I said in my review quickie for this game that the soundtrack was kind of noisy an inappropriate, and while recording I didn't find it quite as noisy as I remembered it (except maybe the Level 1 and 6 song), or maybe listening to the MP3s just removes the conflict it had with the scenery. Well, here's all the level songs anyway.

Levels 1 and 6 - This explosive number kicks off and ends the game, playing for a raging sea for the first stage what's essentially Hell for the last. It's kind of noisy, but I do like the second verse. Sorry if it's a little coarse, that's how it actually sounds through Amiga Forever.

Level 2 - Okay, it's more ambience than an actual song, but there is something about the ominous thundering that's still enjoyable to listen to.

Levels 3 and 5 - It kind of sounds like I pick this up in the middle of the tune, but that actually is where the song and level start. Similar to Level 2, but more like an actual song.

Level 4 - My least favorite song of the game, I only included it for completion's sake. It's like Tim Wright kept one of his free-writing excersises for Level 2 and used that here. It takes forever to go anywhere and I only looped it once because I got bored listening to it while recording.

Dawn of Sorrow was an okay game, but it definitely didn't kick Symphony of the Night's ass. It has a few good songs, mainly the usual remixing of classic Castlevania songs.

Beginning - A remix of Beginning from Castlevania 3.

Bloody Tears - A remix of Bloody Tears from Castlevania 2.

Dracula's Tears - Wee, something original, I think. The music to the Wizardry Lab.

Vampire Killer - And I bet you thought for a second that Konami left this one out.

If you read my Twenty Overrated Games article, you probably know I wasn't wild about this game. That soundtrack isn't bad, though.

Crucifix Held Close - I believe this is a remix of "Cross Your Heart" from the old Vampire Killer game.

Gaze Up at the Darkness - I really hope it was a communication problem that caused "Behind the Gaze" to get on the soundtrack disc that came with PoR's preorder instead of this song. "Behind the Gaze" is the second most irritating song in the game, while this is probably the best. This is used for the castle pinnacle.

Iron Blue Intention - This one's a remix of the Castlevania: Bloodlines song of the same name.

Hail from the Past - This is used in the first Egypt stage. If I recall correctly, the music changes when you go inside the pyramid, and this is used for traveling the dunes. A beautiful piece with an Egyptian flavor.

CIMA was a game that seemed like it was developed by two parties, one a party of geniuses and the other a party of sloths. Several boss patterns amounted to "run around aimlessly and occasionally stop to attack" while others were tightly knit set pieces. Some songs were great, others were just there, others sucked. I do want to apologize for something here. Whoever did the music for this game incorporated some irritating electronic noises into some otherwise fantastic works, and I don't think it's the quality of the GFS files because, first, it's not like that in all the songs, and secondly those noises are trying to be musical.

Battle With Sawma - This is the battle with the one-eyed berserker that turns into the giant samurai. It was a forgettable fight and it was no wonder I didn't remember it after my first time through, but this song caught my attention while I was going through the GFS files. It sounds like it was done with NES sound samples with a more realistic bassline.

Dragon Battle - This one has an annoying buzzing sound, but the awesome main tune should drown it out. This is used for the fight with that giant fire-breathing bird dragon. This battle was when the game finally clicked with me.

Farlay Battle - This one has a piercing screech near the beginning, but you only hear it once. This is used for that bird sorcerer boss that flies around you and summons the meteors.

Fire Dungeon - Another one that's like a mix of NES and SNES sound. This one is a bit old western.

If you have this game on Steam you can actually scout out the soundtrack from within the game's files, although the tracks will be in .wma format. I'm throwing up some of my favorite songs both for people who haven't bought it, and to anyone looking for them in .mp3 format.

Azathoth - The final boss theme (if you're familiar with the Cthulhu mythos, that shouldn't be much of a spoiler). Organ music, electric guitar, chanting, pounding drums, horns, this song has everything, except maybe a final boss worthy of it. Seriously, for being the creator of the universe, Azathoth isn't exaclty one of the game's harder bosses.

Battle Theme - The main battle theme. RPGs where the random battle music doesn't suck are pretty rare. RPGs where the random battle music is awesome are even rarer.

