10 Best Synthwave Video Games You Need To Play
Video games and synthwave. What a perfect pairing.
Synthwave, for those unaware, is one of the hottest music genres right now. Steeped in electro nostalgia, it's a fantastic renaissance of all things retro. I even did a little list here if you want some of the best albums currently available.
A lot of artists owe their craft to some of the greatest works of sci-fi movies, anime and video games, inspiring them to make the beautiful craft we love today. Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Terminator, classic Sega and Nintendo titles and plenty more - all paved the way for the musical movement as we know it today.
It's only fitting then, that video games put that love back into the source by incorporating them as their soundtracks. Whether it be haunting scores to tell the story of a nameless drifter scourging a land of evil, or a licensed soundtrack to chart one man's escape from a multi-level space prison, there's something for everyone in the list wide spectrum of gaming and synthwave.
So come with us on a journey, as we look at some of the greatest games with stellar synthwave soundtracks.
10. Far Cry: Blood Dragon
Remember the glory days of 1980's cinema, with its Terminators, Robocops and Max's of the Mad variety. Soundtracks that threw out the corny rock and roll, replacing it with keytars and brooding synthesiser beats instead.
Well, that's exactly what Power Glove want to remind you of with the excellent FarCry spin-off; Blood Dragon. Considering they got Kyle Reese/Corporal Hicks himself, Michael Biehn, to voice the main character serves only as a sign to how great this game it is.
It's with that, that the Aussie duo heading the soundtrack made sure to remind you where this love-letter came from: pure 80's gold. From a title track that comes straight from the OCP building, to a combat theme that plays behind Dutch and his squad in the sweltering jungle, every track has its roots.
And if this album whets thy whistle, they followed it up with Trials/FarCry hybrid Trials of the Blood Dragon shortly afterwards. More on the upbeat side, it's still a great slice of sci fi nostalgia. Both available on neon pink vinyl, if that's your thing.