I’ve put together a list of 60 tunes that have stuck with me through the years, inspired by Jeffrey Canam (@GrahfMetal)’s Twitter rundown of his top 100 favourite video game tracks. I’ve attempted to limit myself to a couple songs per game, but there are exceptions.

I’ll post them here and on Twitter every Tuesday and Thursday using the hashtag #KongsTdayTunes.

#17

The music in Shining Force is characteristically bubbly and upbeat to match the vibrant colours and generally cheerful look and feel. This battle theme is fast-paced and exhilarating, evoking a sense of danger and menace. But its brilliance lies in the fact that the song takes up the main town theme as part of its repeating melody—it just makes it faster and scarier.

Shining Force is a great game, and one of its great strengths is how coherent it feels, from graphics and UI and design, to sound, to theme.

Track: “Battle Theme 4” (YouTube Link)
Game: Shining Force: The Legacy of Great Intention (Genesis, 1992)
Composer: Masahiko Yoshimura