Breath of Death VII Battle Theme - Although it's the battle theme from Breath of Death, this song is also on Cthulhu's soundtrack, probably used in a hidden battle with Dem I never personally found, I just noticed he's in the game's Bestiary. And since I don't feel like making a Breath of Death VII entry for one song I just figured I'd throw it under here. I'm not quite as fond of it as Cthulhu's, but it's still pretty good, although since it plays for EVERY battle in Breath of Death, it could get pretty tiring.

Beach Mountain - This song plays in the dungeon the game starts at.

Boss Battle - The boss theme is a lot moodier than the main battle theme.

Factory - It's not on the level of Fear Factory in Donkey Kong Country or Smithy's Factory in Super Mario RPG, but it's not a bad factory song.

R'lyeh - The sunken city of R'lyeh is the game's final dungeon.

Shrine - This plays in the Hero Shrine you get Sharpe in, and I seem to recall one other area. This combines chanting and a piano with an electric guitar, giving you something that wouldn't be too out of place in Ys.

Title Screen - Also plays during some cutscenes. Music fit for a hero.

Victory Theme - This song was actually ganked wholesale from Breath of Death VII, where it was also used at the end of a battle.

Volcano - Music for the volcano area late in the game. It starts a little slow, but gets pretty rockin' as it goes on.

World Map - Onward to adventure!

Doom has some great rock stuff going on, though one complaint I will make is that, ambient songs aside, it often noodles around for too long. I'm focusing on the Super Nintendo versions since I greatly prefer those, but I've provided the PC versions for a couple songs.

At Doom's Gate - The song for the Hangar, the first level of Knee Deep in the Dead. A great way to kick things off!

At Doom's Gate (PC) - The PC version isn't paced or played as well, but it's not bad.

E1M1 - And for good measure, there's this I found on my computer. A heavy metal remix of At Doom's Gate. I think it's from Doom 3.

Facing the Spider - The final boss theme. Hard-hitting rock, but it's also very repetetive and doesn't last long. An interesting note, if you listen carefully, you can hear the high points of the bassline (it's hard to describe, but if you listen to the song you can probably figure out what I'm describing) fading in and out as the song goes on.

Hiding the Secrets - The Super Nintendo version uses this song for the Deimos Anomaly, the first level of The Shores of Hell. The PC versions use an unimpressive song called "I Sawed the Demons" which isn't in the SNES version. This song is awesome! This and the SNES At Doom's Gate are my two favorite songs in the game.

Hiding the Secrets (PC) - On the computer versions, this song is used for secret levels, which also aren't on the SNES version. It's not as good as the SNES one, but still worth a listen.

Kitchen Ace (And Taking Names) - The name seems like total nonsense at first, but think about what "kitchen ace" sounds like, and what's usually paired with "and taking names". Another song that's decent rocking, but I wouldn't blame anyone if they get sick of it after a while.

Nobody Told Me About id - The song for the Cyberdemon battle at the end of Shores of Hell. This one starts off slow and eerie, like it's foreboding, then shifts into the real fight.

Untitled - Apparently, "Untitled" is actually the name of the song. It's the music for the Hell Keep, the first level of Inferno. As you set foot in Hell, this really gives you a sense of how low you've fallen.

Where Bubsy failed, Earthworm Jim succeeded in being a cartoon video game. The first game is pretty hard, especially the Tube Race which has no doubt stopped some players in their tracks. 2 was weaker in both gameplay and soundtrack. The Special Edition remixes for PC are well done.

Banjo Race - An entertaining banjo song from the Andy Asteroid levels.

Buttville - True story: before I reached it I thought Buttville's graphics were going to be a collection of asses. But it's actually a creepy, insectious setting somewhat in the vein of Aliens.

Intestinal Distress - This level isn't in the SNES version. I recently learned the level was practically put together over night and thrown in at the last minute because of a deal with Sega to put an extra level into the Genesis version. It shows and frankly it's a pretty lame level, but this song is the stuff of nightmares.

Junk It! - A rock song from the first game's first stage.

Lorenzen's Soil - This is used in Earthworm Jim 2's second level. Creepy and moody, the SNES version also uses this for ISO 9000, the paper level. Except the Saturn version uses that annoying bagpipe music from the Granny Chair bonus stage (bleh!).

Tangerine Synth Rock - Another rock song from the second game's first stage.

