Does anyone honestly think there’s a better soundtrack this year than Streets of Rage 4?

[Durden]

Streets of Rage 4 has not only the best soundtrack of the year, but one of the greatest video game soundtracks I've ever witnessed. In my opinion this will go down with the likes of JSFR, Ace Attorney, and well...SoR2. At first I wasn't so sure, but at this point I have no issue whatsoever saying this soundtrack is better than the aready outstanding SoR2.

Out of the gate it's fantastic and above average, but just like the game itself, it truly gets better the more you experience it. It's an OST that's meant to be experienced in-game and is built for that, but is also so fucking good you can just bump it in your car.

The entire soundtrack is truly godlike. I mean that. There's not a single stinker in the bunch. And they all have such weight and layers that will make itself known in repeat listens. Here are just few highlights, even though the entire soundtrack is a highlight.







This is my GOTY period, but I know that's a much more complicated discussion so let's just keep it at the soundtrack. I just don't see anything beating it this year. Really, I'm not sure if I see anything beating it within the last 5 years. The only thing I can think that comes close is Splatoon 2. There is so, so much purpose, passion, originality, and raw talent behind this shit.

 

[Nickgia]

Persona 5 Royal might be cheating, but all the new songs are amazing.

 

[Era Uma Vez]

I haven't played the game, but listened to it on youtube, and Ghost of Tsushima is a serious contender.

 

[Pascal]

I love SoR4, and thought it had an excellent soundtrack. But it's gonna be pretty hard to top FFVII Remake. It had an unbelievable volume of amazing songs, especially when consider those jukebox remixes you could buy.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

I do not

An element of the OST for SoR4 is lost when listening to it on YouTube. The way songs transitions align with new enemy types appearing or transitions from one area to the next is sublime.

It doesn't just sound incredible, but it is also used incredibly well.

 

[KodiakGTS]

Ori Will of the Wisps is easily the best for me. SoR4 was bangin though.

 

[falconhoof17]

FF7R soundtrack is hard to top for me

 

[Naga]

I think most people agree on FF7R having the best OST of the year so far tbh. I also preferred Nioh 2 and Jets'n'Guns 2's OSTs to Streets of Rage.

Honestly, while I liked SoR4's OST, I feel it'd have been better if Koshiro led it.

 

[Deleted member 1839]

It's so good but FFVIIR does it a bit more for me.

 

[bing]

Life is Strange 2 Ep 5 came out in December, but I'll never stop praising its incredible melancholic soundtrack so here's a quote of mine from another thread:

Jonathan Morali is a mastermind. The Life is Strange games (2 especially) have the greatest scores I've ever heard.

Click to shrink...

 

[purseowner]

Yes, I do.




Edit: Reading your impassioned OP proper got me to listen to the tracks you posted, a few of which I hadn't heard yet. It's damn good. Not really into brawlers myself, but the music puts it on my radar. Your thread title kind of encourages people to just post a soundtrack they liked more without really engaging with your (really great) OP properly, and I'll admit to being guilty of that initially. And I'll agree with your Splatoon 2 pick for how it achieves a symbiosis with the gameplay rhythm.

 

[blanton]

Doom Eternal came out this year, so no.

 

[Lord Azrael]

Paper Mario: The Origami King's soundtrack is banging

 

[MinerArcaniner]

Still have several songs on heavy rotation on my phone, so no.

 

[Khanimus]

I was literally listening to the soundtrack today as I was cleaning the kitchen.

 

[BadWolf]

SOR4 is great and all but FF7R is king.

 

[SofNascimento]

It's fantastic.

 

[Kaguya]

It was great, but yea, FF7R's was better.

 

[RecRoulette]

Thanks for the reminder that I still need to play SoR4. Since we're pointing out good soundtracks from this year, Necrobarista's soundtrack is pretty awesome.

 

[evilalien]

FF7R is better IMO.

 

[Winnie]

Ori and the Will of the Wisps takes the crown for me.

 

[DiipuSurotu]

Final Fantasy VII Remake

 

[EggmaniMN]

There's a new Yakuza game this year, FF7R exists, P5R could count, Trials of Mana exists, Origami King is one of Nintendo's best soundtracks maybe ever? So I mean it's good but I don't think it'll be best of the year. 13 Sentinels is this year so like, yeah it's absolutely not the best soundtrack of the year because that probably is.

 

[Deleted member 16876]

It's hard to disagree.

The soundtracks was really suprising to me. I thought Koshiro not making the soundtrack was a recipe to disaster. Then I got the game and I felt the opposite. Infact Koshiro's wasn't the best ones, Olivier's were.

Can't wait for SOR5 to come out so we get even more amazing music.

 

[Greent4]

ori and the will of wisps
risk of rain 2
would like to have a word

 

[Hella]

I think SoR4's bigger triumph is how well it its excellent soundtrack is woven into the game. The music is intimately timed to each level, building in intensity as you go through. It elevates what is already a great experience and I can't imagine the game without it.

So far it and Final Fantasy VII: Remake are my standouts. I'd give the latter the edge personally, just due to how much I like the songs, but SoR4 is still way up there--and deserves some recognition for how good it is.

 

[leder]

I'm honestly not just trying to be contrarian, but the streets of rage 4 soundtrack is pretty bad. There are a few good songs from the guest composers, but all of the Olivier tunes fall completely flat for me. They're almost modern parodies of 90s dance music, with an awful dubstep twist. Especially when you put it up next to the soundtracks of SoR 1-3, it looks even worse.

