of the best works Uematsu has ever delivered. Rocking battle themes combined with such emotional warmth when it comes to melancolic moments, itīs great

3. Every classic LucasArts Adventure: Well, who can forget Monkey Islandīs themes, The Digīs classical influences, Grim Fandangoīs jazzy style... The score is always fitting and works even without the games

4. Super Castlevania (aka Nostalgica I): The best soundtrack in the series so far. The game was more gothicy then any other Castlevania and the music fits sooo well. I was excited to hear that Symphony of the Night was supposed to have the best Castlevania ost so far, but it... well, I think I expected something else.

5. Secret of Mana (aka Nostalgica II): Perfect game, perfect soundtrack.

And finally an extra point for an especially atmospheric achievment:
Thief 1,2 and 3: Well, the games donīt feature a classical gamescore, but the compositions are so subtle and become more intense as you progress in the missions. Thief 3 is an underapprechiated gem (to some point because the main story doesnīt kick in till the end of mission 3). Just check out some YouTube videos of "Seaside Manor" or "The Cradle". And then get it for the Xbox, it works fine on the 360.

My favourite soundtrack's from a game that just came out: "The World Ends Without You" for the DS. The game itself is set in Shibuya, Japan and is a departure from the kind of games you see from Square Enix and Nomura. The soundtrack's this great eclectic mix of electronica, pop, rock and something that's just distinctly Shibuya.

Second favourite would probably be FFVII .. something about that music. I still listen to it, especially when I'm studying.

By my favorite compositions, (and not audio quality), I'd have to say Zelda: Link's Awakening for the Gameboy, and Golden Sun: The Lost age for the GBA.

It's almost not right to count the Metal Gear Solid and forward games - Harry Gregson-Williams has done a lot of work for movies and cinematics, but hey, I think all's fair in love and game soundtracks.

Aside from that, yep, I'm going to have to go with Nobuo Uematsu and the Final Fantasy series as well. I guess I've always been a fan of the more epic, sweeping soundtracks and for RPGs a good track not only sounds good but also complements the story. I had the fortunate opportunity to catch the latest Final Fantasy symphonic concert tour and it was well worth it to hear the tracks played by an orchestra as they were meant to be.

Chuck Rock = Chuck Rock Theme

Oh if we're going back that far...

Anything ever by Rob Hubbard

boom boom rocket...... that is all

Highbrow:
I also remember a strategy game for PS1, whose name escapes me at the moment - you had 3 each of a Humvee, a helicopter, tank, and APC, and the point was to capture the enemy's flag with the Humvee. Every vehicle had as its own theme music different classical music, 'Ride of the Valkyries' was the heli theme (natch) and the Hummer had 'Flight of the Bumblebee' until you captured the other guy's flag, and 'William Tell Overture' on the mad dash back to your own base.

...

Get off my lawn you damn kids.

IIRC that game was "Return Fire."

greygelgoog:

IIRC that game was "Return Fire."

Yes, that was the one. Thanks grey (and wikipedia).

i have played a surprisingly full games all the way through but i can still say that the sound track is largly based on whats happening in the game so in a casual game you will have a rock out soundtrack and in gears of war you will have a soundtrack where it hits a randome chord to show you that the fighting has temporarily stopped

Shadow of the Colossus, Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, Zelda OoT, Super Mario 64, Final Fantasy's in general, Castlevania's in general.

I have no preferences among these.

Akira Yamaoka - Silent Hill
Yasunori Mitsuda - Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross
Nobuo Uematsu - FFs 6-9 are best
Hiroki Kikuta - Secret of Mana 1 & 2
Shadow of the Collossus (I don't know the guys name.)
Various Artists - Katamari Damacy / We love Katamari

I am a VG Soundtrack addict c:
I buy games and listen to their soundtracks. It's one of the most vital aspects of a game to me. It fascinates me. One time, it was my aspiration... maybe it still is. I composed some pretend VG music myself. It was pretty good too. c:

EDIT I just realized the guy before me just named like half of these oops D:

First off I'm gonna mention someone that's probably already been mentioned at least once but four pages was too much to scan through for me at the moment...

Nobuo Uematsu, whatever you may think of the Final Fantasy series it's hard to deny that this man is a great composer. Almost all the music he's made for the FF series has been amazing and very varying. To think that the same person would compose the FF theme (from the first nes game and at least FF7, it's been "sampled" in other tracks throughout the series as well) with it's calming magical sound only to later compose orchestral wonders like One Winged angel in FF7 and then proceed to compose growl metal with Otherworld for FFX. And one must not forget that he's the leading member of the J-pop(rock?) band The Black Mages on the side =)

Another great game soundtrack composer is Michiko Naruke who composed the music for the Wild ARMs games. I saw that someone mentioned the opening to the first game on the first page and that it to me the best song in the WA series, closely followed by the similar opening in WA3. I like the western feel that the music appropriately convey to me as the player.

The funniest thing I've experienced with a soundtrack though is when a friend of mine had bought a US copy of Secret of Mana (as the game wasn't released in Europe for some moronic reason) and we were just about to play it for the first time. Like most people when we play a new game for the first time we wanted to see the opening, and we listened for about a minute until I reacted and exclaimed "Wtf! The song's in Swedish!" This fact delayed the gaming by half an hour because we had to laugh our asses off. (We're Swedish btw =P ) What is so extra funny with this is that they have a Swedish opening to a game that won't be released in Sweden, great! =D

All of Mass Effect, the last half of the final mission in Halo 3 and all of Timesplitters 2 especially the Western level

The megaman music on the NES.
The Supaplex music. It's amazing how good that music sounds when played on a PC speaker.
Lotus 3 soundtrack for the PC, but i may be biased. The music did sound great on the PC speaker but it was the first game i played when i got my very first sound card, so you can imagine the jaw-dropping factor.

There are others, they have been mentioned already

Pretty much anything by Yuzo Koshiro in his prime. Anybody old enough to remember the "Streets of Rage" series will know what I'm talking about.