Use Your Head - This is the "helicopter" part of Buttville. The Special Edition remix is amazing, especially the second half which wasn't in the SNES/Genesis games.

What the Heck? - What the heck, indeed. It starts off with Modest Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, then record scratches and starts playing a happy happy tune with people screaming.

Who Turned Out the Lights? - From a gameplay perspective this (thankfully optional) bonus stage was pointless and annoying, but from a humor perspective it's not bad and the music sounds like something out Looney Tunes.

Fogedge - This soft, adventurous, and kind of sad tune plays for all the areas of the overworld.

The music's certainly better than the cover art. I don't know what the songs are called, nor where to find out, so I'm just making up names here.

Black Dragon Clauss - Every boss in the game has its own song, and this one is used for the lizard man that walks out and transforms into a giant dragon.

Earth - Music to the earth stage. This would be my favorite, except some parts drone on for a little too long and there's a section in the middle that feels kind of slapped on. The rest of it is kickass.

Ending 1 - Roki's Death - Now I honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the ending, but this piece leaned me in the "cry" direction.

Ending 2 - Healing wounds - A happier epilogue piece. There's a guitar part in the middle I find a little irritating, but the rest is quite nice.

Fire - Music to the fire stage. My favorite of the level songs.

Wind - Music to the wind stage.

I guess the best thing I can say about the actual game is that it's the best Garfield video game to date, although it's still the epitome of mediocre. On the Genesis, the soundtrack was also mediocre. The PC version has some good stuff, though.

Catsablanca - "Are you Spade?" "I hate it when people ask me that."

The Curse of Cleofatra - My favorite song in this game. A fast Egyptian tune with lots of percussion.

Cave Cat 2 - The first Cave Cat is kind of bleh, but this one's not bad. A creepy caveman tune.

Season Finale - Though you hear part of it in the between stage cutscene, this is the music to the final boss. A fast, techy sound.

Magma Dragoon - Probably the best song in the game, and the only song in the entire game I remembered years after I first played it.

I got most of these songs off a bittorrent that seems to have gone down. I actually think Mega Man X7 is an underrated game, and if you don't have anything against J-Pop the soundtrack isn't bad either.

Conclusion - An awe-inspiring piece from Sigma's second form.

Lazy Mind - This is the only song in this set I ripped myself from the actual game. I could have used the bittorrent version, except over in Japan the song is accompanied with some really annoying lyrics. We lucky Americans just got the music.

Our Blood Boils - This kickass rock song from Sigma's first form and Conclusion would probably lead you to believe the fights with Sigma didn't involve a suspicious looking gun and a beam that comes out of his lower waist.

Relation - Music for the fight with Red. This fight really concludes the game needed to be played as Axl; the poignance of the battle and this music is wasted on X and Zero.

Stage Select 2 - A short piece with a light emotional punch.

I'm really not sure I can provide music of the main levels. The music changes when you get a lot of zombies on the field, and I don't really have a practical means of recording and/or splicing the two version together. Also, no requests for "Zombies on the Lawn", please. It may not be as bad as the DK Rap, but I really don't see anyone listening to it outside of the game.

Boss Battle - This plays in the first three boss zombie waves. I read Laura Shigihara was inspired by retro game music like Mega Man 2 when she did the soundtrack to this game, and this song is just screaming to be done in chiptune.

Zomboss - The final boss theme. Sometimes it seems to be a spiced up variation of the main boss theme, but if the whole thing is then some parts are remixed beyond recognition.

Y'know, if the game was anywhere near as good as the graphics, music, and atmosphere it would have been a masterpiece. Sadly, what we got was a hauntingly beautiful game that uses absurd difficulty and terribly unforgiving level design that can ruin your game if you find yourself needing an item but don't have it and can't go back for it to compensate for the fact it can be beaten in twenty-five minutes. Hooray for Amiga Forever and savestates! The TurboGrafx-CD version is actually beatable without having the game memorized by the pixel (but you still need to know your way around the game as it's still possible to get stuck) and some of the music is a bit better, but it isn't quite as pretty.

Battle on the Plains (Amiga) - This song plays one time in the field when a bunch of monster bum rush you and for the final boss. Basically a jazzed up version of the Savanna song.

Battle on the Plains (TG-CD) - If you can handle how long it is, this is the better version. On the TG-CD it plays on the entire stretch of game between leaving the castle and the final boss. By the way, all the TG-CD songs are around six minutes in length, so heads up.

