The Final Fantasy VII soundtrack is probably my favourite too, as well as the updated version done for the Advent Children movie - that was nothing short of awesome.
Anything Michael Land did was phenomenal. The Monkey Island theme will forever remain a classic. I think it was the soundtrack to Frontline that I bought, and I was blown away. It's like listening to Jerry Goldsmith blended with John Barry and Howard Shore.
I wouldn't call it my favorite, but the only reason I keep going back to the original Command and Conquer game is because the music is so very... different. It's honestly hilarious, but it's fun to play with that going in the background.
Nearly all of the tracks in Unreal Tournament. Fire Breathe Title Main Menu Foregone Destruction Go Down Razorback Mechanism Eight Underworld 2 Botpack #9 Botmca #10 Three Wheels Turning Cannonade Neither Animal Mission Landing Colossus Organic Lock Run The Course Room Of Champions Skyward Fire Enigma
The theme to Zak McKracken and the Alien Mind Benders Some guy playing drums to the theme About a year and a half ago I found the theme also done with electric guitars. I love that song.
Oh gosh, yes. I miss that game. However, no thread about game music would be complete without a mention of The Neverhood. Preferably a few mentions. I'm pretty fond of some of the older Squeenix stuff, especially Chrono Cross. And though I have my complaints about Jade Empire, I really like some of the music. Lots of the stuff in Mass Effect is pretty good too, largely I think because they're seriously channeling 80's scifi movies with it. There's also some, IMO, phenomenal stuff in Bioshock. It's the strings. I'm a sucker for strings.
Here's one I just remembered... the awesome theme to Secret of Monkey Island. In a similar vein, the Space Quest series had some awesome music, too. My favourites being the theme to Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon.
I can't believe we got this far and one one has mention the "Magus Theme" from Chrono Trigger yet. Though, I would a agree with others that, overall, Chrono Cross was better. However, I would say Mitsuda's best work was with Xenogears. There are MIDIs everywhere, but I found this awesome remix of "Omen". Though ultimately, Miki Higashino owns everyone with "Retrospection & Reminiscence." From Suikoden II. I wish I could find something that has both of them together as one piece like they're supposed to be, (I have a great orchestral version on a CD.) but I couldn't find anything--not even a MIDI. It definitely wins the award for most people who try to play it on Youtube. There's like a gazillion of them. Though, they're actually playing the Retrospection part and label it Reminiscence. Though THIS CHICK does the best. (And she's kinda hot.) And while I love Mega Man music as much as anyone else here, I generally prefer the X music over the original. Especially when you have stuff like THIS. And How can we talk about Castlevania music with mentioning "Heart of Fire" and "Bloody Tears"?
Another vote for the Monkey island series. Freespace 2 has great music...haven't played Freespace 1 for ages so but I think it also had a good soundtrack. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey has a great music. But the most classic is tetris, it is instantly recognisable.
I can't believe I forgot The Secret of Mana for SNES. Besides being one of the greatest video games ever it has some music that really tugs at your heart strings.
Man, ten years and almost ten replays later, that opening credits sequence still gives me goosebumps. Suikoden III isn't quite as awesome as II, but Himekami's "Exceeding Love" along with the intro movie combine for the best opening in the series. The Orrizonte remixes which backed the Suikogaiden intros (first, second) come pretty close, though. It's a shame that the rest of Suikoden III and IV were so bland musically. I and II had a worldly diversity to its sound which nothing else in the genre has really matched; the theme which plays in Kuskus or when you meet Eilie and Rina for the first time are perfect examples of totally underutilized instruments and arrangements in video game music. Thankfully, a little of that flair was recaptured by Norikazu Miura in Suikoden V, but we're still a ways away from Higashino at her best. I wonder if she's still at Konami?
^ She works for SE now, or at least did the last time I checked up on her--which I do from time to time. Have you seen what she looks like? Also, I never though SIII&IV's music was so bad. The major boss battle music in SIII is about as epic as it gets, and I've always found coba's SIV intro to be catchy.
Yeah, there's a picture or two up on her last.fm profile. Musically gifted and quite stunning; my kind of woman. The accordion in the Suikoden IV introduction bothers me for whatever reason. However, IV did have some standout tracks - both duel themes come to mind immediately - which lent themselves extremely well to remixing later on. In retrospect, those remixes might've been the high point of Suikoden Tactics.
FF7 and FF8 especially Liberi Fatali, Silent hill Music is excellent, "theme of laura" and "promise" from SH2 are amazing. Also love the vocal songs by Mary Elizabeth McGlynn also "Still alive" (can't see it mentioned)