My 200 Favorite Video Game Themes - Part 3: Short and Sweet.

180.

Centaur Man

from Mega Man VI (NES)

Composer: Yuko Takehara

Capcom; 1993

Odd.  I would describe this tune as “odd”.  Odd in a good way, of course.  There were a million things they could have done with the theme for this stage, but they chose a song that starts off whimsical, then goes straight into a minor key near the end.  It’s one of those tunes that I remember liking as a teenager years ago, and always enjoyed because of how strange it feels hearing that song in that level headed towards that boss.  It has always sort of stood out for me.  The game’s lead composer, Yuko Takehara (often credited as simply “Yuko”), worked on a number of epic soundtracks in the 90’s including a few of the Rockman arcade titles, entries in the Street Fighter series and the freaking Megaman X soundtrack!  This lady has skills.

179.

Battle Theme

from Final Fantasy IX (PSX)

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

Squaresoft; 2000

This theme is among my favorite regular battle themes in the series.  The loop is pretty long, keeping the song from repeating over and over in a single battle.  This is important seeing as how you will hear it over, and over, and over again throughout the course of the game.  It is also kind of a stand-out theme in this game in-particular because it forgoes much of the title’s old-world style for a more energetic, cinematic attitude.  It’s a great theme and one that brings back a lot of memories.

178.

Ending Theme

from Gunstar Heroes (Genesis)

Composer: Norio Hanzawa

Treasure/Sega; 1993

As I mentioned in my previous entry, I think Gunstar Heroes is a masterpiece.  This theme that plays upon the game’s completion is an encouraging and lively piece.  I cannot recall when exactly it was that I actually beat Gunstar Heroes for the first time.  It would likely be sometime around 1996 or 1997, because I believe it was before High School.  I finally got a used Genesis  (with a broken RF-Adapter) from a family member, and remember wearing the Start button out because I would have to quickly pause the game to jiggle the cable behind the console to get picture back to the screen.  I played the crap out of that console, though, and Gunstar Heroes was one of the titles I spent a lot of time on, though I never owned it, I had to borrow it from a friend.  When I finally completed the game, I was rewarded with this memorable tune and, honestly, I was struggling with its placement.  I was trying to move it higher, but I did have to be honest with myself, and reason that if it was pushed back here, because other things were moved up, it is likely only because this is where it stands with me.  Still, this is a strong piece, and one that is quite nostalgic for me.

177.

Sigma- Stage 1

from Mega Man X2 (SNES)

Composer: Yuki Iwai

Capcom; 1994

This is one awesome song!  The fast riff breakdown at the end put it on this list and it excellently captures the level’s intensity and the mood of the stage.  I would say that, among the Megaman X titles, X-2 has one of the best soundtracks, probably right behind X5 and the original Megaman X.  The song is a short loop though, which pushes it back quite a bit in spite of how awesome the melody actually is.  It plays over and over through the stage and can seem a little repetitive.  But hey, we will not really start getting to the truly “perfect” songs until the top 100, and we still have a ways to go.

176.

Opening Title

from Street Fighter II (Arcade/SNES/Genesis)

Composers: Yoko Shimomura, Isao Abe

Capcom; 1991

This song is just about half-a-minute long and it’s on here purely for nostalgia reasons.  This song played daily in my house, with me and my friends playing hours of this game every weekend.  “I’m playing winner!”  Was the battlecry of these marathon fighting game sessions, and every time the game started, the famous Capcom logo would chime in, followed by this little piece of early-90’s ephemera.  I love the music here, but it is really short, which keeps it from ranking higher.  However, this tune just triggers so many memories and has played in my head for so many years that leaving it off the list just because it is short would simply be dishonest.

175.

Zanarkand

from Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2/PS3)

Composers: Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi

SquareEnix; 2003

Final Fantasy X-2 has an underrated soundtrack.  There!  I said it.  As derided as this game is by fans, I find it to be a strange little piece of marketing that stands alongside oddities like Legend of Zelda CD-i titles and the Rambo animated series as a little piece of crap that is so bizarre, its existence so confounding, that I kind of find it a little endearing.  The fact that the battle system was a lot of fun did not hurt either.  Everything else, though… Well…  The music was good!  Yeah!  There you go!  This game has a great soundtrack.  Seriously.  Many hardcore JRPG and Final Fantasy fans have unfairly dismissed this soundtrack simply because they hate the game, but it is worth a listen and it has a few more entries on this list to come.  The Zanarkand theme, like most of the music in the game, abandons the mournful mood of the first and replaces it with a well-composed, upbeat piece.  Nobuo Uemastu stepped aside for this project, but the compositions created by his replacements, Matsueda and Eguchi, were a solid stand-in.

