See also:
Best VGM 106
Best VGM 308
Best VGM 642
A collection of my favorite videogame music. Note that most of them are from games I played so I might miss some great ones from games I never played.
NES
Journey to Silius
Stage 2 (Underground Concourse)
Okay so I'm here because of Grand Poo World 2. That track's a banger, gotta give a try to the full game on Switch someday.
sound like 宫本武藏 VS 佐佐木小次郎, at the eve， 宫本武藏 watch the sea, understand what is 道.
Thank you Nintendo for introducing me to this game as an adult since I missed it as a kid. This soundtrack is pure insanity. Sunsoft are absolute legends.
Memories....
This game just got confirmed as part of Nintendo's free selection for their Online subscription thing, so hopefully a lot more people get to appreciate this soundtrack!
Awesome!!!!!!
LOVE THIS!!!!!!!!!!
The Sunsoft Music Team were geniuses.
someone should remake this game imo
This track is insane for the NES. Talk about pushing the limits of the system to the max.
Yeah, sounds more like a SNES music
0:51 Androids are chasing the hero while shooting him with laser beams from their eyes.
Retrowave artists from nowadays check your masters here.Originality and perfection..
Never played this game but is an awesome song.
It sounds like Metal Gear music
nice tune, check out banjo guy ollie's cover
Sunsoft games had the best soundtracks. Batman, Blaster Master, Fester’s Quest, Gremlins 2, Batman Jokers Revenge
Man, 1:25 gets me every fucking time, this song is a real masterpiece.
Why is there only one loop?
add to playlist <3
Back in the day, Sunsoft was killing the game... Along with Konami, Hal and others. Great time for games
nightman333 Ain’t that the truth. I also appreciate Hudson Soft, they published some great games.
why we cant get soundtracks like this in games these days? 80s and 90s gaming was godlike. no doubt.
Check out Shovel Knight.
DOOM had a pretty bangin soundtrack (2016)
Well it was a blast no doubt but still some things are certainly better nowadays such as easier access to games through platforms like Steam for instance. Back in the day each game was like $50 (so 90$ today money) and they were not very long games many times.
Sometimes restrictions can force people to work harder than they thought they could and to really push their creativity to the limit. A poosible result is a soundtrack like this.
Amen, they dont make catchy and unique soundtracks like this anymore, now its all generic/boring orchestrals
@Facundo Poviña Eschatos ost
xSayPleasex Huh, were Nintendo games really that expensive back then? I wasn't alive yet, but from what I've heard most games cost 2.5 to 10 pounds in the UK. Which is a lot less than 50 dollar.
@607 Those were probably for used games.
Tartuffe the Spry Wonder Dog Did you actually buy games back then?
@607 Yes. Now that I think about it, NES games were pretty cheap in the mid to late 90's, well after the 4th and even 5th gen were taking over. I remember getting Punch Out and Metroid brand new for like less than 10 bucks. This was like 1995-ish, I think.
Tartuffe the Spry Wonder Dog They could've got discounted then, though. ;) It is possible that Nintendo (and Sega) games were more expensive than other games, of course. Because they were on cartridges and because they were generally higher quality.
@607 I think that was because a lot of people had moved on to the new consoles, and stores were trying to get rid of the old stuff. But yeah, in the 80's NES games were like 50 bucks, iirc.
damn, Sunsoft, how your composers get so good with 8-bit music??
This song is great for any and all stealth games, missions, or just wanting to feel like a bad ass walking into a store.
lol at the last part
25 years later and this is still on my playlist.
If you like this music, check out the genre Synthwave.
You know, usually I'd drop in a comment about how those two genres are nothing alike, but..... .....oddly enough, this did make me think of Call of the Wild by Turbo Knight, so you might be onto something. : /
I was wandering, why I wanted to drop this into my Synthwave list. Now I see I'm not alone.
SOME ONE Fl_lcking remix this!!!
I did a cover with some synths and my saxophone https://soundcloud.com/johnsax/journey-to-silius
This theme beats 'The Moon Theme' from Duck Tales and the 'Main Theme' from Solstice. Defiantly fits during the late 8-bit era. :D BTW who thinks Naoki Kodaka (The composer of many Sunsoft games like this one) should come back to compose video game music? Only this time for Treasure (Gunstar Heroes fame). Why Treasure? Because Sunsoft rarely makes video games these days. And yes, I find both Naoki Kodaka and Norio Hanzawa putting out similar badass style of music.
This beats THE SHIT out of that Moon theme. There is a Sunsoft style fan remix of the Moon theme which i recommend you to check out! Just type in Ducktales Moon theme Sunsoft style on Youtube to find it.
