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A Night at the Symphonii

Last but Not Least

by Andrew Brown - December 25, 2012, 5:14 pm EST

Finally, some runners up that couldn't be excluded.

As I said way back at the start of the feature, the Wii has an incredible library of music and there are many soundtracks I didn't include. Both of the console's Kirby games had excellent music, as do the three Trauma Center series entries, Epic Mickey, Donkey Kong Barrel Blast, the list goes on. Still, there are a few tracks I couldn't resist showcasing here because of their sheer awesomeness.

Any songs listed here stand out for being particularly memorable within a certain game, particularly catchy despite coming from a game with an otherwise boring or nonexistent soundtrack, or simply rocked too hard not to include them despite their game not qualifying for my top 10 faves list. But I digress, here is my final collection:

Wii Shop Channel

When you think of the Wii Shop Channel, it's likely that you instantly think of the catchy little ditty that plays during your store browsing. This tune seems to happily chirp the message "fill up your cart at Nintendo Mart!". Coupled with the adorable 8-bit Mario download animations, this tune totally alleviated any frustration caused when your online transactions took a long time to finish downloading.

Disaster: Day of Crisis
Main Theme

For the majority of writing this feature, this game was actually going to be on the top 10 list. That theme music perfectly fits the over-the-top action of the storyline, and is one of the most epic pieces of game music I've heard in years.

But one song doesn't justify a placement in the top ten, and while the rest of the game's soundtrack is also great, it just doesn't stack up to that one track. Regardless, this song sure does get the adrenaline pumping. Doesn't it make you feel like taking on the world?

Metroid Prime 3
Title Screen/Intro

This one track was, to me, one of the greatest moments of Metroid Prime 3. The story had built up over the last two games and we had to wait until an entirely new Nintendo console to be able to find out the conclusion to the story. Finally, the third game was released, and practically hurling it like a frisbee into the Wii disc slot the moment I brought the game home, I was greeted by this Terminator-esque piece of music. Foreboding, determined and grand, the title screen music perfectly sets the scene for the climactic finale of the trilogy.

Rayman Origins
Land of the Livid Dead Medley

Rayman Origins was a great game, but to be honest, I can't really remember much about the soundtrack except that it had cartoony squirrel voices that would, at times, get very annoying. However, one particular stage had an incredibly cool, catchy theme and it was the hardest stage in the game, both to access and to complete. The Land of the Livid Dead's addictive music was cool enough to warrant the hours and hours of infuriating frustration required to reach it, paying tribute to Old West movie soundtracks like The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

I've included both tracks from the stage in one track for you to listen to.
You can thank me later.

Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen (Fatal Frame 4: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse)
Hard Mode Ending - Zero no Choritsu by Tsuki Amano

This last one is a little obscure, I know. Fatal Frame is one of my favorite video games series of all time, and yet beyond the occasional ambient noise they have next to no music at all. Fortunately their ending themes are quite cool, especially if you like the occasional J-Pop song like I do.

This song was performed by famous Japanese singer Tsuki Amano. Like many game and anime themes, it was also featured in the country's pop charts at the time, and has been released on an album in Japan. It's out of print now and getting a little hard to find, but I wholeheartedly recommend searching for a physical copy if you have the means to do so.

Well there you have it. I've tried to cover a wide range of music from my favorite Wii soundtrack list, and I feel I've represented many different music genres and styles in my choices. I hope you enjoyed listening. If you liked this feature, please let me know in the talk back comments below, I may consider running similar features for other old consoles and handhelds in the future.

Talkback

FreudianLemurDecember 20, 2012

You must have, at some point in this list, the soundtrack from FF Chrystal Chronicles (only the first one, on the GC).

Disco StuDecember 20, 2012

Oh man, the Puzzle Plank Galaxy music from SMG2 is the perfect, quintessential Mario music to me.

joshnickersonDecember 20, 2012

I'd love to hear the original Galaxy soundtrack someday, if only just to hear what could have been.

RazorkidDecember 20, 2012

I absolutely feel the same way about videogame music. It's a huge detriment to me if the music doesn't pop or add significantly to the experience. I haven't gone through your list Andrew, but I look forward to it. I'm always super curious about the tastes of other fellow videogame music lovers and whether mine overlaps at all.

Pixelated PixiesDecember 20, 2012

Some of my stand out soundtracks on Wii are Xenoblade (so good it hurts), the Galaxy games, Epic Yarn, Twilight Princess, House of the Dead: Overkill, the No More Heroes games, Metroid Prime 3, Muramasa, and of course Beat the Beat (Rhythm Heaven Fever).

On the digital front there's also the Bit.Trip games, Light Trax, the Lost Winds games, World of Goo, Cave Story, Mega Man 9 & 10, and Max & the Magic Marker (way underrated as a soundtrack).

I have to share this again. It's just too good. Too good I say!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPCDGVy9SS8&list=PLA6AC2E758E22B09B

Evan_BDecember 21, 2012

Hey, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: the Crystal Bearers has fantastic music, too. The game is the Skyward Sword before Skyward Sword and jam-packed with minigames, but the themes hit just the right balance of that laid-back adventuresome idea and more classy, jazzy material.

joshnickersonDecember 21, 2012

All these articles are doing in making me wish Nintendo would make these soundtracks available to us in the states in one form or another! Y'know, instead of making me track down some rather shady online sources... :-X

I had no problem with Fi; I actually found her quite amusing, once I noticed similarities between her and Vulcans (constantly talking about percentages and logic). I was actually rather touched with her final scene towards the end of the game.

(I did think she looked a tad goofy singing, though ;) )

FreudianLemurDecember 24, 2012

When I listened to the Xenoblade title music, suddenly all my feelings of awe and wonder for the game came rushing back, and I realised how long it is since I last played it. I've not even finished it! Why do I do this with great games? I play a decent way in, and then for some reason I won't play it for ages, to the point where I almost forget about it. *facepalm*

azekeDecember 26, 2012

Judging from the list author hasn't played Rhythm Heaven Fever.

Because it would be #1 if he did.

LittleIrvesDecember 28, 2012

Great stuff, Andrew! Love the sepia-toned logos, too....  I'd add Kirby'd Epic Yarn to the list, and my own personal take on "Ode to Joy" from Wii Music, but I understand how you might have missed that one, ha.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQsxThVKdmo&feature=player_embedded

I totally forgot to add Other M's Ridley theme in the Honorables too. Oh well, next time :D

EasyCureJanuary 04, 2013

I can't get the DKCR sound track on my mp3 player :( stupid formats...

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