Favourite Soundtrack per platform

[SlowPokemon]

My favorite OSTs from each Nintendo console:

NES: Super Mario Bros. 3

Game Boy: Pokémon Red & Blue; Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins

SNES: EarthBound

Nintendo 64: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Game Boy Color: Pokémon Gold & Silver

Game Boy Advance: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice For All (it would be the third game but all of the trial themes in AA2 are my favorites); Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire

Gamecube: Luigi's Mansion

Nintendo DS: Hotel Dusk: Room 215; Pokémon Black & White; Professor Layton and the Curious Village

Wii: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword; Super Mario Galaxy 2

Nintendo 3DS: Animal Crossing: New Leaf; Mario & Luigi: Dream Team; Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice; Pokémon Sun & Moon; Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy

Wii U: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker; Mario Kart 8; Super Mario 3D World

Nintendo Switch: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

A couple notes: these are all in alphabetical order, not in any kind of order as for how much I like them. Also, I really wanted to list New Super Mario Bros. U for Wii U because the main theme is my favorite Mario track in years, but the OST is so short that I couldn't put it alongside those other giants. Also... pretty much all the Ace Attorney and Professor Layton games would be on this list if I didn't limit myself to one per franchise. I snuck the crossover on there at least.

[mastersuperfan]

The World Ends With You

You have just triggered my long-buried nostalgia and now I really want to go back and replay that game

[607]

Maelstrom's list is very long, so I'll post a bit early.

Pokemon DPPt

thats basically it

It was great!! A very enjoyable experience.

NES: Metroid

That was amazing!!! A very impressive soundtrack. It's got a great atmosphere, too!! I love it!

SNES: Chrono Trigger

Lovely! Quite some variety, but really nice as a whole. There were quite some tracks I had heard before. Very nice!

N64: Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

This is the third time for this soundtrack to show up, but this time I actually listened to it. The previous two times I thought I knew the soundtrack already, but when listening to it, there were some tracks I didn't recognise! A very nice work.

GCN: Metroid Prime

Wow, that was... interesting. Some very impressive and different pieces. Some pieces were very unsettling, but fortunately there were some more relaxing themes too. Overall, an interesting experience!

Wii: Xenoblade Chronicles

That's amazing! I feel like there's quite some variety throughout the soundtrack, and yet everything fits. The quality of the individual pieces is outstanding! I think the only piece I had heard before was Gaur Plains; the rest was new to me! And there were some very good themes in there!


I'll skip Super Mario 3D World, as you weren't certain enough about that, and continue with Link's Awakening.

[607]

Wow, this is a lot to do in one post!

GB/GBC: Link's Awakening

I didn't enjoy this. Most themes are either very short or very strange. It's been a while, but as far as I can see or recall I wasn't impressed by anything in this soundtrack. I do really like Kozue Ishikawa's work in Wario Land 1, II and 3.

GBA: Mother 3

This was the most I have ever been impressed by any soundtrack. And I've heard quite a few! I know the GBA, and I've heard a lot of soundtrack for it, some of better quality than others. This is just crazy. The quality of all tracks is outstanding and I unfortunately cannot find an English expression to express the creativity expressed in this soundtrack. My first moment of total astonishment was at the drum solo. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find it back; I'd like to hear it again. Then, later, classical music. I was able to find that back. Such an amazing medley. Later on, a CONCERT. ON GBA. After 5 hours, the soundtrack still kept surprising me again and again. I need to listen to it again sometime, I think. The only timestamp I wrote down is 6:02:20. The song that follows there... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
A truly amazing experience!

DS: Radiant Historia

My expectations got raised quite high when I saw this was composed by Yoko Shimomura. And while, compared to the previous soundtrack, I wasn't remarkably impressed at this, I did enjoy it! Quite beautiful.

3DS: Bravely Default

This was a very interesting soundtrack! Beyond that Prayer I noted down as being especially so. The entire soundtrack was beautiful, and quite refreshing! It really made me feel good. It's also very nice how intense and relaxing tunes are mixed throughout the soundtrack, and both are executed well.

