Best Games Soundtracks of 2018

From orchestral melodies that softly lead you through each world to 8-bit anthems punctuating every defeated enemy, video games soundtracks have enchanted and excited us since Tetris’ Russian inspired theme graced our screen in the 70’s. For the amount of time we spend playing the same game you would expect that listening to the same hour or two of music would get tiresome but a good soundtrack will never get old and will fit the atmosphere for the given moment of the game.

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  1. Far Cry 5

  Far Cry 5 came back again this year, bringing with it the pseudo-religious doomsday cult Eden’s Gate headed by a psychopathic leader and his three “children”. Away from the usual exotic landscape of the Alps or jungle, the player is dropped in rural America as they kill of gangs of deranged believers and attempt to stop the cult and their leader.

  Dan Romer was tasked with creating the new sound for the game and has gone above and beyond to make you feel immersed in the fictional America they have built. Angelic choirs singing twisted hymns with lyrics of the cults grim ideology give the feeling that the cult is everywhere and never lets you think you are safe.

  The three areas are controlled by one of Joseph’s children and with it, each area warps the themes of the music in the style that suits the antagonist. Jacob the soldier’s droning, industrial sound follows you through the Whitetail Mountains. Ambient post-rock music is given to the bliss addled, flower child Faith in Herbane river. With a glam rock motif for the youngest John.

  Across all the areas the choir chanting the hymns follows you and leaves you with a deep sense of unease.

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  2. God of War

  With Kratos and the God of War franchise coming back as something familiar but new, the soundtrack needed to revamped and this fell to Walking Dead and Battlestar Galactica composer Bear McCreary to invent.

  McCreary was a big fan of the original games and had thoughts of the shrieking bass and menacing choirs but as he found out the plot, he realised that this game would need something different.

  From the first few seconds of the game we are greeted by the familiar drumming and three-tone choir but with it a melancholic undertone to the sound. The powerful and complex tones reflect the same aspects in Kratos as you battle and slaughter your way through the Norse pantheon. With more emotional and soft pieces taking light in the cinematics and boat rides with Atreus to give a sadder sounding tone. The soundtrack is incredible in its range and attention to detail as each piece feels tailor-made for every second.

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  3. Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom

  Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is a JRPG developed by Level 5 which stunned audiences earlier this year with its beautiful art style and inventive combat system. Accompanying the engaging and exciting story is an amazing orchestral soundtrack composed by Joe Hisaishi and recorded by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.

  If the music reminds you of a Studio Ghibli movie then it will be unsurprising to find out that Hisaishi was also the musical mind behind some great movies such as Laputa: Castle in the Sky and Princess Mononoke. He brings all of the gentle playfulness from his work in the Anime industry into a setting that mirrors it perfectly.

  Ni No Kuni II was nominated for Best Soundtrack by numerous websites including, winning Cheat Codes Central’s 2018 Best sound. The games main theme Kokoro no Kakera also won the award for Original/Adapted Song at the13th National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers Awards