Beast's Stronghold (Amiga) - Music for the castle area. The electric guitar is a bit jarring after the softer, more primitive songs from earlier in the game, but this is still a great song and the superior version of it.

Beast's Stronghold (TG-CD) - The TG-CD version. I really do prefer the Amiga version.

The Cavern (Amiga) - Music for the underground areas. Some of the percussion is a little annoying to listen to through headphones, but otherwise a nice, somber piece.

The Cavern (TG-CD) - And the long, TG-CD version.

The Forests (Amiga) - This plays most of the time you're running along the outside plains. This might be my favorite song in the Amiga version.

The Forests (TG-CD) - And the TG-CD version. It starts out a bit clunky, but after that it gets really good. Strangely, the TG-CD version uses this in the second half of the cavern area, after you beat that sliding skeleton/jaw monster.

Main Title (Amiga) - This plays on both versions' Start screens, but the TG-CD version also uses it for the first stretch of Savanna.

Main Title (TG-CD) - The TG-CD version uses this for the daytime Savanna area.

Shadow of the Beast (Amiga) - Song for the opening credits and title screen. This is the song the Lemmings games use for the level based on this game.

Shadow of the Beast (TG-CD) - I like this version more than the Amiga's, which isn't a bad song either. The instruments are better (love those bells) and the song is fuller.

Underwater (Amiga) - This is the music for the part with the jetpack after the castle and before the graveyard, although I never got the impression you were actually underwater here and not just flying. It uses a similar style to the castle, and at first that twanging that starts about a minute in annoyed the hell out of me, but it's grown on me.

Underwater (TG-CD) - The TG-CD version replaces that twanging from the Amiga version with a trumpet, and the opening is kind of cartoony.

In some ways Beast 2 was the step in the right direction, and in others a step back. Beast 2 expanded on the gameplay and level design, but it was even more obscenely difficult. More chances to screw yourself by getting somewhere without the item to continue, and even when you had the items you could screw yourself by not doing what you had to at the exact moment you had to, even more imbalanced enemy placement, the level design tends to disagree with having to press Up to jump (which I imagine would be even more awkward with the joystick you'd be using on an actual Amiga), and how the bloody hell is anybody supposed to figure out on their own to press A and type in "Traps" to have that one guy tell you which switch to hit later on? 'Course, those last two don't apply to the console ports. Anyway, the soundtrack didn't stand out as much to me as Beast 1's, but it has its moments.

Land of Karamoon - The main area theme. This is the song the Lemmings games use for the level based on this game.

For the third and final Beast, Reflections finally got their act together, retooled the gameplay to be more puzzle oriented and less about enemies blindsiding you at every turn, gave the player three lives instead of one before having to restart the whole game, and finally named the main character while they were at it, and put out a respectable game. The soundtrack suffers a little from the same problem as the TG-CD version of Beast 1, in that the songs sound like they were played twice, had a new part added on, then all that was looped, so the songs feel a little dragged out and it also made the recording a pain when I couldn't figure out when a song was actually done. What's there isn't bad, but a lot of the songs sound like they're building to something they never reach.

Battle in the Caves - This is used during the boss fight with the fire-breathing chestburster thing in the Caves of Bidhur.

Caves of Bidhur - The third stage music. This song kind of reminds me of the music for those levels with the thorn vines in Donkey Kong Country 2.

End Theme - Out of the Amiga Beast trilogy, Beast 3 has the closest thing to an ending, and boy is this song a nice way to conclude the trilogy. Although it is a little creepy the way Aarbron is staring right at you while the ending text rolls.

Food for the Beast - This takes over in the Forest of Zeakros when you run through the monster camp and those spike capsules. It's very long song, over three minutes, so I only looped it once.

Forest of Zeakros - This Oriental flavored song plays for the first stage. It's quite pretty, but it seems like it could have been a bit more than it is.

Fort Dourmoor - The second stage's music. Another long piece and one of the more upbeat songs in the game.

Maletoth's Lair - Final boss music. Kind of short, but so's the boss.

Shinobi is an amazing ninja game with speed, challenge, and though the graphics are kind of bland the animation is very smooth. It also had good music; I've practically posted the entire soundtrack here.

