With all the new rhythm based games coming out, it seems like we’ve forgotten how great an original game soundtrack can sound. Inspired by a recent conversation with Mr. Toffee about the virtues of video-game music cover bands, my personal favorite being The NESkimos, this week’s top 10 is Games with Great Music.

Okay, maybe this list is partial to my nostalgia, but I’m willing to bet, just having me name these games will have you humming their songs all day.

10. Rez

Brainchild of Tetsuya Mizuguchi, who also went on to make Lumines and Meteos, this trippy shooter had us thinking we were high on something. Pulsating electro beats, and hip trance sounds made us feel like cool Eurotrash.

9. Lumines

Mizuguchi brought back the same concept with Lumines, although with a more normal form of block dropping gameplay. This one is less acid trip, and more laid back electronic club scene.

8. Parappa The Rapper

Say what you will about Rock Band and Guitar Hero, this is still the greatest rhythm game ever. It had some of the funniest and phattest raps ever, my favorite being Cheep Cheep The Cooking Chicken’s Cake Baking Rap.

7. Castlevania: Symphony of The Night

Combining Orchestra and Rock together? Sounds like a winning plan. Both haunting in its melodies and adrenaline fueled with its hard rock riffs, this game set the bar for future atmospheric soundtracks, and you can see its influence in games like Prince of Persia: Warrior Within.

6. Street Fighter 2

Looks like Bison is about to get a flash kick to the head – ahhh memories. Laden with memorable stage themes, SF2 had you coming home from the arcade humming its tunes all week. Sometimes I still get Guile’s unashamedly 80’s hard rock theme tune stuck in my head.

5. Legend of Zelda

The Zelda series has always been full of great music. The theme tune is one of the most memorable pieces of game music ever. When Ocarina of Time came out the developers caught onto this and made great use of the N64 controller to let you play some of the songs in the game. Secret shame: I actually wanted to buy an Ocarina after playing that game so I could play the lullaby IRL.

4. Final Fantasy VII

Nobuo Uematsu’s soundtracks have been consistent win throughout the Final Fantasy series. I picked FFVII because of the final battle with Sephiroth. Even when rendered in full midi,  the choir and orchestra revving up in the background really made that fight special. If you haven’t yet, make sure you check out the full Orchestral version of One Winged Angel:

3. Shadow of the Colossus

The only video-game OST I’ve special ordered from Japan, the Colossus fights are beautifully orchestrated and appropriate to the type of Colossus you’re fighting. The sadness prevalent in the music becomes apparent later in the game, and only then do you fully realize how awesome it is. Not only that, but it’s one of the best games I’ve ever played.

2. Super Mario Bros

Who doesn’t know the Mario theme tune? If you’re thinking of forming a video-game music cover band, make sure you can play this one first. It should probably be your finale or encore performance or something.

1. Tetris

Simple game, simple soundtrack. The greatest game-music ever, the creatively named "Music A" is an instrumental arrangement of a Russian folk tune called "Korobeiniki". It’s so great its been covered all over the World, by a bevy of different artists from different genres: UK dance band Doctor Spin, US alternative rock band Ozma, Japanese Ska and Jazz band Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra and German Techno band TechnoScooter just to name a few. And now, for your convenience, the song that will be stuck in your head all day. Enjoy:

all images credited to original source