174.

Stage 1- Paradise ~ Distant Mountain

from Touhou: Perfect Cherry Blossom (PC)

Composer: ZUN

2003; Team Shanghai Alice

Touhou returns to my list and, like other entries in the series, this is an energetic piano-heavy anthem.  Paradise is one of those songs that just catches my attention when I hear it.  It is a strong tune and has a feeling of building pressure.  It does everything right, in my opinion.  As the series makes more and more appearances on my list, you will find that many of them have this same upbeat, piano-tech vibe to them.  It is what makes them really stand out to me.

173.

Freya’s Theme

from Final Fantasy IX (PSX)

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

2000; Squaresoft

One of the better themes from Final Fantasy IX, Freya’s theme, which also plays when you enter her home city of Burmecia, fits the mood of the events perfectly.  The brave dragoon Freya returns home to see her lover only to find her city has fallen to the evil Kuja, who begins a campaign to destroy practically every city in the world.  It’s raining, and there is this grey coloring to everything.  It is pretty perfect, really.  This song just fits here, and it is also a damn good composition on its own, too.

172.

Wily- Stage 5

from Mega Man 10 (PS3/360)

Composers: Capcom Sound Team

Capcom; 2010

This one has a very sci-fi sound, even for a Mega Man theme, taking the player into space for this final stretch of Mega Man 10.  I’m not sure what really caught my ear on this one because when I first heard it, I didn’t like it.  However, when I played through Mega Man 10 again, I couldn’t get the theme out of my head.  It is one of those themes that lingers with me and I would always find myself humming it or playing it back over and over in my mind.

171.

Pray

from Final Fantasy Tactics (PSX)

Composers: Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masaharu Iwata

Squaresoft; 1997

This relaxing little tune from the beginning of Final Fantasy Tactics is an example of why I love Hitoshi Sakimoto’s compositions.  It is moody, moving, captivating and very memorable.  As stated in a previous entry, I could not really get into Tactics much, but I did like the music I heard when I played it.  Pray is just a nice, relaxing piece that I would argue is an underrated Final Fantasy Music gem.

My 200 Favorite Video Game Themes - Part 2: Bullets Everywhere!

190.

Ideal

from Ikaruga (Arcade/Dreamcast/Gamecube)

Composer: Hiroshi Iuchi

2001; Konami

Konami has had a good run over the years with their shmups.  Expect to see a few more tunes from their entries in the scrolling shooter genre on this list.  First, however, is Ikaruga.  If you have not played, or even heard of this amazing game, it would take an entire entry’s worth of explaining, so I’ll just call it an excellent shooter with a unique and fun mechanic.  Oh, and the soundtrack is AWESOME!  Going back to the Gradius Series, Konami has a great track record for providing great music for their scrolling shooters and Ikaruga is no exception.  It opens with an anthemic horn piece followed by a thumping electronica/orchestral theme that will likely get stuck in your head.  I know it does for me, anyway.

189.

The Decisive Battle

from Final Fantasy Tactics (PSX)

Composers: Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masaharu Iwata

1997; Squaresoft

Final Fantasy Tactics is not one of my favorite games, really.  The turn-based strategy genre is just one I never really could get into, as many times as I’ve tried.  However, there is one thing about this game I do like, the soundtrack.  Sakimoto and Iwata did some great work here, and Sakimoto himself would later go on to work on the astounding Final Fantasy XII soundtrack.  So, his first of several appearances on this list is this battle theme, heard early in the game, in the Dorter Slums.  It is tense and has this ominous vibe to it, which works in the favor of battle themes, and has a nice rhythm, which is created by the thundering timpani and assisted by the syncopated strings.

188.

Intro Stage

from Mega Man X2 (SNES)

Composer: Yuki Iwai

Capcom; 1994

Yuki Iwai is one of the most prolific and stunning talents in the industry’s history.  A former employee of Capcom, she worked on classic soundtracks in the Rockman X and Street Fighter series, and many more.  Occasionally composing under the pseudonym Sato, or going by her other monomonimal title Yuki, Iwai worked her ass of to make the first two Rockman X soundtracks the classics they are and it shows.  The Intro Stage theme from Rockman X2 is just awesome.  Keeping with the hard rock vibe of the series’ soundtrack norm, the fact that this is a 16-bit soundtrack just blows my mind.  Whenever I listen to this or any other theme from this spinoff series I forget that it is just analog beeps and buzzes that are layered and modified to sound like guitars, synth keyboards and drums.  You could have fooled me because when I was a kid playing the very first Megaman X title on my Super Nintendo, I could have sworn there was a rock band living inside of my TV.

