The Best Ever Songs Used In Video Games
You could say that music and video games go hand in hand. Over the years there have been many songs that have become somewhat synonymous with video games and the impact that music has on the player and the game itself cannot be underestimated. Music can help to immerse a player, so they really feel a part of the game.
Furthermore, there is also the belief that music can make a player more productive and better at the game. In fact, the impact of music in games ranging from casino to video titles is not to be ignored. It has been noted that game developers have actually recognised music as being integral in making the perfect gaming experience.
Therefore, in light of the fact on how important music seems to be, we’ve devised a list of some of the best songs used in video games over the years.
Far Away – Red Dead Redemption
Far Away, by Jose Gonzalez, is one of the finest songs from the award-winning game Red Dead Redemption. It’s a guitar laden track which really suits the whole old-west style of game that RDR is, while the lyrics also link in to the character and the mindset of the protagonist. Everything about the whispers cow boy and the twang really helps to make it a masterpiece.
Ain’t Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang – Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
The Grand Theft Auto franchise is one of the most successful in gaming history and its soundtracks are up there with the very best too. Rockstar’s second entry on this list is fully deserved as Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg’s collaboration for San Andreas perfectly accompanies the thrilling action enjoyed by a player playing the game. From driving a tank to just cruisin’ thru’ the hood, Ain’t Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang is fitting for all occasions.
Ring of Fire – Tony Hawk’s Underground 2
What a game series the Tony Hawk’s Underground set was. It’s gone down in history as one of the most unique and successful, with millions of players spending hours perfecting all manner of tricks. While the game series itself moved more towards a rock sound, they made an exception for this Johnny Cash track and it proved to be a great decision. It may be a country song, but it really had the ability to appeal to most people, and this is what makes it one of the finest tracks used in a video game.
Song 2 – FIFA ‘98
The FIFA game franchise is still as popular today as it’s always been, if not more popular. Heading back to FIFA ’98, Blur’s Song 2 became synonymous with the game, often appearing at during the starting sequence. The track’s ability to energise and invigorate the player is superb, making it perfectly fitting for a football game. It certainly gave the player the impetus to go and win games, and it will come as no surprise that the track is played at various football stadiums pre-match.
Riders On The Storm – Need For Speed Underground 2
You won’t find a more fitting track for a game than Riders On The Storm by Snoop Dogg featuring The Doors. The song, which appears on Need For Speed Underground 2, arguable the franchise’s most successful instalment, is perfect for cursing around the streets looking for an illegal race to take part in. Snoop Dogg helps to fit the track to the game with his lyrics superbly.
45 Minutes of Paul Stanley Stage Banter
WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! This is the greatest thing I’ve heard all year.
My Next Read: That Thin, Wild Mercury Sound: Dylan, Nashville, and the Making of Blonde on Blonde
Daryl Sanders’ That Thin, Wild Mercury Sound is the definitive treatment of Bob Dylan’s magnum opus, Blonde on Blonde, not only providing the most extensive account of the sessions that produced the trailblazing album, but also setting the record straight on much of the misinformation that has surrounded the story of how the masterpiece came to be made. Including many new details and eyewitness accounts never before published, as well as keen insight into the Nashville cats who helped Dylan reach rare artistic heights, it explores the lasting impact of rock’s first double album. Based on exhaustive research and in-depth interviews with the producer, the session musicians, studio personnel, management personnel, and others, Daryl Sanders chronicles the road that took Dylan from New York to Nashville in search of “that thin, wild mercury sound.” As Dylan told Playboy in 1978, the closest he ever came to capturing that sound was during the Blonde on Blonde sessions, where the voice of a generation was backed by musicians of the highest order.
Daryl Sanders is a music journalist based in Nashville and is one of the foremost authorities on the city’s extensive rock and soul history. Sanders has been the editor of a number of magazines covering “the other side of Music City” dating back to the late ’70s, including Hank, the Metro, and Bone. He has also written for Performance, the Tennessean, Nashville Scene, City Paper (Nashville), the East Nashvillian, and the Nashville Musician. While his focus has been on music coming out of Nashville, in a career spanning nearly four decades Sanders also has interviewed many legendary rock, soul, and jazz artists not associated with the city, including Frank Zappa, Tom Petty, Joan Baez, Billy Gibbons, Robert Palmer, J. J. Cale, Al Kooper, the Neville Brothers, Betty Carter, Gary Burton, John Handy, Ian Astbury, and Cassandra Wilson.
You can get it here.
Barbra Streisand: Carpool Karaoke
In a bind, James Corden calls on Barbra Streisand for a ride to work. In addition to singing her classics and music from her new album, “Walls,” Barbra demonstrates how she failed her driving test three times, and how she was able to get Apple’s Siri to pronounce her name correctly.
If You Didn’t Catch Bruce Springsteen On Broadway, Here He Is Performing “Land Of Hope And Dreams”
Bruce Springsteen’s historic sold-out series of performances of his one man show “Springsteen On Broadway” at Jujamcyn’s Walter Kerr Theatre wraps up on December 15, 2018, but the day before that, he’s releasing a two-CD Springsteen On Broadway soundtrack. On December 16, Netflix launches the filmed performance of the sold-out Broadway show.
The release of Land of Hope and Dreams today comes four days before the mid-term elections. That’s not a coincidence.
Jamie Foxx Recalls Quentin Tarantino’s Directing Style on “Django Unchained”
Jamie Foxx tells Howard Stern about how director Quentin Tarantino helped him transform into his part for “Django Unchained.”
Morrissey Covers The Pretenders Song ‘Back On the Chain Gang’ In New Expanded “Low In High School” Album
Morrissey has covered The Pretenders’ classic Back on the Chain Gang (with a bit of word changes) as a bonus track for the deluxe edition of his 2017 album Low in High School. The album, which comes out on December 7, includes bonus vinyl w/ 4 new tracks includes the song and 5 Live Recordings and an Art Print. “I think the original can safely be counted as a pop classic, and as always with the Pretenders, of the brain as well as the loins,” he says of why he picked the song to Rolling Stone. “Chrissie is always ready to do something before anyone expects it, and for me that’s a well-developed artist.”