PS1: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

A grand soundtrack! I liked it, it was an interesting experience. I liked how orchestral it sounds, and I also really like the use of vocals and environmental sounds. This wasn't a very relaxing soundtrack, but it probably fits the game, judging it by its cover. I particularly liked Lost Painting.

PS3: NieR

This was very interesting. I read up on the soundtrack on Wikipedia, and read about the made-up languages, based on different languages in use now.

PS4: NieR: Automata

A great work! Very impressive. The video I listened of the soundtrack wasn't too great, in my opinion... but the soundtrack itself is amazing! The idea used in NieR was expanded upon in a great way. I enjoyed all 3 sections of the soundtrack: the instrumental tracks, the tracks with vocals, and the 8-bit tracks.


Next is swimswamit, but they picked a lot of soundtracks other people had listed before, so we'll see how long that'll take.

[Maelstrom]

Just so you know, I arranged that Mother 3 song you linked to via timestamp.
http://forum.ninsheetmusic.org/index.php?topic=6215.msg391532#msg391532
The best way to listen to the Mother 3 soundtrack is to play the game yourself. That way you'll understand the context even better.

Oh, and the Link's Awakening one is pure personal preference. That was the first video game I ever finished, so it has a special place in my heart, even if it's not that great out of the context of the game itself.

[607]

NES: Super Mario Bros

An amazing soundtrack. It's so simple and clear, and yet in Bowser's Castle's theme you sometimes don't know what's going on. I don't know what to say on this. I've heard this soundtrack so many times I definitely can't give you a first impression. But oh, is it good.

SNES: Super Metroid

Pretty good! It certainly is atmospheric, like Metroid. Not anything too special, though, I thought. Especially not when compared to the original Metroid soundtrack, which was spectacular.

N64: Ocarina

This soundtrack is very good. It's also got quite a special feeling to me, even though I've never played the game. The Hyrule Field theme is amazing. It's so long, too, and features a lot of different themes! I also really like the Potion Shop theme. And some other themes are remarkably eerie!
I hadn't heard the staff roll theme before.

Gamecube: Wind Waker

Another great soundtrack. What really got to me is how many tracks convey the location they're used in. When you hear the Departure theme, it actually sounds like you're on a ship. I automatically start moving my head from left to right and back. You can also clearly hear that it's not a cruise ship you're on! My reaction to the Great Sea theme: "Oooooh!!! I don't think I need to explain why this is so great. But I can try. It really expresses the vastness of the ocean, and the sense of adventure. And of course the beginning arpeggios picture the waves of the sea!" And then the Dragon Roost Island theme really feels mountainous! Perhaps because of the instrumentation?
I was also particularly impressed by Molgera's theme. That's so cool! And 'Farewell Hyrule King' was very interesting as well.

Wii: Super Paper Mario (Floro Caverns/Sammer's Kingdom) Regardless of opinion on the game, I always though Brawl had some really good tracks too.

I hadn't ever heard this soundtrack before, and it was much better than I expected! The music sounds a lot like The Thousand Year Door, but it's certainly still very unique. I was surprised to see that both games did have different composers!

GBA: Superstar Saga (Hoohoo Village ftw)

I've actually been playing Superstar Saga again. It's my second favourite GBA game, and also in my top 3 GBA soundtracks (not counting remakes/ports; my favourite GBA game is a remake/port, namely Yoshi's Island).
Cackletta's Theme is clearly my favourite. I'm hoping to play it on organ some day, but I've only played organ twice in my life, so I'll need some more experience first, I reckon. Other favourites are Beanbean Castle, Prince Peasley's theme, Gwarhar Lagoon, and Teehee Valley (panflute is always nice ). I also feel like E. Gadd's theme perfectly 'captures the spirit' of professor E. Gadd. Bowser's Castle's theme is unique when compared to other interpretations throughout the Mario series, and I really like that. Especially because it does still get the atmosphere right. Oh, and I should mention the credits sequence. It's probably the most comforting credits theme I know. And that's really welcome, after such a journey. It's not extremely emotional or intense or upbeat like credits themes for other games, and that's nice, as that's not what you need at this point. What you need is a theme to lay back to, and relax.

