In today’s episode of The Punished Podcast, we get into the magic of video game music. Listen as we discuss our favorite video game tunes, what makes them and their composers so iconic, when to choose silence, and much more. Plus, we reveal our very own podcast theme song!
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Timestamps
- 0:00 – Intros, Including Our New Theme Song by Jason Hulse!
- 3:49 – How the Best Video Game Soundtracks Shape Our Experiences
- 20:26 – Memorable Video Game Music Moments
- 29:47 – Discussing the People Behind the Music: The Best Composers
- 45:30 – Controversy Around Grammy Nominations for Video Game Music and the Game Awards
- 54:00 – Sparse Soundtracks vs. Sound Design and Silence
- 1:01:55 – Diegetic Music in Video Games
- 1:02:55 – Standout Individual Tracks
- 1:12:46 – Outro: What’s on the Backlog?
The Best Video Game Soundtracks (As Discussed)
In order mentioned:
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (2024), Composer: Masashi Hamauzu
- Sayonara Wild Hearts (2019), Composers: Daniel Olsén and Jonathan Eng
- Furi (2016), Composers: Carpenter Brut, Danger, The Toxic Avenger, Lorn, Scattle, Waveshaper, and Kn1ght
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015), Composers: Marcin Przybyłowicz and Mikołaj Stroiński with the folk band Percival
- Final Fantasy VII (1997), Composer: Nobuo Uematsu
- Chrono Trigger (1995), Composer: Yasunori Mitsuda
- Mass Effect 2 (2010), Composer: Jack Wall
- Final Fantasy V (1992), Composer: Nobuo Uematsu
- Florence (2018), Composer: Kevin Penkin
- Kingdom Hearts (2002), Composer: Yoko Shimomura
- NieR:Automata (2017), Composer: Keiichi Okabe
- Persona 5 (2016), Composer: Shoji Meguro
- Darren Korb for Supergiant’s Games: Hades (2020), Transistor (2014), and Bastion (2011)
- Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (2018), Composers: The Flight (Joe Henson and Alexis Smith)
- Journey (2012), Composer: Austin Wintory
- Celeste (2018), Composer: Lena Raine
- Ace Attorney Original Trilogy (2001 – 2004), Composer: Masakazu Sugimori, and The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, Composer: Yasumasa Kitagawa
- Murder by Numbers (2020), Composer: Masakazu Sugimori
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (2025), Composer: Lorien Testard
- Pacific Drive (2024), Composer: Wilbert Roget II
- Breath of the Wild (2017), Composers: Manaka Kataoka, Yasuaki Iwata, Soshi Abe, Hajime Wakai
- The World Ends With You (2007), Composer: Takeharu Ishimoto
- Dispatch (2025), particularly the licensed feature of “Radio” by Bershy who talks here about how the game changed her career
- Zoo Tycoon (2001), Composer: Steven Serafino
- Halo 4 (2012), Composer: Neil Davidge
- And many, many more discussed in the episode itself!
Excerpts
- David: “Just as we all have our favorite video games, we also admire the songs and soundtracks that accompany gaming’s greatest journeys. From setting off to save a foreign land to chaining an epic combo in a roguelike, there’s no shortage of great listening for those who take time to savor it…. Gaming composers can’t afford to make bad music. If the sound is monotonous or grating, it devalues the gameplay. If the sound is forgettable, the game is likely missing out on an important differentiator.”
- Amanda: “The music of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt does such a really great job of setting that fantasy, medieval, epic setting. You know the pub song, the one that you’re playing the card game Gwent while you’re having a beer? It just makes me excited. Like I’m here, I’m on this adventure, I’m going to go hunt werewolves with my sword.”
Gary: “That speaks to what we’re all focusing on with these soundtracks and these compositions. This music helps capture the player’s attention attention without getting in the way of what else is there. Yes, Furi is a game that is built around movement and energy so the music needs to match that. Sayonara Wild Hearts is a rhythm game, so you need to focus on the music, of course but it’s also about the visuals and splendor of what’s going on. With The Witcher 3, you want music that can both fade into the background and be really present in the smaller moments. Bringing up Gwent is a great example — when you’re just wandering around the fields in The Witcher 3, you don’t want loud blaring horns. But if you’re sitting down and playing cards, you need something else to occupy that space.” - Kei: “One of the things with video game soundtracks that’s interesting… Let’s say you’re producing somewhere between 30-60 tracks. It’s not that hard [relatively] to make one banger in 30 songs. For most games, sure, there’s one song that I can remember the melody or I can recall hearing it in a moment that was meaningful in the game. It’s much harder to make every track a banger. I think some of the games we’ve mentioned, like Sayonara Wild Hearts, has a perfect soundtrack, but that’s 20 tracks — it’s easier to make that tight. Whereas a JRPG where you’re making over 100 tracks [like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth], it’s much harder.”
