Gaming Image Songs/Theme Music

[JDarkside]

As it says. Specifically looking for character specific tracks, and try not to use boss themes (we have another thread for those). I mean specifically songs that are from the perspective of a character or about them, or a leitmotif that gets used for them through the game or at set points.

I’ll start:

As much as I love Alan Wake, I think Control’s vocal theme does a better job at capturing who Jesse is and her journey. It gets used at a great moment too, hyping you up for the gauntlet to the end game.

The Knight Commander gets a lot of themes through Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, but for as good as all the mythic path themes are, their original theme that kicks in whenever their mythic power shows itself still sends chills down my spine every time I hear it, and I’m instantly transported back to the moment they completely changed the flow of the crusades. I cannot stress this enough, I have yet to hear any hype theme in a game that goes as hard as this does. Absolute peak.

And while we’re on the topic of WotR, Areelu Vorlesh’s theme is, like, the perfect villain theme, especially her. Mystical, mysterious, and filled to the brim with spite and venom, with a lot of clear structure that puts across the idea of a grand and threatening plan you’re playing into. The sad tinge to it really sums up her character in its totality.

This is a weird one. It’s the first of a few closing themes to No More Heroes 3, but it sticks out for being a theme for the two main antagonists of the game. Damon and Fu were two very messed up people in a toxic relationship, and a lot of the story explores how corrosive and destructive that bond was. Hearing this clearly after you reach the end hits really hard, especially if you know the lyrics, and just how bitterly melancholy it is.

Yakuza/Like A Dragon has always used karaoke songs cleverly to give the characters their own themes based on story beats, but Pride Through Despair, a song about Majima’s philosophy on life, is easily the highlight. A perfect distillation of the guy, driven to despair and madness through his past, only to decide to flip it on its head, flip the entire world off, and life by his own chaotic, spiteful ways and enjoy it all the way. I also love that it’s sung by Kiryu whenever it’s in a game, giving it an additional layer of this being how Kiryu sees Majima, unaware of the tragedies his goofy fighting buddy has been through during the Empty Lot incident.

I feel like I don’t even need to explain Vergil’s vocal theme from DMC5. It kind of speaks for itself. Granted all of the character themes of that game do, but Vergil’s especially, with how grand and theatrical it is, while still being very threatening and moody.

[SMD]

I love this topic, reckon leitmotifs are an underrated part of video game music.

I’ll pick an easy one and try to keep it spoiler free as possible.

The Ace Attorney series generally has a banging soundtrack though the most iconic is probably the first game’s OST. If you haven’t played any of them, they’re a visual novel adventure series that takes place investigating crime scenes then going to court for trial. What this means is that new themes are introduced for each game for new locations/crime scenes but the courtroom and drama tracks tend to be variations of the same theme or use the same sort of leitmotif. The series’ most famous tracks are the ones when the player character (Phoenix Wright for the first three games) has either turned the tables or is hunting down the culprit.

Pursuit - Cornered in the first game sounded more like a beat em up track than something out of a visual novel but it goes hard at those pivotal moments in the story:

In the second game, Justice For All, the themes were rewritten so you can recognise what it is but it’s still new. Personally I didn’t like it as much but since the entire game’s soundtrack was rewritten this way, it was in keeping with the theme of Phoenix Wright developing and growing as an attorney.

I’m not entirely sure if there was a conscious decision to make a trilogy and if there were plans for more but in Phoenix Wright Trials and Tribulations, the themes were once again rewritten to reflect the changes the whole cast of returning characters had gone through and the growth they experienced.

This game’s my favourite anyway because I still think its the pinnacle of writing and gameplay in the series. Without referring to any story spoilers, this game has the strongest cohesive narrative imo.

For the whole game the rewritten theme goes like this:

Until that is the final part of the final trial. If you know you know but getting to that point and then you finally get the original game’s pursuit cornered theme back… goosebumps.

It’s a beautiful moment both thematically and a nod to returning players. Almost wish these games weren’t visual novels because I think if it was a more popular genre, the original trilogy would be feted as an incredible accomplishment in the medium.

Anyway I’ll keep preaching and maybe more people will give visual novels a go as a result.

[Goo]

Let’s go with Midnas Theme from Twilight Princess!

Which gets used a lot throughout the game but the most iconic version is “Midna’s Lament”