187.

Save Yellow

from Gunstar Heroes (Genesis)

Composer: Norio Hanzawa

1993; Treasure/Sega

Gunstar Heroes is an awesome shooter/platformer released on the Sega Genesis in 1993.  Treasure, its developer, managed to make a stunning action title and bring with it an awesome soundtrack.  Save Yellow is one of a number of themes in the game with a bouncy, synth aesthetic to it.  There is nothing organic about this music, and that is JUST fine with me.  The electronic nature of this theme, along with its bouncing beat and “take charge” melody is really all I needed to put this on my list.  As I was not a Sega player back in the day, mainly because me and all of my friends were Nintendo kids, I missed this one originally and it was not until years later that I got a chance to play this masterpiece.  I would have been around twelve when it came out, and it would have been right up my alley.  The pace, the menace, and the energy of this excellent game is all present in this song.  It is all just so glorious.

186.

The African Mines

from Duck Tales (NES)

Composer: Hiroshige Tonomura

Capcom; 1989

There will be another song from this game much higher on this list.  If you do not know what it is, then I just can’t wait until you hear it, because if it is your first time hearing that tune, then it will change your life!  Okay, maybe that’s overstating it, but the Ducktales soundtrack has gone down in nostalgia as one of the best game soundtracks really on the weight of just one song, that said, the theme from the African Mines stage is not anywhere near as good as its more famous composition, but it is definitely a classic.  This song does not really invoke “Africa” for me, but it is still a smooth-sounding, upbeat tune that does flow with the level very well.  Shortly after the release of Ducktales, composer Hiroshige Tonomura would pursue other projects at Taito, leaving Capcom for good.

185.

Science is Fun!

from Portal 2 (PS2/PC/360)

Composer: Mike Morasky

Valve; 2011

As far as songs that fit the game’s mood, atmosphere and tone well, this phasing electronic piece nails it.  Playing over the game’s official trailer as well as at a few points in the game, Portal 2’s instrumental theme is one of those songs where, even if you have never seen a single frame of either game, you can at the very least get a feel for the mood and pace of the game.  The excellent Portal 2’s soundtrack is filled with gems like this, and this game will make another appearance later on the list.

184.

Granas Sable

from Grandia 2 (Dreamcast/PS2)

Composer: Noriyuki Iwadare

Game Arts/Enix; 2000

I love Grandia 2.  Sure, it’s flawed, but I have played a lot of JRPG’s and this series, and Grandia 2 has some of the best combat of any entries in the genre, in my opinion.  The soundtrack is okay.  It’s not great, not astounding, just… okay.  Still Granas Sable, which plays in several areas of the game, is a great composition on its own.  It has a very adventurous feel to it, setting the mood for what be a fun and entertaining quest.  The mood the song invokes matches the game perfectly, well, at the very least it does up until the game’s massive tonal shift about two thirds of the way through.  Its composer, Iwadare, has worked on dozens of games as lead composer, including a majority of the Grandia games, entries in the Lunar series as well as Phoenix Wright.  He is a classic composer in his own right and deserves proper recognition.

183.

Wave Man

from Mega Man V (NES)

Composer: Mari Yamaguchi

Capcom; 1992

)

Wave Man’s theme is one of my favorites.  It does not top my list, obviously, but it does bring back a lot of memories.  I love Megaman V’s soundtrack.  It is one of my favorites in the series and you can expect more from this game to show up on this list in the future.  Wave Man’s theme is another that fits the level well, with rising and lowering water levels that seem to dance to the music.  The ripples bounce to the beat.  It all just works so well.  

182.

The Young Descendant of Tepes

from Touhou 6- Embodiment of Scarlet Devil (PC)

Composer: ZUN

2002; Team Shanghai Alice

)

This series…  Legendary for its difficulty, as well as its soundtrack, Touhou is a series of independently-developed PC “Bullet Hell” games that has began in the 90’s and is still seeing releases to this day.  The characters have become as iconic and recognizable as the games’ countless, mind-boggling gameplay videos on Youtube.  The game’s lead designer, artist, programmer and composer, ZUN, makes his first appearance on my list with this piano-heavy orchestral rock piece from the sixth official entry in the Touhou series.  Stage 6 is a rough gauntlet leading to some pretty insane boss battles.  This song ends right before the big fight of the stage, but the tune is really the level’s highlight for me.

