One of my favourite things in many games is the music. About a quarter of my music comes from games (the majority of which can be attributed the genius that is Nobou Uematsu, legendary composer for most of the Final Fantasy series but he gets his own post later).
A good soundtrack can make or break a game. It doesn't matter how a good a game is if it has an annoying soundtrack you won't play it or you'll mute it and loose all the whizzes and bangs that help you submerse yourself in the moment. But it's so much more than that. Music sticks in the mind long after the excitement of the game has worn off. If you don't believe me hum a few bars of the Mario or Tetris theme on a packed train and see how many people start tapping along. They got stuck in your heads for hours and they're still there in the back of your mind all these years later.
Game music is notoriously difficult to get right. It has to be distinctive and suit the mood and atmosphere of the game, but at the same time it has to blend into the background to not take focus away from the action on screen. You could be listening to the same 5 minute loop over and over again for hours; if done right you'll feel a deeper connection to the characters and their plight, if done badly you'll want to throw your controller at the wall and gouge out your ear drums.
There are many modern games that have good soundtracks but there are very few in recent years that can hold a candle to these giants of ages past. Most rely on similar styles themes: pounding syths for fights and flights, ye-olde flutes and lutes for bimbling about country villages, grand orchestras and choirs when you need 'epicness'. While being a good short hand to let the player know what's happening and doesn't jar by being unexpected it does lead to everything game in a genre sounding the same and rather blasé, nothing that sticks in your brain for longer than it's playing. Can you think of any game from the past year that had even one tune that you can still hum now, or has everything become one great wash of Latin chorus and thumping that wouldn't be out of place at a rave?
Not all games use original scores of course. Games set in a contemporary world are increasingly using contemporary music, such as Grand Theft Auto. Following the huge success of Guitar Hero many bands now see games as a platform to get their music across to a whole new audience. And it works. It was a demo of the first Tony Hawk game way back when that had 'Superman' by Goldfinger on it, the song that introduced me to the wonderful world of punk rock.
It seems like music in games is beginning to get it's just recognition with events such as the fantastic Video Games Live, a travelling show where composers Jack Wall (Mass Effect, Myst, Splinter Cell) and Tommy Tallarico (Earthworm Jim, Prince of Persia) perform medleys of soundtracks accompanied by a local orchestra. If it comes to a town near you I highly recommend it, it's a lot of fun. Hearing Tetris and Space Invaders played on classical instruments is a real kick. It's not just specialist events like this though. At Christmas I went to 'Nokia Night of the Proms', a night of pop acts from various parts of Europe brought together to play whilst backed by a full orchestra. I was surprised when I suddenly realised that they were playing the Advent Rising medley I'd heard only a few weeks before at VGL! Unfortunately we caught the show in Munich and I don't speak a word of German but my friend tells me that the host was saying how games were becoming an important step in the evolution of music. I have to say I agree with him and it's an evolution that I can get behind.
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