Music Review: The Greatest Video Game Music (London Philharmonic Orchestra)

Released on the 7 of November, 2011, the London Philharmonic Orchestra tackles some of gaming’s greatest themes from the iconic Super Mario Bros. theme, to the more obscure Angry Birds theme in this amazing album, The Greatest Video Game Music.

Listening to the album is one of the greatest musical  collections that I have had the pleasure of experienced in recent years.  Along with magnificent arrangement of every gamers favourite tunes, the songs themselves bring back memories of the games they originate from.  Whenever the Zelda Suite came on, images of the lush greenery of Hyrule Field sprung to the forefront of my mind, bringing back memories of the time Link first left the forest and embarked on his amazing journey with everyone playing along, all those years ago.

Some of the standout tracks on the album include the hauntingly beautiful theme from Bioshock (The Ocean On His Shoulders), and the dramatic, heart-pounding action theme from Metal Gear Solid: Sons Of Liberty.  Although I have never played either of these games enough to have any fond memories (albeit the first time you are exposed to the enormous underwater city of Rapture) these songs bring together the experiences of the games into one, tight package, able to be enjoyed at a moments notice.  While not as good as actually having the game in your pocket, this is definitely a worthy substitute.

This album serves as a soundtrack to many gamers lives, with classic, retro songs from a simpler time cropping up in between the newer, more dramatic pieces from the past 4 or 5 years.  A prime example of this is the appearance of both the famous Tetris theme song (The Russian folk song of Korobeiniki) and the much more recent Splinter Cell: Conviction theme.  There is a definite sampling here for all gamers, old or young, and surely everyone will find a song that fits their tastes, and brings back memories of a dramatic cut-scene, or a tormenting boss battle.  This album is an amazing collection of some of gamings greatest melodies, and a worthy addition to your own collection   This album is an amazing collection of some of gamings greatest melodies, and a worthy addition to your own collection and I heartily recommend this album to any and all fans of either classical music, or video game music in general.

Track Listing:

1. Advent Rising: Muse
2. Legend Of Zelda: Suite
3. Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2: Theme
4. Angry Birds: Main Theme
5. Final Fantasy VIII: Liberi Fatali
6. Super Mario Bros.: Theme
7. Unchartered – Drake’s Fortune: Nate’s Theme
8. Grand Theft Auto 4: Soviet Connection
9. World Of Warcraft: Seasons Of War
10. Metal Gear Solid: Sons Of Liberty Theme
11. Tetris Theme:  Korobeiniki
12. Battlefield 2: Theme
13. Elder Scrolls: Oblivion
14. Call Of Duty 4 – Modern Warfare: Main Menu Theme
15. Mass Effect: Suicide Mission
16. Splinter Cell: Conviction
17. Final Fantasy: Main Theme
18. Bioshock: The Ocean On His Shoulders
19. Halo 3: One Final Effort
20. Fallout 3: Theme
21. Super Mario Galaxy: Gusty Garden Galaxy
22. (Bonus Track On Amazon) – Dead Space: Welcome Aboard The U.S.G Ishimura
23. (Bonus Track On iTunes) – Final Fantasy XIII: Hanging Edge

The Greatest Video Game Music is available to purchase from Amazon here, or from iTunes here