181.

Go Straight!

from Streets of Rage 2 (Genesis)

Composers: Yuzo Koshiro, Motohiro Kawashima

1992; Sega

)
The first level theme of this excellent Sega brawler is a catchy synth dance number, which is pretty much the description for any song on the soundtrack.  Go Straight plays for the first half of the first stage and is an endlessly-catchy, upbeat piece.  It’s memorable to the series’ fans (myself included) and has really held up well given that the game is more than two decades old!  It definitely has a touch of hip hop in there, as much hip hop as you could get out of an early-90’s video game, anyway.  Mix that with the gritty streets in the game and you have a solid tune from an awesome game.

My 200 Favorite Video Game Themes - Part 1: City Streets, Pirates and Plumbers

200.

Capital City Theme

from Sim City (SNES)

Composer: Soyo Oko

1991; Maxis

)

In a game where the whole idea is to build a successful city, the feeling of progress is a necessity.  Aside from his far-reaching influence in the area of game design, Sim City's designer Will Wright is justly credited (alongside his peer Sid Meyer) as one of the founding fathers of the strategy genre.  This is a game series I’ve loved for many years (Except for the 2013 reboot.  Go bankrupt, EA.  The world hates your face), and as the years went on, one consistent positive element in this series has been its excellent music.  The first Sim City and Sim City 3000, in particular, had stunning soundtracks with memorable music ranging from relaxing to encouraging and energetic, and this first theme from this storied franchise sort of falls into both categories.  It starts of with the sound that is reminiscent of construction, it is to me at least.  It then progresses into a soft theme mixing synth and strings sounds.  It’s a solid theme and is one of the majority of songs on this list that dominated my childhood.

199.  

Eyes On Me

from Final Fantasy VIII (PSX)

Composer: Faye Wong

1999; Squaresoft

)

As stated in my introduction for this series, Final Fantasy is going to be one franchise whose music will show up again and again on my list.  Eyes On Me is on here because… well… I don’t know.  I am being entirely sincere here.  I do like the song, but most of the fond memories of this song comes from length conversations with friends about this game.  It is on the list because it was a song that I have always associated with the strange love story between Julia and Laguna; a story I had always considered far more interesting than the tepid romance between Squall and Rinoa, despite my irritation with Laguna’s constant wussing out.  Whenever I hear Eyes on Me it does bring back fond memories of gaming in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.  This is in spite of the fact that I consider VIII to be among the weaker of the Final Fantasy titles.  I still enjoy the game, but not nearly as much as many of the series’ other titles, however I contend that the soundtrack to Final Fantasy VIII is among the series’ best, and Eyes On Me is just one of a number of entries from this game on my list.

198.

Main Theme

from The Curse of Monkey Island (PC)

Composer: Michael Land

1997; LucasArts

)

My history with PC gaming does not really go back that far.  I did not get my first quality PC until my senior year of High School.  Before that, I was using an older Windows 95 machine that could not run most new games.  Today, I’m pretty much a PC gamer almost exclusively.  I still play console games from time to time, but most of the titles of the last five years or so have been my primary focus have been popular MMORPG’s, Minecraft, or various titles on Valve’s excellent Steam platform.  That said, I did get some hands-on time in the early 2000’s catching up on some of LucasArts’ classic adventure titles.  The first one I played was Curse of Monkey Island, a late and well-loved entry into the long-running series.  The entire series has good music, but I particularly enjoy this theme.  I guess this simply comes from the fact that it is exactly what you expect a title theme for a game about pirates to sound.  So, it’s perfect!

197.

