Tag Archives: gaming

More Videogame Soundtracks on Spotify

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When Infogrames released PC adventure game Outcast in 1999, video game music was taken to the next level. No more bitpop or incidental music: Outcast had a full orchestral score, written especially for the game and performed by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and choir.

Soundtrack music is now an integral part of the modern gaming experience, adding atmosphere, emotion, and tension to the game. These days most game companies release soundtrack albums to accompany a game release. I looked at some Videogame Soundtracks on Spotify last year, but lots have been added to Spotify since then. Here’s a look at ten of them.

 

L.A. Noire

L.A. Noire is well on its way to becoming my game-of-the-year. This 1940s crime procedural perfectly captures the smoky atmosphere of post-war L.A., and the jazz soundtrack plays a big part in this. The official soundtrack features score music by Andrew Hale, as well as three songs by the divine Miss Claudia Brücken (who doubles as Elsa Lichtmann, singer in The Blue Room nightclub). Spotify has the official soundtrack album but for the licensed music, jump on over to ShareMyPlaylists and check out my playlist of L.A. Noire Radio Songs.

 

 

 

Red Dead Redemption

My favourite game of 2010, Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption has a superb soundtrack that played an important part in creating a dusty, western atmosphere. One of the highlights was when you first ride into Mexico: as you arrive, the soundtrack takes over and the song Far Away by José González plays as you take in the new horizon. It’s here on the soundtrack album along with 18 other tracks.

 

 

 

Dead Space 2

This game quite literally made me cry in fright several times whilst playing it: it scared the shit out of me. No other game (or indeed horror movie) has ever done that before! Jason Graves’ Alien-inspired orchestral score played in huge part in ramping up the tension. It’s here on Spotify so that you can relive those nightmares again (if you dare). In the meantime, check out videogame website TheFeed’s fascinating interview with the composer.

 

 

 

Call of Duty: Black Ops – Zombies

Zombies are everywhere these days. 2008’s Call of Duty: World at War had a  Nazi zombie mini-game that proved so popular that every self-respecting first-person shooter since has had to add in a few brain eating undead for you to shoot at. Black Op’s Zombies mode took it the next level, letting you play as zombie-fighters John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Robert McNamara, and Fidel Castro. This soundtrack album has all of the zombie songs from WAW and Black ops.

 

 

 

Crysis 2

With contributions from legendary Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer, the Crysis 2 soundtrack is as big as the game. I’ve not played Crysis 2 yet but plan to pick it up on pre-owned once I finish L.A. Noire. The soundtrack is available on Spotify in three flavors: the original version (with 15 tracks), Be Fast! (with 16 tracks) and Be the Weapon! with 17 tracks.

 

 

 

 

Portal 2

Valve’s Portal 2 is another contender for game-of-the-year. I love this franchise so much I even bought the T-Shirt 😉 The original game featured the song Still Alive in the closing credits, which for me contributed to most memorable game-ending ever. Valve is releasing the Portal 2 soundtrack (called Songs to Test By) across three volumes free of charge via their website. You can download Volume 1 here.

 

 

 

http://youtu.be/gFCKhUgIziU

Some other recent videogame soundtracks include:

Let us know in the comments if you spot any more!

Videogame Soundtracks on Spotify

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I’m a gaming veteran. I’ve been a computer gamer for years now, from the early 80’s loading from cassette onto a ZX Spectrum then playing on a Commodore Amiga, then moving to consoles (Nintendo 64, Sony PlayStation), then hardcore PC gaming for years until I finally returned to consoles. I currently have a dusty X-Box 360 Elite and my gaming machine of choice: a PlayStation 3.

Game soundtracks have come a long way since the 80’s: most games now have official soundtracks, either licensed tracks or music especially commissioned and scored in the same way (and with the same budget) as blockbuster Hollywood movies. Many of these videogame soundtracks are now on Spotify, including the official soundtrack album for recently released art-deco shooter Bioshock 2.

Some early games had great theme songs: the Bomb the Bass John Carpenter-inspired theme to Xenon 2: Megablast, or Jonathan Dunn’s Robocop Title Theme (used by Ariston for their famous on-and-on commercials, for which composer Dunn received no royalties). But the first time I really noticed a full game soundtrack was in the Psygnosis game Shadow of the Beast from 1989. A weird and wonderful game, the ambient music fitted perfectly and really helped to create an atmosphere.

Here are five videogame soundtracks on Spotify: some official, some reconstructed, no joypad required.

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wipEout Soundtracks – 1995’s WipEout for PlayStation had such a cool soundtrack that I still have the game CD long after I sold my original PlayStation. With licensed electronica from many of my favourites of the day (Leftfield, The Chemical Brothers, Orbital), the WipEout soundtrack was massive. Although not officially on Spotify, here’s a custom playlist that features many of the tracks from that original game, as well as a selection from the sequels right up to last year’s brilliant WipEout HD, including that awesome Kraftwerk mix from Alex Gopher and Etienne De Crecy.

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GTA IV: ElectroChoc – From my home city of Edinburgh, Rockstar North rule the gamescape with their Grand Theft Auto series. Since GTA III, in-game radio stations have provided the soundtrack to the city. Grand Theft Auto IV has a station called ElectroChoc. Mixed by DJ François Kevorkian (and later by production duo Crookers), ElectroChoc features some superb electro-house and discophonica. Here’s an ElectroChoc playlist on Spotify, featuring 20 tracks including Black Devil Disco Club, Padded Cell, Nitzer Ebb, and those boys again The Chemical Brothers. Be sure to check out Alex Gopher‘s Brain Leech (Bugged Mind Remix) with its nods back to that classic Xenon 2 theme.

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Mirror’s Edge – Original Videogame Score – EA Games have added loads of videogame soundtracks to Spotify recently: Dante’s Inferno, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Dragon Age: Origins and The Sims to name a few. My favourite though is the soundtrack to first-person action adventure Mirror’s Edge, featuring music from psybient act Solar Fields (Magnus Birgersson) and the title theme Still Alive by popular Swedish artist Lisa Miskovsky.

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BioShock 2: Official Soundtrack – With its gorgeous decaying art-deco setting, intriguing characters and intricate storyline, BioShock was surely the best game of 2007. Sometimes forgotten in all the acclaim was its soundtrack: an inspired mix of songs featuring Garry Schyman’s original score and licensed Great American Songbook jazz from the 1930s – 1950s. Music from the likes of The Ink Spots, Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters helped contribute to the immersive atmosphere of BioShock. An official soundtrack album was never released, but I’ve reconstructed the soundtrack in Spotify: BioShock Soundtrack (Licensed Tracks).

BioShock 2: The undersea city of Rapture stands in ruins. Somewhere deep within, your Little Sister awaits. Once, you protected her and now, amongst hordes of genetically-altered maniacs, she is your only hope for salvation.

The sequel BioShock 2 was just released and I can’t wait to return to Rapture. The deluxe version of Bioshock 2: The Official Soundtrack is now on Spotify and gladly it continues in the same style as the original, including songs from Noel Coward, Billie Holiday, Fred Astaire, and Benny Goodman and his Orchestra.

Anyway, I’m ready for dreamtime Mr. Bubbles. If you spot any other game soundtracks on Spotify, would you kindly mention them in the comments?