[Galactic]

I'm including my favorite track in each game so if you want to hear what I think is the best from each game, you can check those out.
NES: The Legend Of Zelda.  The main theme in the game is amazing, especially for composing VG music at the time.  (Runner Up: Super Mario Bros. The Overworld theme is catchy to this day)

SNES: Super Mario World.  I love the Bowser's castle theme especially.  (Runner Up: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the past. Dark World rocks.)

GBA: Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi's Island. I couldn't fit the original on the SNES list. Haven't played that many GBA games.  This one has such a catchy joyful soundtrack, especially Athletic.

N64: Super Mario 64. Bob-Omb Battlefield is my favorite from this game. Awesome soundtrack all around. (Runner Up: Ocarina of Time. (Gerudo Valley is my favorite from this game, not the only great one though.))

Gamecube: Double Dash 'Circuit theme' is a classic (Runner Up: LoZ: Wind Waker. Love Dragon Roost Island)

Wii: Super Mario Galaxy/Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Tied) Amazing soundtrack for amazing games.  These 2 are tied for my all time favorite soundtracks. My favorites are Egg Planet, Gusty Garden, and Sky Station.

Wii U: Mario Kart 8. Such an amazing jazzed up track, full of retro remixes and new compositions.  My favorites are the F-Zero themes, Electrodrome,  and the Hyrule circuit tracks. (AMAZING!!) 
(Very Close Runner Up is a tie between DKC: Tropical Freeze and Yoshi's Woolly World. Both are my favorite games and soundtracks in their respective series. Snowmads theme, and the main Woolly World theme are my favorites here.)

Switch: LoZ: Breath of the wild, I loved this soundtrack. It has the main theme as my favorite. Every single one of the many tracks felt like well polished and magnificent compositions.  (Runner Up: Super Mario Odyssey. the Fossil Falls theme is amazing, as is the rest of the game.)

I haven't played to many on other platforms besides PC, so I'll have an 'other/multiple platforms' category.

Other: Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove.  I only found this game last year, and the soundtrack is amazing. I love all of them, but 1,000 Leagues Under, Strike The Earth, and Main Theme are my favorites. I HIGHLY recommend listening to this if you haven't yet.   (Runner Up: Minecraft. Such a peaceful soundtrack. Especially the ones in Alpha Album. Wet Hands is my favorite from this game.)

There you go.   

[607]

Thanks for the new reply.


I listened to a lot of video game music in the past 9 days, as I've been working on my final assignment for my current study.

NDS: PMD: EoS

Someone said that this soundtrack wouldn't mean anything if I hadn't played the game. He wasn't entirely correct: I still enjoyed it. However, I do think it's a lot better if you know the context. The composition was very good, but I felt like I was missing something in order to be able to fully enjoy the music. But even stand-alone, it's a good soundtrack!

Xbox/360/One: Halo, Skyrim, Star Wars Battlefront II (the old one)

Halo: This was unexpectedly chill. From a shooter, I had expected more intense music. This was more ambient, though, and it was great!
Skyrim: It started off very exciting, and there are some other really cool songs too. I love the songs with vocals. Are they actually lyrics, in another language? Most other tracks were more relaxed. There was a good amount of variety in the type of music, and the overall quality of this soundtrack was very good! Which I had expected, to be honest, from a game like this.

Wii: Super Mario Galaxy (the first one)

I featured this myself in my own list. I did however listen through it again now. It's still amazing.

[607]

Ah gee this is hard. Here's some, excluding Smash games

Your post took me a while! That's also because I rediscovered a site my father used to listen to, and now usually listen to that instead of to video game soundtracks.

(I skipped the soundtracks you were uncertain about and the soundtracks I had listened to and reacted to before)

NES: Kirby's Adventure

Very fun! There's nothing more I have to say about it, I think.

Switch: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (surprise!)

It seems like the video I listened to isn't on YouTube anymore, so I'll have to go off memory: an interesting soundtrack. A lot of empty pieces, that sounded nice but didn't have a sense of direction. There were also some more traditional themes, most of which were rather nice. Oddly though, nothing really stood out, except for the trailer theme.

Game Boy: Pokémon Red and Blue

So happy!!! The melodies are very memorable, and the basslines and other voices very nice as well. And the sound as a whole is just so sweet.