@isakwatz11 Thanks! ;)
Did you like the remix? I sure prefer it over the original! Have you checked out the rest of the Journey to Silius soundtrack, because if you haven't you're really missing out on something awesome! Also have you listned to other SunSoft soundtracks like Mr. Gimmick? Because you sure need to check that out as well, it's amazing.
@isakwatz11 I've already have. That's why I'm a huge fan of Sunsoft's music style. :D
Van Helsing's theme!
Holy shit, I just found an ACWL fan! Hi stranger.. I made ACWL back in 2004 through 2008. The reason I picked this song for Van Helsing was because it sounded godlike and I needed something amazing for him that fit that errie mood. I think it was probably one of the most popular theme songs in all of ACWL.
@Allan Caesar OMG, the man himself responded, nice. But yeah loved your CAW league. Shame on what happened with it but yeah, you picked the right choice.
CAW has a shot in the arm though thanks to how easy it is to get areans and CAWs now. That and recording is simple to do now as well. Back then we didn't have ANY of those tools.
@HarmonySword To this day, a part of me would like to do a one off with AEC Mania 6 still. But it would not be on WWF No Mercy. It would be on WWE 19.
@Allan Caesar Wow, this thread is so old, surprised you came back after so long. But that would be so cool if you did that since I'm sure alot of people still remember ACWL.
Allan Caesar Please do. Would be awesome as hell to see a one off ACWL show. I loved ACWL back in the day.
This actually opens like one of the Batman games. It has a very similar eerie feel and even some of the notes seem to be the same. Good OST either way though.
That is because both games were made by Sunsoft! :)
I'm addicted to this. I think Sunsoft really pushed the Nintendo to the limits with this game, music wise and gameplay wise. Brutal gameplay and brutal soundtrack to go with it~
Ninja Gaiden II was harder gameplay-wise IMO.
The gameplay is pretty average tbh.
best NES music EVER!
+franchi123 That's Sunsoft for you. You should check out the music for Mr. Gimmick on NES.
This is so awesome you guys, man still after soooo many years it still kicks vgm's ass.
[NES] Journey to Silius - Stage 2 Theme (axi0n VGM remix)
The title is wrong. Should be "Best VGM 1 -"
These tracks are in no particular order.
Yah. :)
If youve never heard of David Wise, then you need to expand your VGM collection by a LOT my friend. Nightmare on Elm Street? Marble Madness? DONKEY KONG COUNTRY? Come on. And i dont even know how to reply to what you say about Follin. That is literally, just. No, no.
and don't forget all the battletoads stuff, it's great.
yeah i gotta tell you, I sure am liking this song's soundtrack. ty, and after I get through your 1,400+ songs, remind me to message you any suggestions.
That music! Just discovered Journey to Silius and it is now one of my favorite Nes games. The gameplay is close to perfect and what can you say about that soundtrack!
Couldn't have said it better!
We have (NESTUNES). It's gonna be on our next cd.
Listening to this, you know shit just got real.
This is my childhood here, some things you will never forget.
Get Smooth McGroove to acapella this!
In case you're interested in another instance where a composer really worked the sound chip of the NES in a published video game, you might want to check out the theme to "Supremacy". It's not a very common/popular game compared to the classics, but the opening theme is a real fine piece of work by Jeroen Tel.
I do agree there's not that many tracks going on, but they use them pretty damn well for NES standards.
Not really? This was the day of David Wise and Tim Follin. That is really basic. The reason these songs sound complex is because of the constant fading in and out of the melodies.
There is a bass, A lead Synth, And a drumtrack. Not really all that advanced? That being said, I think it is awesome, and one of the best.
such intensity, 8-bit masterpiece
The entire score for this game is incredibly ambitious (although this is my favorite song from it).
While I agree that this song is great and I commend the composer for the variety of instruments the quantity of instruments a song has does not make or break a song. Those 30 second 1-3 instrument loops have been recreated with symphonies today and they're still great because at the core the tunes were fantastic regardless of the number of instruments.
The Duck Tales moon theme is one of the best 8-bit songs as well.
Epic nes music
Has anyone done a guitar, bass and drums cover of this song? It's probably my favorite 8-bit NES song ever and it seems like it would lend itself to a sweet cover.
i have to agree with the comment that this is the best song on the NES of all time. This song is so complex and it's 3 minutes long.
1:25 sounds like it would be out of the Revenge of Shinobi music
This was on an 8 bit cart...............fucking amazing......nothing short of miraculous.....Do you hear those drums ....on a NINTENDO......Mind Boggling....Who wrote this....
