Personally, I’m a huge fan of Hollow Knight, Ori and the (Blind Forest/Will of the Wisps), and Kingdom Hearts. Orchestral soundtracks are just something else…
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TUNIC, FEZ, Nier Automata, Outer Wilds.
I also have a soft spot for Paper Mario and TTYD, those soundtracks are full of bops
Outer Wilds. Yeah it’s one of the greatest games ever made, but would it be so good without that soundtrack? Debatable.
I petitioned to play something from it at my actual wedding (sadly was overruled), and I know I’m not the only one.
I know! It’s such a good ost! I think one of my favorite songs for it, although not from the ost, is Andrew Prahlow’s Outer Wild - Reprise single. It’s got aspects of all different main themes and is just overall an amazing piece
I can barely make it 30 seconds into that one without tearing up and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
Was looking for someone to mention Outer Wilds. I love when games weave music into storytelling and its perfect here.
Both the Nier games have amazing soundtracks that I listen to frequently.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits is also great although I don’t really listen to it on its own. It really makes the game feel much more impactful while playing.
Nier automata has a great soundtrack, i haven’t played the newer one yet, but Drakengard 3 has some great songs on it, if you haven’t played it its meant to come before nier world lore wise.
Also gotta give a shoutout to World of Warcraft, got some massive nostalgia from that soundtrack
I actually got Drakenguard 3 running on my steam deck recently, it runs surprisingly well. I could immediately tell the game was gonna have great music based on the opening animation.
I find Nier replicant is good only after you make it past the first one or two hours. Too many fetch quests for me.
I will say drakengard 3 was one of the grindiest games ive played haha, dont wanna spoil anything though so thats all ill say. But its worth it the story is good if you like yoko taros type of storytelling. Theres a 60 fps patch i used but idk if steam deck is good enough for that, my old pc could barely handle it at 60fps with an i5-6600k and rx480
Final Fantasy VIII holds a special place in my heart for sure.
same here first Final Fantasy and hearing the Soundtrack live at an Orchestra just cemented it into my all time favs
Ori and the Blind Forest’s ost is phenomenal.
I think all of the Supergiant Games have great soundtrack. Transistor was what got me into their games, and it was the soundtrack that caught my attention first.
Indie games in general have great OSTs, MGS:R and Persona (and SMT in general) are obvious popular picks.
The World Ends With You is less mainstream (with one of the few gripes being the lack of boss-specific themes, at least in the DS original I played - but it makes up with the diverse overworld and normal battle themes), as is Etrian Odyssey.
I think orchestra is mixed, it’s either the best fucking tracks ever (often when mixed with electric guitar, but not necessarily), or they kind of blend with other orchestral tracks I know and don’t end up being unique enough to remember.
NieR: Automata
The Weight of the World
I like epic, intense soundtracks so, Darkest Dungeon and Frostpunk. Monster Train is pretty good too.
I think the Elder Scrolls games all have great music, but Morrowind’s OST has always stood out as amazing. Hearing that opening soundtrack immediately sends me back to playing it for the first time!
I like OST that goes hard (bass heavy) and I didn’t see any here. My personal favorites are:
- Hotline Miami (1 & 2)
- Furi
- Katana Zero
- My Friend Pedro
- Haven
I have probably forgotten some games and I will be happy to discover others as it is quite niche.
Transistor
Katamari Damacy
Stardew Valley
Finally someone mentions Transistor!
For focused work:
- Shenzhen IO
- Exapunks
- Opus Magnum
- Into the Breach
- Firewatch
- IXION
Other:
- Blue Archive Symphony
- 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim Branched Remix
- Minecraft
- Stardew Valley
- Spelunky
- Undertale
- Hades
- Helltaker
- Kirby
Far too many to list, but Final Fantasy IX’s soundtrack is a tremendous work of art, and a perfect final bow for Nobuo Uematsu from the series. It’s always stuck with me among nearly ever other soundtrack.
Notable Mentions (in no order):
- Sonic 2 and 3&K
- Hotline Miami 1 & 2
- Street Fighter 2
- Nier Automata
- Castlevania (Whole Damn Series)
- Donkey Kong Country & 2
- Doom I & II
- Undertale
- Freedom Planet
- Golden Sun 1 & 2
- Hollow Knight
- Skyrim
- Kirby Series
- Mario Series
- MegaMan 2 & 3 (Shout-out to The Megas)
- Super Meat Boy
And so many others, but I’ll be here all day if I keep going.
