I think you will agree with me that music has always been one of the most important aspects in video games, and that there are issues that have been a place in history on its own merits. A part of these video game songs have a strong inspirational and motivating component that makes them great songs to enjoy in our day to day, and they are classics for which it seems that time has not passed, since they sound as good as the first day.
In my case, there are songs from videogames that have accompanied me practically throughout my life, and I use many of them daily to liven up those long days of work in front of the PC. Others I have reserved for specific moments, and for many years I have a selection of topics that go very well for sportsand that I try to expand whenever I can by listening to new video game soundtracks.
Playing sports has always been an important part of my life, although I must admit that over time it stopped being a passion and became more of a necessity. It is very easy to understand, when you spend many hours sitting in front of a screen, your body and health end up suffering. Age also takes its toll, and in the end moving is essential to maintain a good state of health and to age in the best possible way.
It is a fact that music can affect our mood, and in my case it has always played an important motivational and inspirational role in many moments of my life. It also helps me enjoy sport on another level, and has allowed me to face complicated routines and efforts in a much more enjoyable way. I can say that I can’t conceive of life without music, and that videogames are another of my great passionsand today I want to share with you a very special and very personal article, where I am going to list ten of my favorite video game songs for sports.
I hope you like this list and that encourage you to start moving to lead a healthier life. I also encourage you to leave your own recommendations in the comments. Without further ado, let’s go with the selection of songs.
1.-Guile’s Theme from Street Fighter 2
The truth is that it is a song that needs no introduction, in fact even the original still sounds great. Of all the versions that I have heard, the one that I liked the most is the one that I leave you with in the attached video, because it has a touch of intensity that fits perfectly with the essence of the song and makes it not to be diluted, but rather quite the opposite. A jewel that should not be missing in your collection.
2.-Ninja Gaiden level 4-2 theme
Our younger readers may not be familiar with this hit, but it’s one of the best songs I’ve ever heard in an ’80s video game. He always manages to give me goosebumps, and when he does he gives me that boost I need to keep running or to do a few more reps. The version that I leave you with is, in my opinion, one of the best ever made because it manages to maintain that unique rhythm of the original but introduces new elements at the same time that marry perfectly and that make it even more epic.
3.-Theme of the Japan team from The King of Fighters 95
The King of Fighters saga can boast of having some of the best video game songs in all of history. I could list many songs that I love and listen to frequently, but to leave room for other songs I decided to choose just one, the song Esaka from the Japan team in The King of Fighters 95. Pure motivation with a rhythm that has the necessary changes to transmit different sensations and boost us at different times of our training.
4.-Theme of Captain America in Marvel vs. Capcom
I’m not a fan of Captain America, but I do remember how shocked I was by this theme when I first heard him playing against the CPU in Marvel vs Capcom on a PS1. The metal version that I leave you below these lines is the best I’ve found so far, and it has it all, since it not only improves and enhances the base of the original theme, but also introduces a guitar solo that fits wonderfully and that it looks so good that it gives the impression that it has always been there.
5.- Stygia Theme of Metal: Hellsinger
Metal: Hellsinger is a video game of this generation that drinks directly from the essence of DOOM Eternal, but does not reach its technical level and is guilty of having an overly repetitive approach. All in all, its soundtrack is a candy for metal lovers, and the Stygia theme is, in my opinion, the best of all the ones it includes. The voice of Alissa White-GluzArch Enemy’s vocalist, sounds perfect with that contrast he generates with his guttural tones.
6.-Double Dragon Theme
Double Dragon was a game that marked me a lot when I was a child, and it is undoubtedly a benchmark of what the eighties were both in the video game industry and in part of the culture of that time, and also of the cinema. My favorite theme of this game is the metal version of the first level of the Nintendo NES game which, as you can hear in the attached video, has been adapted with incredible mastery. All the essence of the eighties concentrated in just over two minutes of pure motivation, and with one of the best brought solos I’ve ever seen.
7.-Whirlwind Theme from Shinobi III
Shinobi III is one of the best Mega Drive games, and its soundtrack is a true work of art. There are many themes that have been adapted and that they have a more cane version, but for sports Whirlwind is my favorite, because it has a fast pace and a development that is really capable of picking you up when you need it. The version that I leave you with is my favourite, for its fidelity and for that epic closure it has.
8.-Killer Instinct Theme
As a fighting game, it never really got me hooked, although I admit that it was a prodigy for its time, and that its soundtrack has really good songs. Again, I could choose more than one, but in order not to repeat and accommodate others, I leave you the one that is my favourite, especially for those routine beginnings in which it is good to start a long song with a more relaxed rhythm. Ideal to start running for example, since later we can listen to other faster and more intense songs that encourage us when fatigue begins to take its toll.
9.-Mass Effect 3 Hold The Line Theme
Mass Effect also has a first-rate soundtrack, but the version of Hold The Line scored by SebDoom is spectacular, and deserves to be recognized as one of the best “covers” in the world of video games. A real hit that It has such an epic beginning that it is capable of giving us that “high” that we need to start training with enthusiasm. Highly recommended, and a very good option also to go running with him. I think the video speaks for itself, so don’t miss it.
10.-Kuze theme in Yakuza 0
The Yakuza saga has very memorable themes, although not all play the same suit. Some have a comedic component, and others are more serious and have a strong motivational component. The Pledge of Demon theme is undoubtedly one of the best in this regard.both for its rhythm and its intensity, and for everything behind the character he accompanies, whose motto is that he who falls many times does not lose, but the one who stops getting up.
