Were you even Listening? Game Music

You like music right?

Sure you do. Who doesn’t like music?

And of course you like video games or you probably wouldn’t be gracing me with your presence on this site.

How often do you pay attention to those two art forms together? They almost always are. Of course there’s music without video games, but I’ll be damned if there’s a video game without music in it. 

We all know about the Mario theme song, and the Halo theme, but there’s so much more to video game music.

Music does so much for a game. It sets the mood. It plays on your emotions. I can pump you up or make you want to shrivel up in a corner when it's combined with the gameplay properly.

Next time you’re playing a game, go into the settings and turn the music volume to zero.

It’s rather shit now isn’t it?

Music drives games.

The right music means everything. It can make a game one of the most intense and scariest you’ve ever played, or just the silliest.  

Case in point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OJbG_yjbBk (Link is probably NSFW)

Music makes all the difference. 

Appreciate the music of the game the way you appreciate the artwork of the game. Let it soak into your gaming experience. Be more aware of the music in your games and they'll become even better experiences. 

Someone worked damn hard to bring you that music. I’m sure they’d appreciate it if you turned your attention away from the action to hear their work if only for a short while.

Let's try something.

Pull the music out of the game.

Pick your favorite game. Now go find its soundtrack.

Got it? Good.

Now that you have it, pick one track and just listen to it.

That’s it.

Just close your eyes and listen.

If your mind starts to wander, tell it to pay attention to the music. You can manage to do this for just one track.

How was that?

Refreshing? Relaxing? Exciting? Or A waste of your time? I hope it was worth it.

Another thing you can do with your new music is use it to help you focus. Unlike what you just did before, this time you can just let the music fill up the background while you work on something.

No lyrics to draw your mind from the task at hand.  Just let the music drive you through your work like it drives you through your games.

Enjoy your game. 

Enjoy the music. 

Enjoy your life. 

Soundtracks I listen to: 

Mass Effect 

Mass Effect 2

Red Dead Redemption

Machinarium

Inception

Tron: Legacy

Revenge of the Titans

Super Meat Boy

Also, video game fan made music is fun too. ;)

Click Me for Epic Song