- Amanda: “I already talked about Yoko Shimomura’s great work on the Kingdom Hearts soundtrack, but also the track ‘Simple and Clean’ with the Japanese pop-star Hikaru Utada who collaborated with the composition team. I was obsessed with that song.”
Kei: “Great song. I listen to it all the time. Something to note — the English version, weirdly, doesn’t apply to anyone in Kingdom Hearts. That version is about a couple who is having a fight and how the boyfriend doesn’t want to meet her father. But that doesn’t apply to anyone in the game. It’s a banger. But it doesn’t make any sense.”
Amanda: “Yes! There’s so much romantic tension, but it’s not relevant to their setting. Like the opening animation is Riku standing dramatically in the ocean holding out his hand to Sora.”
Kei: “Exactly. The Japanese lyrics are a much better fit for the game.” - David: “Looking at what got nominated for the 2026 Grammys, which looks at the 2025 year of games… Of the five games nominated, only one of those actually came out in 2025, and two nominations were DLC… A lot of the hubbub in the gaming community was that two pieces of DLCs got nominated over something like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. What do you make of the disconnect between this [relatively new prize, the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive] Grammys and the public and critical zeitgeist around games?”
Our Favorite Video Game Composers and Musicians
We discussed the following talented people in today’s episode! They’re listed below in alphabetical order:
Amos Roddy, Austin Wintory, Borislav Slavov, Christopher Larkin, Chuck Ragan, ConcernedApe, Daniel Olsén and Jonathan Eng, Darren Korb, David Wise, Disasterpeace, Gareth Coker, Grant Kirkhope, Hideki Naganuma, Jack Wall, Jeremy Soule, Jesper Kyd, Keiichi Okabe, Kevin Penkin, Koji Kondo, Lena Raine Lorien Testard, Manaka Kataoka, Marcin Przybyłowicz and Mikołaj Stroiński, Masakazu Sugimori, Masashi Hamauzu, Masayoshi Soken, Mick Gordon, Neil Davidge, Nobuo Uematsu, Noriyuki Iwadare, Sarah Schachner, Shoji Meguro, Steven Serafino, Takahiro Ishimioto, The Flight, Wilbert Roget II, Winifred Phillips, Yasumasa Kitagawa, Yasunori Mitsuda, Yoko Shimomura
Further Reading (and Listening):
Read even more in our Friday Fortissimo series. Thanks for reading and/or listening!
A video game outlet that blends quality words with inclusive voices. For business inquiries and review requests, reach us at press [at] punishedbacklog [dot] com.
David is the founder of The Punished Backlog. He has a problem finishing games he starts.
Just beat: Hollow Knight: Silksong.
Working on: Yakuza 0, Iconoclasts, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond.
Can't wait for: Demon Tides.
Follow David on Twitter at @David_Silbert to keep up to date with all things The Punished Backlog.
Amanda Tien (she/her or they) loves video games where she can pet dogs, solve mysteries, punch bad guys, play as a cool lady, and/or have a good cry. She started writing with The Punished Backlog in 2020 and became an Editor in 2022. Amanda also does a lot of the site's graphic designs and podcast editing. Amanda's work has been published in Unwinnable Monthly, Poets.org, Salt Hill Journal, Aster(ix) Journal, and more. She holds an MFA in Fiction from the University of Pittsburgh. Learn more about her writing, visual art, graphic design, and marketing work at www.amandatien.com.
Gary is a jack-of-all-trades video game enthusiast based in Boston, MA. A semi-professional fighting game player, even less professional Apex Legends player, and even less professional adult, he spends most of his time poking at strange indie gems and reading about the need for more diverse voices in gaming criticism. He invites anyone to recommend anything he's missed in the gaming world via Twitter or BlueSky, where he can found under the username @grtnpwrfl. When he isn't spending his time playing games, Gary is an avid New England Patriots fan and frequent hiker.
Huge video game, comic book, and anime fan. Spends way too much time watching things he doesn’t like. Hates Zack Snyder. Mains Falco.