A Place of Memory  - Memoria

from Final Fantasy IX (PSX)

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

2000; Squaresoft

)

Final Fantasy IX is not one of my favorite games in the series.  It is good, don’t get me wrong, but it feels a little over-simplified and lacked the customization of VII and even VIII (which I repeat, I'm a little lukewarm to).  I am a person who likes to play a game the way I want to, not the way the developer wants me to, and I always felt more than a little constricted by Final Fantasy IX’s overall structure.  Still, the game had a wonderful soundtrack.  It is not one of my favorites in the series, but Nobuo Uematsu always brings his A-game and FFIX was no exception.  The soundtrack is a mix of folk, blues, Baroque and Renaissance-period sounds that culminates to a uniquely bright and moving symphony.  Now, Memoria is a weird place.  It is another world, built from collective memories, where time has stood still while the world it governs seems to be trying to move on without it, and while, from a story standpoint, this particular area is out of left field, it has three really good things going for it.  First, and most memorably, are the bosses, which are among the most intimidating and creative in the series’ history, despite some of them being throwbacks to fights in previous games.  Second is the art design, where the artists at Square just went crazy and made a stunning, haunting and simply beautiful landscape.  Lastly: the music.  The theme for Memoria is a ghostly melody that is mournful and it has a tone of loss to it, not just losing someone, but as though the characters in the story are lost… for good.  Memoria as a whole is a great final chapter to what is ultimately a pretty weak third act in the game.  In fact, Memoria is one of my all-time favorite Final Fantasy levels, and the beautiful song that plays chillingly in the background has done much to influence my love for this place that memories built and time forgot.

196.

Overworld 1 Theme

from Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)

Composer: Koji Kondo

1990 (NA); Nintendo

)

Koji Kondo.  Real video game fans know that name.  He is the head sound director/composer for many of Nintendo’s flagship franchises.  Think of an iconic Nintendo melody and there is about an 80% chance Kondo was behind it.  He has been an inspiration for game composers and has given countless two-dimensional worlds depth with his inspired and iconic scores.  He, alongside the aforementioned Nobuo Uematsu and a few other names will appear many times on this list, as they are the definitive names in game music, and for good reason.  Now, I want to say a few words about Super Mario Bros. 3.  It is not a simply a “good” game.  It is one of only a few titles in existence that I would call “perfect”.  It ranks among the best platformers of all time and is one of my favorite video games.  It also laid the groundwork for many ideas that would become staples of the industry, such as the “three hit boss” and the fully-interactive map leading to different levels.  Another unforgettable aspect of Super Mario Bros. 3 is its soundtrack, which has numerous songs that are instantly recognizable for me and just about anyone who was gaming in the late-80’s and early 90’s.  It is not my favorite Nintendo soundtrack, nor is it even Kondo’s best work as a whole, but it definitely hits all of the right note blocks (sorry).  Instead of going for high-energy music, Kondo composed a chiptune with an island sound and a delightful melody.

195.

Under Logic

from Streets of Rage 2 (Genesis)

Composers: Yuzo Koshiro and Motohiro Kawashima

1992; Sega

)

Koshiro and Kawashima managed to conjure up a solid groove for Sega’s headlining beat-’em-up series for the Genesis.  The Streets of Rage series is full of great music and this first track on this list, Under Logic, the Stage 4 theme, motivates the player as they bash through wave after wave of thugs in a run-down park.  Brawlers always have such fun music, and I’m not entirely sure why.  The genre is a mixed bag, going from superb to bland to god-awful.  However, Streets of Rage 2 is one of the best in the genre and one of my favorite games on the Genesis.  The music is a mix of funk, soul and techno that feels like the streets.  At half-tempo, I could see this song playing over the opening credits of an early-80’s Scorsese film, easily.  It’s energetic and has an aggression to it that matches the brutal streets the game portrays.

194.

Distant Mountain

from Suikoden (PSX)

Composers: Miki Higashino, Hiroshi Tamawari, Tappi Iwase, Hirofumi Taniguchi and Mayuko Kageshita

1995; Konami

)

Oh, man… It’s been years!  Suikoden is Konami’s frontlining RPG series.  It spans ten titles and numerous platforms.  While not exactly huge in the States, this is a popular franchise in Japan.  Its world is loosely based on a popular piece of classical Chinese literature and it has been one of the few JRPG franchises that has truly survived the Western RPG revolution of the early-to-mid 2000’s.  The series has delightful music, too.  Distant Mountain, the theme first heard early in the game on Mt. Tigerwolf, has a strong Celtic influence, as do many great JRPG themes.  This is an often-overlooked soundtrack that is full of little gems here and there.  I strongly suggest giving a listen in its entirety.  Also, note some of those composers’ names as they will be showing up multiple times on this list.

193.