Game Boy Advance: Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire

A very cheery soundtrack! I like it.

PlayStation: Chrono Cross

This one's really good! The sound quality is amazing, and because there's singing at the end, I assume it is a real recording, and not of tracker format? Some tracks reminded me of Harvest Moon / Story of Seasons. I'll be listening to this more, as it's also on the site I referred to at the beginning of this post.

PC: Undertale

Interesting! There are quite some different styles in here, and yet also much of the same melodies. I feel like this soundtrack will make a lot more sense in the context of the game.

Wii U: Mario Kart 8

I like it. It didn't impress me, as I have come to expect much from the Mario Kart franchise, but it certainly doesn't disappoint! There are some very nice new themes, and the rearrangements of old songs are well-done as well.

[607]

SNES: Super Mario World

Very good! I knew this soundtrack well already, though. The ending theme is great.

N64: Uhhhhh... Mario Kart 64

Another amazing soundtrack that I already knew. And this one's got an even better ending theme!

GB: Dr. Mario

Very fun and quirky!! I enjoyed that.

GCN: A draw between Wario World

There wasn't a video with this entire soundtrack, so it's hard to find my comments. It's got some fun tracks for sure! But I think that as a whole I didn't enjoy it much.

& Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour

Nice. Not super interesting right away, but I imagine these become better the more you listen to them.

Draw between Kirby's Epic Yarn

That was so much fun!! Lava Landing is amazing. I even printed the sheet music from here (and corrected it by ear ) and have been playing it now and then, it really is so much fun!! I also particularly enjoyed Melody Town. I like how humble it is.

& Wario Land: Shake It! (Tomoya Tomita FTW!!!)

I also really like Tomoya Tomita, but despite there being some fun in it for me, this soundtrack didn't resonate with me well. It sounds good, but I didn't enjoy it most of the time.

3DS: Draw between Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon

That was great! It sounds adventurous and fresh, like Pokémon Mystery Dungeon should. It's also got some really intense and/or epic themes, which are very good, but so grand that I wonder how they fit in the game. I also enjoyed the remakes from the original game, as I am playing that.

& Mario Golf: World Tour

I couldn't find a reliable rip of this one, so I wasn't actually able to listen to it. :/

[607]

Mega Man Zero 4

This was pretty cool! Not completely my style, though, although I'm not quite sure why not. I think it has to do with the high amount of repetition, but that isn't bad per se, as actually I love minimalistic music, which thrives on repetition. I did notice that most of the tracks seemed quite whiny to me. Some I did like, though.

X6

This was quite enjoyable! Very relaxing sounds and melodies, which was unexpected for a Mega Man game. There were also some intense themes, which were also nice, although they didn't occur to be particularly remarkable.

NES: Super Mario Bros. 3

For some reason I have been unable to find a good video of this soundtrack. 

SNES: Donkey Kong Country

This is very good, although knowing Donkey Kong Country 2 it could be better. Favourites that stand out for me are Cave Dweller Concert, Aquatic Ambiance, Fear Factory and Ice Cave Chant. The last is remarkable because it is my only favourite from the trilogy that was written by Eveline Fisscher.

I'm currently listening to Banjo-Tooie.

[607]

N64: Banjo-Tooie, though anything written by Grant Kirkhope is a strong contender.

What a fun soundtrack! I like the many variations on themes, done with different instruments and feels.

GCN: Pikmin

Not a bad soundtrack, but it didn't impress me either.

Wii U: The Wonderful 101, though Super Mario 3D World is another close second.

Very unique! It is very intense, but it's also very good, so I enjoyed it. I also liked the contrast of some of the more relaxed themes and the strange Black themes. Lastly, the ending track was very impressive! Where many games have an energetic ending theme, this one has a solemn and quiet one, to contrast with the bombastic nature of most of the soundtrack. I also like that the main themes throughout the soundtrack returned in it, in this very different-feeling form. This is one I might check out again later!

NDS: Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

Nice! It didn't seem as memorable as Superstar Saga to me, but it's very possible that I'll get to appreciate the tracks more if I've heard them more, especially in context. I love the Deep Castle theme.

