5 of the Best Uses of Music in Video Games

The Last of Us is a global phenomenon that has already had a live-action series rendition of itself on the HBO Max streaming platform. Within the game, music has always been an important aspect, with Joel teaching Ellie to play the guitar, and how they use music to escape from the dystopian world they are traversing. Ellie also uses music as a way to feel connected to Joel after his death and to express her grief of losing him, and the choices she makes further into the story. Music is an essential way in which the story is told and we see that every time Ellie picks up her guitar. 

What Remains of Edith Finch

What Remains of Edith Finch is a relatively shorter game than the others on this list. However, the use of music is just as strong, within the three hours you spend uncovering the secrets of this game. Music is woven into the storytelling, bringing about shocking truths, evoking mystery and suspense, and showcasing the unfortunate reality the Finches face as a family. There is no deep story exposition, with the developers of the game intentionally leaving some details out for pure mystery factor, and that’s ok! This game did not need that. Instead, music and words built a fictional world around the Finch family, leaving us to consider what’s really important while we live in this world. 

Genshin Impact

In 2020, Genshin Impact took the world by storm, bringing gacha gaming to the forefront of popular gaming in the modern world. Its explosive popularity also contributed to their parent company, Hoyoverse (formerly Mihoyo), to spend more on enhancing the quality of this particular game, especially its original soundtrack. A core concept of Genshin Impact is the different nations you, as the main character visit, in which there are 7 in total. Each nation has its own culture, which is derived from actual world cultures. Hoyoverse has spent the time to carefully cultivate music for each of these fictional nations, which demonstrates grandness and excitement for players to traverse them. 

Kingdom Hearts

There are no need for introductions for this game. Kingdom Hearts is beloved by so many fans, and not just the game itself, but the music that accompanies it. Apart from the most well-known song in the series Simple and Clean by Hikaru Utada, Square Enix and Disney came together to produce emotional and thematic music that touched audiences through nostalgia, because we all remember loving Disney at one point, and a yearning to see a happy ending for all characters involved, especially for Sora, Kairi, and Riku. Kingdom Hearts remains as one of the best games of this century, with the music as part of the reason why we love it so much.