Festival of Servants

from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PSX)

Composer: Michiru Yamane

1997; Konami

)

This is one of the boss themes from Symphony of the Night, which is not only one of my favorite Playstation titles, but is one of my favorite games of all time.  The theme first plays during an early-game encounter with Slogra and Gaibon, a duo of bosses long-time fans of the series have seen over and over again  At this point, they are pretty much expected to be in a Castlevania game, and their accompanying theme will become the official mini-boss theme of the game.  The song opens with a loud, squealing guitar wail, followed by an intense theme pounding the tension of the moment into the player.  I have always found the power of this theme at this boss kind of funny considering how easy these two are, but still, it is a memorable tune and a well-loved moment from one of the best adventure/platformers of all time.

192.

Shadow Man

from Mega Man III (NES)

Composers: Yasuaki Fujita and Harumi Fujita

1990; Capcom

Rockman is one of the most essential game franchises of all time.  Whether you like them or not (though I’ve never met a gamer who does not like at least some of these games), does not change the fact that Mega Man is influential and fun.  Then there is the music.  Oh, my GOD the music in this series…  Some franchises are known for their soundtracks and, as I mentioned in my introduction, expect to see a lot from Mega Man.  I will even go so far as to contend you will hear at least one song from the franchise in each entry in this series.  My list is saturated with music from the Blue Bomber’s storied history and, I would argue, deservedly so.  Few franchises have produced music as catchy, memorable and fun as the Capcom’s flagship series.  Shadow Man is the lowest of the franchise’s entries on this list but it is, itself, quite excellent.  The minor key, the bluesy bass, the tonal shifts, everything works.  It also goes quite well with the level, which has the player traversing a lava-filled factory as the lights constantly fade in and out.  Shadow Man is also one of the coolest Master Robots in the series, and his song just fits perfectly here.

191.

No Man's Land

from Contra III: The Alien Wars (SNES)

Composers: Miki Higashino, Masanori Adachi and Tappi Iwase

1992; Konami

)

Tension is the operative emotion when the player is making their way to the final encounter.  You, a human, armed with two guns, has just trekked across a flaming city, stormed a massive factory filled with hostile aliens, scoured the wastelands and now, within the enemy base, only your final targets remain.  You scale the side of his antechamber, leading to his throne.  He is the one-and-only Red Falcon.  You have defeated him before, and you can certainly defeat him again!  Fearful of your wrath, Falcon sends one last foe your way, his one remaining flying metal guardian.  You fill the flying metal beast with holes and now, with the coward Falcon’s last defenses in ruins, you make the final jump up to the platform to face your destiny.  No Man’s Land plays right after you defeat Shadow Beast Kimkou, who was actually the final boss of the previous game in the series, Super C on the NES.  After an easy few fights, the tone shifts for the final stretch of the game, and this song is the perfect mood-setter.  It is heroic, intense, menacing and energizing all at once.  I love the power and  the punch to the gut that this melody has.  It invokes a lot of great memories of my closing out the last few minutes of one of my favorite video games of all time. Also, take note of the composers’ names. Do they sound familiar?

Continue to Part 2

My 200 Favorite Video Game Themes - An Introduction

Cartoon by Chris McElfresh; 2014

I love video game music.  This is a niche, for sure, but I do know that I am not alone in this.  As someone who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s, during the height of the Nintendo Generation, reading Nintendo Power while eating the Nintendo Cereal System, video games have been a tremendous part of my growth into a pop culture nerd. Therefore, it is undeniable that video games have been a huge part of my life as a whole.  So, factor in the fact that I am also a music nut, always gravitating towards good melodies, I have spent hours of my life humming the music to the games I have played over and over through the decades.

Now, I cannot say narrowing this list down was easy.  I had to pick 200 themes, the 200 that I knew deserved to make my list.  I would say it is pretty diverse, too.  That said, there is an abundance of music from the Mega Man and Final Fantasy series on this list.  This is mainly dictated by the fact that I wanted to make an honest list first and foremost.  I could have made it a little broader but I would not have been sincere with that choice.  In the end, I think I made a list of 200 themes that best reflects my taste, as well as my childhood in many cases.  It is an entirely subjective countdown.  I am, in no way, declaring these 200 themes as the “Greatest of all Time”.  I try my best not to fall into that trap.  

Most of the entries on my list made it out of nostalgia or simply my pure love for the song. There aren't any songs on this list that made it because I felt like they HAD to be on there. Every song and its place on the list made it where it is because of how that song impacted me personally.

So, without further ado, prepare for a long trek through almost three decades of game music as we kick off this series with entries 200-191!