But I argue this is like when movies skip on a title sequence. I understand they're just trying to get on with the film...but you're missing out on a chance to really build an atmosphere. Remember the opening titles of the old Disney animations where the soundtrack and artists were really given the chance to shine and suck you into the movie before it's begun? What about The Godfather's eerie opening? Remember Star Wars with the theme tune and dramatic text crawl? What about the Bond films and their intros...forgetting all the naked women.
If you're lucky, you might get something like the first two BioShock games where there's a pretty image in the background and some ambient music just to try and set the tone, but games don't seem to celebrate themselves anymore. Maybe it's because gaming technology has advanced to the point where aside from virtual reality there isn't a reason to, upon booting a game up, blare: "LOOK AT ALL THE AWESOME CRAP WE'RE DOING!" Most games these day's just start like: "Yeah, you know the drill."
Of course, as a PC gamer there's always the practical reason: having access to the options menu because it's almost certain that the game hasn't detected the right settings. If you're a console gamer then you have no idea how annoying it is for the opening sequence to be in the wrong screen resolution.
But now I'm rambling. Without further ado, let's get awesome:
10. Contra (NES)
What? A title theme with only seven notes and an explosion get's a spot on this list?
Well, read that sentence again. It's a theme with seven notes and an explosion...yet it says so much. It's such a simple progression of the most basic chords, the most primitive sounds, to create pure hype. All these notes build to an 8-bit explosion that seems to say: "BAM! CONTRA!!" In fact, the added two notes after the explosion actually sound like "Con-Tra!"
The reason why everyone always pairs this theme up with the music to the first stage of Contra is because, when first playing this, you immediately jab 'Start.' The song's brevity is it's biggest strength, since usually if a game has a good theme tune then you need to stop and enjoy it. Here you only need give seven seconds of your time. That simply jingle has hyped you up far more than an opening cutscene or text crawl ever could.
9. Sonic The Hedgehog (Genesis)
Since SEGA were trying their damnest to topple Nintendo by releasing their graphically superior Genesis console, the 16-bit music for Genesis games were all bombastic and tried way too hard. But I would take trying too hard over not trying enough any day, and thats why I hugely respect early SEGA. In fact, I still respect SEGA because when you ignore Sonic Team you'll realise that they're still making good games. And no, I'm not just saying this because SEGA has a development studio in my hometown.
Which is why it's odd that SEGA's first and only big mascot had such a simple yet catchy opening jingle. I won't delve into this entry too much because it's very much like the Contra theme in how short yet effective it is. I really wish that, if games don't want to waste players time with full theme tunes then they should bring back these brief snippets of music.
Mario may have the better music, but Sonic has the best title theme. Please don't kill me Nintendo fanboys.
8. The Operative: No-One Lives Forever (PC)
The Operative: No-One Lives Forever is one of the greatest first-person shooters ever made. The problem is that the distribution rights to this great game are all over the place. Just like System Shock 2, this game is technically owned by both several and no companies whatsoever. Is it owned by Activision? Warner Bros? 20th Century Fox? No-one knows, and no-one can be bothered to dig through their vaults to find the paperwork proving who owns it. But Warner Bros will happily sue anyone who tries to re-release/re-master this game regardless.
So here we have a company who aren't willing to find the copyright to a 2001 game and sign it over to a small distribution company who will give the original owner a cut of all profits gained....but they are willing to sign a lawsuit against said distributor's despite not having evidence that they own No-One Lives Forever. Wow. What assholes...
Fortunately; I picked up a used copy of this game for £1. Granted, I would happily pay extra to get a convenient digital version that doesn't require hours tinkering before it works - but at least I get to hear this brilliant title theme whenever I want.
As No-One Lives Forever is a take off-of the early James Bond films, the soundtrack attempts to follow suit. To avoid breaching copyright, the score uses brass instruments sparingly; instead relying on electric guitar riffs. And it's the guitar that makes the opening track. It's just so funky.
Poor Kate Archer. She's an awesome character, yet no-one brings her up when discussing female protagonist's in gaming because this title has been out of print for so long. But at least she has this theme tune to her name.
7. Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night (PS1)
I curse the day I was given the option to 'borrow' one of my friends PS1 games, and I didn't pick Symphony Of The Night. I was seven years old and that dark castle on the front looked way too foreboding for my tiny brain. I was just getting through Spryo The Dragon. I wasn't ready for all these 'grown up' games yet. Such a fool!