The All-Seeing King - Battle music for Yatsurao, the giant machine boss. Starts ominous, then becomes a mix of mystic and foreboding.

Aomizuchi - This actually isn't what the soundtrack calls this song, but the real name is a spoiler although anybody who thinks about it for a few minutes could probably figure it out. This is the music for the first battle with that ninja who stalks you through the game.

Bloody Sword - Music for when you fight Ageha. An emotional song for an emotional fight.

Ceremony - Stage music for the first two levels. A J-Popish rhythm with an Oriental flute.

Demon God - Battle music for supernatural bosses, which includes the Hellspawn Lords.

Distorted Vortex - Music to the flooded city in 5-A.

Encounter - The music to 3-A and -B, which is especially effective in 3-B where the stage is covered in sticky spiderwebs and rampant with demon spiders.

Fantastic Machine - A song with a technological feel to it as you infiltrate the Nakatomi building.

Fate - Title Screen music. It's nice to have an MP3 of this, because you couldn't hear the entire thing without constantly moving your cursor around because it would eventually cut to the intro movie.

Flames of Destruction - The music to 4-A and -B, the burning village and volcano (or maybe just an underground firey fissure?). An upbeat Oriental flavored tune.

The Golden Castle - Music to the Golden Palace, which I guess was called the Golden Castle in Japan.

Hiroe Temple - The English version calls the stage "Kan'ei Shrine", but this is the music to 7-A. A peaceful melody that sets a tone for the tranquil setting... well, if you can ignore being attacked by demons and possessed ninjas.

The Hiryu Name - Battle music for Hiruko, the final boss. An awesome blend of music styles for an awesome final boss. Spirits of the netherworld! Obey your master!

Ninryo - This is the music for boss fights against a possessed Oboro clan member.

Peaceful Shrine - Music to stages 2-A and -B.

Remniscence - I think this sad piece is what plays during the cutscene after you beat 7-B.

Shinobi - Music to the game's movie intro. I should make a movie of that, because the movie is as rocking as this song, but I can't find it on YouTube.

Shinobi ~ Dream Talk - The ending credits music, and is essentially an extended version of the above song.

Sick Hand ~ Suicide Attempt - I don't know for sure what this song is, but I have a hunch it's for that bonus stage that I haven't unlocked yet.

Soryu - The second battle with the other ninja. I'm not overly wild about this song, but it's okay, and I thought somebody else might like it.

Tyrian - The Song - Title screen music. A sort of blast off to adventure kind of song.

Credit Music - Wario Land 3's soundtrack ranged from bad to mediocre and often sounded like Wario was making noises, but the ending credits music really stands out. It has a music box sound to it, fitting in with the music box theme of the game.

Beast Engine - The music for the level where you ride that toothy beast for the second half, which seems to be the favorite part of everyone who played the game. This song is a great mixture of wonder and terror, and is my favorite song in the game.

Bombopolis/Palace Karn - The version Bombopolis uses is actually about a minute shorter, but it isn't a signicant change so let's just say this is the music for both of them.

Maximum Velocity - This plays for those two levels where you're falling down a tunnel with an enemy and have to ram them into the walls, like a top-down version of the Snot a Problem levels from Earthworm Jim. A hard rocking X-treme sports-like tune that's just screaming to be hooked up to an amplifier and blasted.

Wex vs. Karn - Final boss music. Even though the back of the game says Karn has a face the size of New York, he doesn't, although he's still pretty big. My guess is they indended for him to be that big, but had to abandon that and forgot to change the packaging description.

I've heard people say Ys has the best soundtrack ever, but while that's preferrable to some other claims of "best soundtrack ever" it's still a stretch. But it's still pretty good! After playing the DS version I thought the soundtrack was a desecration, but while some songs really do suck (the fight with Dark Fact was somehow reduced to a irritating electronic wailing barely recognizable as the same song), after listening to the CD that came with the game it seems to be less the actual music and more the DS's speakers sucking.

Campanile of Lane - This song plays as you race up the bell tower to save a girl from sacrifice, and gives a sense of urgency.

Don't Go So Smoothly - This music plays at the very end of the game, right before the final hallway to Darm's room. A little waily and padded, but it's alright.