3DS: Having played little of the library, I don't have a favorite, though I guess Super Mario 3D Land gets it default due to playtime.

I'll skip that one because you weren't sure about it. Onto the next paragraph in your long post! I haven't listened to any of those 5 soundtracks yet, I think. (I have heard a lot of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, though, I think)

[607]

Genesis: Sonic the Hedgehog 2

I'd heard most of the tracks before, but not the credits. Nice medley! All themes are great, with lots of catchy phrases, and very good basslines. I should probably listen to this one more often! What a classic.

Dreamcast: Sonic Adventure 2

I hadn't heard anything from this before, and it was quite an experience... It is quite varied, with as a common feature that most tracks are not fit for studying. I really hated Throw It All Away, and I didn't enjoy the hip hop tracks either. Maybe mostly because I don't like that style of music. However, I in fact didn't like any of the lyrics in the soundtrack. I enjoyed the instrumental versions a lot better! Nice sounds, quite groovy, and good drums and bass. Event: The Base was a pleasant surprise. Very chill!
It's interesting how different this is from the Sonic soundtrack above.

XBOX 360: Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts

I'm not sure if I even knew of the game before listening, but this is a great soundtrack! Typical Grant Kirkhope. It also reminds me of Chicken Run (which is good!). Exploring The Terrarium is really cool!

PS: Crash Bandicoot 2

I didn't enjoy this one a lot. For some reason it sounds very unnatural to me. Of course most of these soundtracks are programmed and not performed, but it somehow is a lot more jarring to me in this one. I liked some of the rhythms, but found the melodies uncaptivating.

PC: Neverhood

Well, that's quite unique. I love it, though! Really creative uses of vocals, especially. Some tracks were a bit too crazy for my liking, but there were lots that I could really appreciate.

Thanks for your recommendations, MaestroUGC! Took me two years to get through them.

[legoenthusiast]

NES: Kirby's Adventure
SNES: Chrono Trigger
GB: Pokémon Red
GBA: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Red / Blue Rescue Team
N64: This is a toughie, but I'd say LoZ: Majora's Mask or Paper Mario
GameCube: LoZ: Wind Waker
DS / DSi: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Sky
Wii: Xenoblade Chronicles
3DS: Kid Icarus Uprising or Fire Emblem Awakening
Wii U: Mario Kart 8
Switch: So far Paper Mario Origami King and XC2
PS4: Persona 5

[607]

• N64: Mario Kart 64 (This game has dang memorable music. About the only tracks' themes I've never hummed are Bowser's Castle, Banshee Boardwalk, and DK's Jungle Parkway. I've even hummed the award ceremony theme before! Diddy Kong Racing isn't far behind, though, and I like F-Zero X's OST a lot.)

This is one I've listened to before, and it's one of my favourites too! I don't think I checked out the other two you mentioned.

• GCN: Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (It's possible that this OST is even better than Mario Kart 64's. More consonant tunes, still as lively as ever, and not-completely standard chord progressions and senses of key!)

I am a big fan of the music of the Mario Kart series in general, but Double Dash!! is one of the entries I appreciate less. It's certainly a good soundtrack, it just doesn't speak to me as much.

• PC: The Incredible Machine (OK, I may be cheating by naming a series instead of a single game, but the sheer number of different genres covered by the first few games' OSTs is incredible. Want anything from ragtime, Latin, classical, progressive rock, techno, and New Age to bluegrass? You've got it. The quality of each piece stays surprisingly even throughout, IMO, and it's intriguing to hear the differences in takes between the MIDI-generated versions and the CD versions of each song.)

I evaded your cheat by only listening to the soundtrack from the first game. I like it! Nice variety indeed, and they're all good, indeed.

• PS3: Hard Corps: Uprising (After learning of this game's soundtrack from a semi-random VGM website, I listened to the entire OST and was hooked. This has great, elaborate rock/metal music, complete with solos, and it's hard to go wrong with any of the songs if you're into that kind of stuff, IMO.)

I'm not too much into metal, but wow, this was very impressive! I loved the variety between the different tracks. If I'm looking for some 'rough' music in the future, I hope I'll remember this soundtrack!