Almost every single Castlevania game has an outstanding soundtrack. Perhaps it's because I'm a fan of the gothic and so music heavily based off-of church organs appeals to me. If this was a 'Top 10 Best Music In Videogames' then I would just lump the entire Castlevania franchise in at number 1. But it's this short piece that plays whilst browsing Symphony Of The Night's menu that always sticks with me.
Compared to the rest of the soundtrack, which alternates between rock and a MIDI orchestra (with a funky organ) this track shows huge restraint. It's merely a group of female choirists singing a natural progression of chords which may or may not be Latin. To me, it sounds like they're just saying "Ooooh aaaah aaaAAAaaahhh ooooohhhh." I think the soundtrack guys had a full song with a choir section written, but decided to record the warm up and use that instead.
And it sounds great. It's eerie, unsettling, and strangely tragic. It's a calm before the storm, and you can feel the energy building behind it as the menu braces yourself for a gothic thrill ride.
Also, Halo fans: sorry, but none of the Halo themes are going to be on this list. Why? Because I know those games did the whole minimalist choir thing too, but Symphony Of The Night did it first and did it best. Sorry.
6. Mega Man 2 (NES)
Mega Man is another franchise filled with brilliant music. But only Mega Man 2 has the iconic intro sequence.
The reason why I like this theme so much is that there's three parts. There's the slow, atmospheric first movement as the backstory is told. (Am I the only person who reads the text aloud in a deep voice?) It sounds pleasant enough, but then the second part kicks in. It's a buildup that just builds and builds and builds, getting faster and faster and faster.
Then - BOOM! DA DA-DA-DA-DA-DA DA DA-DA-DA-DA-DA DA DA-DA DA DAAAAA!!
The third part is simple, but it's placement right after such a good buildup really gets you hyped. And ultimately that's what makes a good title theme: hype. I have yet to meet someone who doesn't headbang to this theme when it blares out.
5. Civilization IV - Baba Yetu (PC)
The only videogame title theme to win a Grammy, and by far the best theme from the Civilization series. Even though, as I established in my review, Civilization V is the superior game - Civilization IV's opening track kills it.
The combination of tribal music along with a full orchestra and, of course, the world's largest choir makes this theme transcendent. It is of every era and no era, which perfectly summarises the game itself. As you traverse every era, you listen to music that is also of every era. It has no specific genre, but it seems to drive towards one ultimate goal. One ultimate quest.
I find it strange that this wasn't a commissioned theme. Sid Meier just really liked this song and wanted it in his game. This theme fits the game so perfectly that I can't believe it wasn't written with Civilization IV in mind. All I can say is that Meier is truly a god of video games if he personally chose this.
4. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind AND The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. (PC/XBOX/PS3/XBOX 360)
Jeremy Soule wrote a theme so good he used it twice. This theme appears in Morrowind, and was later re-worked for the (in my opinion) far superior Skyrim. Usually I believe that when somethings finished it should be left alone, but there are exceptions and Skyrim's theme is one. But I like the Morrowind theme so much I'm lumping it in here as well.
The opening theme is the only music to stand out in both games. As good as Jeremy Soule's music is, it seems that every Elder Scrolls game has two types of music: music for when you're in combat, and music for when you're not. So things become a bit muddled up, and so the title theme is the only track that really gets a chance to shine.
Both versions really stand by themselves. Morrowind's is slow, witheld - barely able to restrain it's glory. It sounds like the sort of music that plays whilst a text crawl explains some ancient conflict. It's such an epic tune that it sometimes crops up when you're walking around a bog, adding some much needed gravitas behind the ugly graphics. There's also the insane difficulty curve and clunky interface; but I digress. Maybe one day I'll try Morrowind again and it'll be one of my favourite games ever. That's what happened with System Shock 2 (though, System Shock 2 was kind enough to have a tutorial).
Skyrim, meanwhile, goes all out. It has a similar buildup to Morrowind, but there's actual payoff. Even though the choir is speaking the language of Dragon's (meaning it's madeup gibberish) it sounds as though it's telling an epic poem, a tale of ancient prophecy and endless ancient wars. Morrowind's theme hints at an epic tale; Skyrim's theme tells an epic tale. It pumps steroids into the original theme, with the choir blaring and the trumpets powering through.
The choir went on to provide their vocals for such memorable tracks as 'The Level Up Sound.' Seriously: whenever I clock out of work, I want that sound to play.