Final Battle - Or rather, the Not-So Final Battle. This is the fight with Dark Fact at the end of Ys 1, and when I first heard it some time before I had a TurboGrafx I thought it was so hardcore that I was a little disappointed when I actually played the game and found all Dark Fact did was pinball around the screen like an asshole.

First Steps Towards War - The overworld music to Ys 1, although that might be stretching the definition of the word, because outside the three dungeons, one of which takes up half the game, Ys 1 only has four other extremely small areas.

First Steps Towards War (DS) - Just to give you a headsup, a lot of descriptions for the DS versions are going to be "Louder and not as good, but still alright."

Holders of Power - The boss music for both Ys 1 and 2. The DS version actually has a different boss theme for Ys 2, but both are a bunch of obnoxious noise and were left off for the sake of your ears.

Ice Ridge of Noltia - The song for the glacier region of Noltia.

Ice Ridge of Noltia (DS) - This version is louder and not as clear, but it's still okay.

The Last Moment of the Dark - The song for when you reach the top of Darm Tower where Dark Fact waits. This version has an air of tragedy around it, and according to the Ys anime Dark Fact was originally a pretty decent guy but went batty when his father was murdered for his devotion to the goddesses.

The Last Moment of the Dark (DS) - And this version sounds more like typical big bad guy music.

Moat of Burnbless - The music to the magma caves of Ys, Burnbless, which is actually called "Burnland" on the TG-CD. This song was actually left off the DS version's soundtrack disc and I'm not dumping it from my DS.

The Morning Grow (DS) - That was probably supposed to be Morning Glow, but the back of the disc sleeve says "Grow" so I left it that way. The DS verison uses this as the ending of Ys 1. It's not much, but I still felt I had to include it because this song actually saved my butt in my last Creative Writing class. Maybe I'll tell you about it some day.

Noble District of Toal - My favorite songs in Super Mario RPG and Donkey Kong Country are Smithy's Factory and Fear Factory respectively, so I clearly have a thing for "mechanical" songs. And it's odd how mechanical this sounds when it plays in a run-down temple.

Noble District of Toal (DS) - This version actually sounds somewhat like sacred palace music.

Palace - This plays at the entrance to the shrine in Ys 1. A somber song with dripping water.

Palace (DS) - There's no dripping water sound effect, but it is interesting how this is the only song on the DS that has a definite ending instead of a fadeout.

Palace of Destruction - This is for the main part of the shrine dungeon. When I first played the game, this was the first song I noticed.

Palace of Salmon - Yeah, that was supposed to be Palace of Solomon. The way it sounds now, it sounds like a shrine to a tasty fish.

Palace of Salmon (DS) - I'd recommend the TG-CD version above, but this is okay too.

Ruins of Moondoria - I'd be hesitant to say Ys 2 has an overworld. You just go through dungeons and the occasional town for the entire game. The ruined temple of Moondoria is the first place you go after you leave the town at the beginning of the game.

Termination - The final boss fight with Darm. A decent song, its main problem being that it seems to go on forever and a lot of that length is just padding.

Termination (DS) - The one DS song that I actually like more than the TG-CD version, although it's pretty dreadful on the actual DS. Yes, as with most of the DS soundtrack it's a lot louder than the TG-CD version, but this is the good kind of loud. It's also a much more appropriate length, is structured better, and the part from :59 to 1:31 hits me harder than anything in the TG-CD version. I also thought the in-game fight with Darm was a lot more impressive, or at least it was before I knocked half his life meter off and he reverted back into the Black Pearl and sprouted three sets of angel wings. Stop doing that, people.

To Make an End of Battle - This jazzed up version of Palace of Destruction plays during the transition cutscene between Ys and 2, as Adol gets fired into the sky and flies to the floating continent of Ys.

To Make an End of Battle (DS) - Legacy of Ys uses this for the barely comprehensible intro movie of Ys 2, and while I prefer the TG-CD version I must say I like that part where everything goes really quiet and you hear the birds flying away.

Tower of the Shadow of Death - The song for the Darm Tower that you have to hear for most of the second half of Ys 1. While I do like this song, you hear it almost nonstop for the two or three hours you're in the Darm Tower, only broken up by the occasional boss battle, and it starts to get pretty maddening.

Tower of the Shadow of Death (DS) - Another one that was noticeably cut in half, though I will confess the "angry screaming cat" bit was never my favorite part. I can take either version of this song.