10 Times Music Made A Video Game INCREDIBLE
Sometimes the perfect song can lift a moment over the edge of greatness.
The argument for video games as art has always been incredibly strong, and just like film and television, video games often use music to ramp up an emotional connection. These ten games aren’t just examples of get tracks or scores, but times when they were used with impeccable timing to boost a great moment up to another level.
Not necessarily the best songs in gaming (though some are phenomenal), these represent the most timely tracks. More so than film or television, gaming can be a visceral, compelling experience, so when a piece of music pulls you in, it really grabs you and refuses to let go.
Not that all of these are solemn, melancholy moments. Many are, but others take the silliness, enjoyment and free flowing fun of games to a whole other level with a perfectly timed jam.
Either way, these are soundtracks which will live on for a long time, and have been permanently etched into the memories of anyone who has played through them.
With so many amazing uses of music in games, this list could easily have been fifty, or even a hundred entries long.
For now, consider this lot the cream of the crop.
10. Red Dead Redemption - Far Away
Jose Gonzales is a fantastically melancholy songwriter, and his talents were put to heart wrenching use in Red Dead Redemption with Far Away. Playing as John Marston crosses the border into Mexico, the whole brutal world of the Wild West fades away.
Though the graphics may seem dated today, especially when held up against Red Dead Redemption 2, in 2010 the visuals were cutting edge. Watching the scenery unfold around John was magnificent, as the soundtrack quietly ushered in the majesty of the Wild West.
The majority of the game is so tough and rugged, mimicking the cold, unfeeling setting. Far Away though is delicate and wonderful, highlighting the poetry of the Old West.
Most of the time, the game asks you to push all emotions down and do what has to be done to earn John his freedom. Here though, for the first time, it invites you to feel.
John’s way of life might have been dying, and a railroad track of progress might have been cleaving its way through the only home he’d ever known, but he’d always have the simple beauty of riding his horse through the desert.
Thanks to Red Dead Redemption and Far Away, so will we.