Naoki Kodaka
Wasn't this game originally going to be a licensed Terminator game, but someone else got the license at the last minute?
Yep. But if you notice, the final boss is still a terminator
The one we got was dogshit
Yes
Donkey Kong GB boss music?
Proggy.
@XenonDNB Actually, Xenophobe wasn't developed by Sunsoft. The NES port was handled by Bally Midway, while Sunsoft did the publishing. Xenophobe, in addition to Sky Kid and Spy Hunter, were only published by Sunsoft. Funnily enough, the latter game was also developed by Bally Midway.
@TheDitzyJester maybe not sounds like shit just leave it one tab loop the SoB and enjoy
copy url past in another tab play then play the second one five seconds later for EPIC BASS
@PAVGN i agree since in video games are multiple gods as in ancient greece :P (clap for stupid comment) :(
How could someone dislike i mean HOW?
I go jogging with this song playing
i used to wrestle my brothers to this music-thats how cool it was....
até hoje ainda tenho o cartucho... ou fita se preferirem... amo esse jogo ainda mais as musicas... velhos tempos... q os jogos aqui no brazil, eram classificados por megas. 2 megas... 1mega... 528kbs... e por ai vai... saudades.... esse jogo vinha com um chip a mais para as musicas... journey to silius... amo de paixão...
What i like about this games soundtrack is you can actually hear drums in it, that was a rarity for NES songs back then. This is top notch stuff.
brings back so many memories... i remember when everyone in my family watched me played this game bcuz noone else couldnt beat it like i did. great music... good old days...
Still say this song makes me think of Rambo whenever I hear it.
@downphoenix indeed this music is awesome, but do not underestimate music tunes because they are short. Mario and Zelda games have wonderful tunes too and it's logical that people love them, because they are very catchy and memorable. Anyway, maybe Journey to Silius do not have the praise it deserve for its music because it's not a game that reach the mainstream. Personnaly I've never heard of it and never played it still, I only know it for its musics. :)
Could you upload the Credits theme some time? I can't find it anywhere on Youtube.
Goddamn, that sounds kinda creepy and mysterious O.o
this song is my alarm sound every morning for half a year now and i still like it! i think no former alarm sound had this status. Seems to be one of the best song ever! :D
@kcchris word
I feel like a kid now... good times with this game. I remember dying alot on this game, maybe I'll mark this as my next Playthrough just to see if I can finally kill it...
@DjKriegshammer Hmm, I recall there was something said about that they added something to the cart, in most sunsoft games. Thanks for explaining. :)
I always thought the box for this game looked cool. I guess it was the backdrop and the font
@downphoenix If I remember correct, Sunsoft did something with the NES Casettes, making them able to store several new "lines" of music pitches. And dear god it shows... And Yeah this is one of the best songs to NES, Like Level 1/5, or the two songs from Batman NES games(Also on Supra's list.)
this is likely THE BEST song ever on the NES. Or at the very least the most complex, 98% of every song on the NES uses only 1 or 2 instruments in it, this has a full compliment just like a real song, and actually has the length too. People rave about music like from Nintendo's games Zelda and Mario, but those games had 30 second loops with 1-3 instruments
downphoenix mega man has a lot of songs where they feel they use many instruments
downphoenix I agree
What about "Pictionary" ?
downphoenix IT is Definitly the Best NES Soundtrack espacialy this level 2 but also the full game soundtrack Range!!! 👌👌👍🏼🎼🎼🤝🙂
Tim Follin
@Josselin Hanel haha that's not nintendo. software creation hands-down had some of the best music.
They used one of the sound channels exclusively for bass. Very uncommon for the time, that's why it sounds exotic.
Absolutely love this game. In my opinion only second to Mega Man 2 when it comes to 8-bit soundtrack. If Sunsoft had created a seperate tune for stage 5 it would probably be #1.
There's other Sunsoft games you really need to hear the soundtracks of, but considering this message is 9 years old I am sure by now you have. Try Gremlins 2, Batman, and Blaster Master. Blaster Master is one of the greatest NES games ever made too.
This game was actually really good. DAMN HARD but really good. The music is incredible.
Naoki Kodaka was a video game music god!
one of the greatest soundtracks ever sunsoft - period
holy nostalgia! I remember this! what a tough game!
Damn. Those drums sound like something outta the SNES. I've only heard the opening song for this game; should look more into this game.
Yeah! Sunsoft music was awesome on the NES. :) I wish Naoki Kodaka still made VG music.
sounds good, this guy's got taste.
this reminds me of the "Startropics underground theme" but way better.
More chip goodness. Seems like one of those games where all the tracks have something to offer.