Every gamer has a favourite soundtrack—something that has stuck in our heads since we first played a game, or a soundtrack that moved us.
Video game music has come a long way from the bleeps and bloops of early consoles.
What once felt like simple background noise is now often full-blown orchestral scores or deeply emotional pieces that shape the gaming experience.
Behind these soundtracks are composers. The people who turned pixels into symphonies.
Their music doesn’t just support the game; it often steals the show.
The Importance of Sound in Games
Remember some of the catchiest soundtracks in games? Lots of us can still remember the Tetris soundtrack from playing for hours, trying to perfect the art of beating the game.
There are soundtracks to all types of games. This includes role-playing and casino games, some of the most popular of which have full-blown soundtracks and audio effects.
The production values have come a long way since the start of online casino games and slot games back in the 1990s.
Consoles are now able to support those detailed and impressive scores, but some of the best actually come from a time when things were much more limited.
The Masters
Even as games have changed (you can now play games on Netflix, we remember playing on Gameboys!), some truly great composers have continued to stand out.
We don’t have room or time to include every composer who has ever created an amazing game score or soundtrack, but we do have to make a choice about which masters are the greatest…
Nobuo Uematsu—Final Fantasy Series
It’s hard to talk about video game music without bringing up Nobuo Uematsu.
His name is pretty much etched into the walls of gaming legend. Uematsu composed the bulk of the music for the Final Fantasy series, starting from the very first entry back in 1987.
His melodies became the emotional glue of the franchise and were stunningly moving.
Tracks like “To Zanarkand” from Final Fantasy X or the iconic “One-Winged Angel” from Final Fantasy VII turned simple moments into cinematic experiences.
Uematsu’s music has been performed by full symphony orchestras around the world, and he even formed his own rock band to perform rock versions of his own pieces.
Yoko Shimomura—Kingdom Hearts, Street Fighter II, Final Fantasy XV
Yoko Shimomura’s name might not be as instantly recognisable to some, but her music definitely is.
She composed the adrenaline-pumping tracks for Street Fighter II, but her style evolved dramatically over time.
Her work on the Kingdom Hearts series blends classical piano with sweeping orchestrations and emotional highs.
Shimomura brings a melodic elegance that’s distinct. Her piece “Dearly Beloved” became the main theme people seem to associate with Kingdom Hearts, reimagined slightly with each new game. She also composed for Final Fantasy XV.
Jesper Kyd—Assassin’s Creed, Borderlands
Jesper Kyd brought a completely different flavour to game music. With a background in electronic music and film scoring, he blended digital textures with some pretty dark and spooky melodies.
His work on Hitman gave Agent 47’s world a cold and eerie tension. Some have said that his score for Assassin’s Creed II leaned into the drama and beauty of Renaissance Italy.
Kyd didn’t just create music; he built soundscapes. His atmospheric layers often crept under the skin and stole the whole show.
It’s a subtle craft, and few do it better. He’s also dabbled in TV and independent film scoring, but it’s his ability to make great music for games that seem to set him apart from the crowd and earn him a place on our list of masters.
Kyd is also a true gaming fan, “I love open-world survival games, they are my favourites,” he said in an interview.
“My current favourites are Subnautica and Below Zero, the way those games made the open-world vertical is just so awesome.”
Martin O’Donnell & Michael Salvatori—Halo Series
When Halo: Combat Evolved launched in 2001, the soundtrack grabbed attention instantly.
A Gregorian chant-style opening, followed by pounding drums and epic strings. Science fiction felt spiritual.
That sound came from Martin O’Donnell working with longtime collaborator Michael Salvatori.
Their music gave Halo its weight. It wasn’t just futuristic noise—it was thoughtful, often melancholy, and completely unforgettable.
O’Donnell and Salvatori had backgrounds in commercial jingles and studio production, but their work on Halo catapulted them to new heights.
The main theme has been performed by orchestras globally, and it’s become one of the most instantly recognisable game themes of all time.
Gareth Coker—The Ori Games, Arc: Survival Evolved
Coker’s music is also critically acclaimed. It is often dreamlike and full of emotion and rich instrumentation.
The Ori Games are known for their beautiful art and smooth platforming, but the music might be what leaves the biggest impression.
Each level and moment are wrapped in delicate themes in a game that is interesting but sometimes heartbreaking.
Coker uses live instruments mixed with digital elements to create depth. He also works closely with the developers, shaping his compositions around story beats and visual tone.
His scores have been performed by symphonies and praised for their cinematic quality, and he’s quickly become one of the most exciting names in modern game composition.
He has also been involved with the Minecraft games, as well as Arc: Survival Evolved. We’re eagerly waiting to see what he might do next.
From Background To Spotlight
While these composers are well-known in the space, they represent a much larger movement.
Today’s game composers aren’t just background players. They’re storytellers.
Music can make or break a game in the same way that it can a movie or a television show.
People who are making games and calling the shots know how important it is to get the right composer.
Names like Nobuo Uematsu are associated with franchises or even specific eras of gaming, showing how powerful this can really be.
There are even more masters out there, but these are a taste of some of the very best.