3. Deus Ex - Orchestral Version (PS2)
Deus Ex is one of the greatest games ever made. Or, at least, that's what I keep saying to anyone still left at the bar by 4am. It's graphics are horrible, the voice acting dreadful, and it's certain you'll break the A.I at some point. But for some reason this just adds to its charm. Aside from the story, non-linear pathways, and the sheer variety on offer; the game's music is one of the few unarguably excellent parts. It's a combination of cyberpunk, electronica, jazz, gothic, and classic orchestral that still sounds great today despite being in MIDI. I still can't get the Hong Kong theme out of my head.
The most disappointing track is probably the PC version of the title theme. Not because it's bad, but because the inferior PS2 port of Deus Ex re-recorded it with an actual orchestra. And it sounds glorious.
Like Skyrim, the added clout behind the score gives it a pomp that charges the emotions. The weight of the whole game seems to be thrown into this song - becoming a primal force. This was in the good old days when publisher's put effort into ports. Instead of console games being slapped onto PC regardless of their state *COUGH*Arkham Knight*COUGH* back in the 2000's a PC game would be completely re-worked for the PS2 version. The graphics would be re-worked, the level design re-shuffled, the music re-recorded. The PS2 port of No-One Lives Forever actually added new levels in addition to re-doing the textures and adding a whole new soundtrack.
I'm surprised no-ones patched this into the PC version yet. In fact, can someone get onto this right now?
2. Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 - The Soviet March (PC)
Games these days don't flaunt their Triple-A status like they used to. When Red Alert 3 was given a Hollywood budget in 2008, it called in Hollywood talent. Tim Curry, George Takei, Johnathan Pryce, J.K Simmons, among many more. And like any sane person would do when given such actors, the directors of Red Alert 3 had them all run around yelling at you with hilarious accents. Meanwhile, in 2015, everyone's getting randy over Battlefront's rock textures. A game as utterly ridiculous as Red Alert 3 just wouldn't be made today. EA would never dare throw so much money at something so silly again.
Red Alert 3's budget really shines with its theme tune. Not only is it fully orchestral, but again it has an enormous choir to completely overclock all the pomp this theme can offer. I don't know what it is about Russian choirs, but they are the best choirs. You just need to look at the Russian national anthem to realise that these people, for some reason, are able to nail choir sections. I don't even know what the choir are singing, and all the translation's I've seen seem to contradict each-other. I know Russian is actually quite tricky to convert into English (just try reading a Tolstoy novel) but I have a funny feeling that, like the Skyrim theme, the choir are just singing rubbish. But it sounds so goooood.
Perhaps what makes this theme so great is how not only does each verse raise the key, but each line raises the key. The song just builds and builds, with the full orchestra pounding away. This is known as 'The Soviet March,' and it certainly feels like a driving march onwards to victory. Like any good theme, this fills the senses; grabbing the player and making them stop for a moment before hammering 'Start.'
At the same time though, that horn section provokes a hidden message. These aren't liberators: these are conquers. The theme personifies an unbelievable force of power and passion. Do you want to join the Soviet's on their quest or rise against them? Just click 'New Game.'
Honestly; I wouldn't care that Vladimir Putin is now helping Syria bomb innocent civilians if all the Russian troops marched to this. Well, actually I still would - but it would make me want to hit something a lot less.
1. The Legend of Zelda (NES)
It's so gratifying that an 8-bit chiptune is the best title theme in gaming history. Whilst the clout of an orchestra will always bolster a tune, sometimes less is more. Sometimes stripping things back to basic beeps and boops creates something magical. Unique. Something every indie game has been trying to re-create for the past ten years.
Like Contra, it's such a simple yet well placed set of chords and notes. The placement of said notes and it's progression is perfect. Most of the themes on this list work because the composer went all out with an orchestra, but here it feels as though this was originally composed as a movie theme before being fed into a machine and transformed into an 8-bit MIDI tune. Which is odd because I've heard several attempts to re-make this theme with a full orchestra and it just doesn't work. Considering how much energy is withheld in this song, you'd think giving it the steroid treatment would work as well as it worked for Deus Ex's theme.
But no. This theme is so good in it's original form that I can't imagine or like it in any other incarnation. I'm reminded of when Metallica did the music of Ennio Morricone and it sounded just awful because Morricone's music is perfect. Why change or re-form something that's perfect? Why not just leave the damn thing alone and move onto other things?
There may be better music tracks in gaming, and I'm sorry if I've missed your favourite title theme out. But you've got to admit: The Legend of Zelda title theme is utter perfection.