 

[Pascal]

One thing I really like about SoR4's soundtrack is how the music builds in a really dynamic way as you are going through a stage. Something cool will happen or a tough enemy will appear and the music always seems to be right there to back those moments up in the perfect way.

 

[Deleted member 10795]

Doom Eternal came out this year, so no.

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I honestly can't believe I had to scroll to the 12th post to see these exact words.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

One thing I really like about SoR4's soundtrack is how the music builds in a really dynamic way as you are going through a stage. Something cool will happen or a tough enemy will appear and the music always seems to be right there to back those moments up in the perfect way.

Click to shrink...

Exactly. Going off my previous post: The uploads from Deriviere don't have all the parts of the songs you hear in the actual game

just listen to how the art gallery stage's song progresses throughout



you can hear the click of grenade pins being pulled when the grenadier women appear

 

[BennyWhatever]

Ori 2's is the best but SoR4 is very very good

 

[Deleted member 16876]

I do not

An element of the OST for SoR4 is lost when listening to it on YouTube. The way songs transitions align with new enemy types appearing or transitions from one area to the next is sublime.

It doesn't just sound incredible, but it is also used incredibly well.

Click to shrink...

I think SoR4's bigger triumph is how well it its excellent soundtrack is woven into the game. The music is intimately timed to each level, building in intensity as you go through. It elevates what is already a great experience and I can't imagine the game without it.

So far it and Final Fantasy VII: Remake are my standouts. I'd give the latter the edge personally, just due to how much I like the songs, but SoR4 is still way up there--and deserves some recognition for how good it is.

Click to shrink...

One thing I really like about SoR4's soundtrack is how the music builds in a really dynamic way as you are going through a stage. Something cool will happen or a tough enemy will appear and the music always seems to be right there to back those moments up in the perfect way.

Click to shrink...

Agreed.

The Y tower level in particular is a great example. That lead up to the elrvator and while on it is such perfection.

 

[Chumunga64]

while I loved the FF7 remake's OST I still can't count it here since it was basically a ton of (fucking amazing) remixed while Streets of Rage 4 had some new stuff

 

[manustany]

Fantastic soundtrack indeed but personally I think that the FFVIIR OST is the best released so far. Very curious to hear the 'Moose Life' soundtrack as well.

 

[Jimnymebob]

I'd have to give it more of a listen both inside and outside of the game, but I'm not really a big fan of it. There are some great tracks sprinkled throughout, but overall there isn't really much that stands out.
Kawashima's stuff is probably the highlight for me.

 

[JasoNsider]

No disrespect but FFVIIR is pretty much god tier! Haha. But let's not fight - they're both so gooood.

 

[QisTopTier]

FF14 exist in every year with ost updates; also if any falcom game came out this year then my pick is that or ff14 by default :P

Spoiler: big 5.2 spoiler

SoR4 ost kicks massive ass though.

 

[pswii60]

SOR4, Ori Wisps and Doom Eternal are my top 3 of the year so far. All for very different reasons so they are of equal ranking.

Only issue with the SoR4 soundtrack is the tracks clearly haven't been professionally mastered, so the audio quality is lacking. But the music itself is top tier.

Edit: and yes I've played FFVIIR which obviously has a fantastic soundtrack. But these three are on another level for my tastes.

 

[Iori Loco]

Since I haven't bought many games this year my frame of reference is kind of limited, though I've been listening to Granblue Fantasy Versus and it has some pretty cool arrangements of the songs from the mobile game and the character's vocal songs.

 

[Xtortion]

Nothing beats FF7R this year. It's an absurd effort.

 

[Gareth]

SoR4 is my favourite of the games I've played this year so far, but I have to play Ori still...

 

[breakdancing duck]

SOR4 is great and all but FF7R is king.

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FF7R is my vote, but OP was right on with the Streets of Rage soundtrack being awesome. I haven't played it, but those YouTube clips sold me.

 

[phant0m]

Doom Eternal
Paper Mario
Ghost of Tsushima

 

[Greywaren]

Having both Paper Mario: The Origami King and Doom Eternal this year, it's honestly hard to tell which one is the best.

 

[bwahhhhh]

I know there are many remixes in there, but the sheer volume and quality of songs in FFVIIR is absolutely ridiculous. They could have easily gotten away with half as many and it would still be a legendary score

 

[QisTopTier]

I know there are many remixes in there, but the sheer volume and quality of songs in FFVIIR is absolutely ridiculous. They could have easily gotten away with half as many and it would still be a legendary score

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Remixes don't count against it imo. If it's the ost you liked the most and those arrangements came from this year it's fair game.

 

[bwahhhhh]

Remixes don't count against it imo. If it's the ost you liked the most and those arrangements came from this year it's fair game.

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I don't count it against it, just that I do think they help with the quantity. It was more a comment on how they could have simply rested on their laurels with just (amazing) remixes, but added an entire game's worth of completely new material, too

 

[tripleg]

FF7R soundtrack is hard to top for me

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I assume this counts, and if it does, I'm in hard agreement.

 

[Sawyer]

Both FF7R and P5R feel like cheating.
Tsushima is strong tho.
TLOU2 has some great ones.
Yakuza 7 is coming too.

 

[Dremorak]

Animal Crossing is great.
If Xenoblade counted (I guess it probably doesn't) then it would be that hands down.