What makes a great video game soundtrack?

It’s easy to assume that video games are all about visuals and gameplay. After all, the clue’s in the name. However, over the past few decades, people have started paying more attention to the music designed for their favourite games.

Whether it’s classic retro platforming, open-world exploration, or even casino gaming on the go, you never know where you might find your next favourite gaming tunes – and they’re being used to incredible effect.

Let’s break down a few different ways in which video game soundtracks are – quite literally – changing the game.

Atmosphere and association
If you’ve played any open-world games in recent years, you likely remember the adventuring aspects and the sheer freedom first, but what about the soundtracks?

Games such as Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom might not be racing up the music charts, but their soundtracks are tense, atmospheric, and really lend to that sense of open-world questing.

Believe it or not, the same can apply to online casino games.

Slot games with specific themes or characters typically have simple, bouncy soundtracks, but many are designed with players in mind. They’re sometimes dramatic and often memorable. After all, there’s more to slots than spinning reels.

The same goes for table games, too. Plenty of people who sign up and play at sites like Mr. Vegas will find there are Vegas-style simulations with jazzy tunes and authentic background noise. Before you sample the soundtracks for yourself, check the pros and cons here in OddsChecker’s handy guide - those who sign up via this page can claim a 100% match on their first deposit.

It’s all about the hook
If you have any experience with video games, think about some of the most memorable tunes you’ve come across. If you’ve been playing games since the 1990s, you might well think of the classic overworld themes from the Super Mario Bros. series, Green Hill Zone from the original Sonic the Hedgehog, or the battle themes from Final Fantasy VII.

Great video game music relies on hooks. The classic Mario theme, for example, has a hook that is so ubiquitous that you might be playing it in your head right now – and you might not even play games!

In fact, Koji Kondo’s iconic Mario theme was the first piece of video game music to be added to the U.S. National Recording Registry. That’s a big accolade!

Hooks make popular music more memorable. There’s more to a tune than a good hook, but when it comes to video games, you need that catchy melodic moment to keep momentum. Some people even play games purely because they enjoy the music!

Creating focus and tension
In many cases, video game soundtracks are designed to not only build atmosphere, but also to drive focus. In horror games such as the Silent Hill and Resident Evil franchises, music and sound effects drive the player forward to evade monsters and press on through sinister abandoned spaces.

Beyond that, there’s an argument that some video game music is designed to help you focus on multiple different tasks at hand. That goes for something as simple as mobile puzzle games to more complex RPGs.

Some people even use game music to study, and there are a lot of YouTube videos and playlists dedicated to it.

Although there are some people who enjoy playing games with the sound muted, there’s actually plenty they could be missing out on. Whether it’s tense and atmospheric, bouncy and light, or tight and focused, some of the best video game soundtracks are turning the heads and ears of people who don’t even play. If you explore a few focus playlists on YouTube, you’ll see what we mean!