In video games, the characters, plot, and world-building are some of the most significant parts that make up the experience. But aside from that, music plays an equally huge role. Just imagine playing The Last of Us or Gears of War minus the emotional background score—the tears probably wouldn't flow as easily. And who could forget Super Mario's own arcade music that's pretty much as iconic as the game itself?

Though there have been countless great tracks from video games, some are inarguably more memorable than others. Here are some songs that shaped video game culture as we know it.

One-winged Angel

Even if you've never played or touched a single Final Fantasy game, we guarantee that its song, One-winged Angel is at least a little bit familiar to you. The track is Final Fantasy VII’s theme music during the final battle against the main villain—Sephiroth. This score by Nobuo Uematsu starts with notes similar to the ones that play when you know the shark from Jaws is about to arrive. And once that guitar riff comes on, you just know that Sephiroth has arrived—and it’s terrifyingly beautiful.

Dragonborn

The Skyrim theme song Dragonborn is everything people expect from a fantasy-set video game: harking, orchestral, and sung in an entirely different language. Since it plays on the game’s main menu, it really does give you the feeling that you’re about to embark on a fantastic adventure. Jeremy Soule couldn’t have done a better job.



Terminator

With the release of Terminator: Dark Fate last year closing out the series, it might be a long time before fans hear the ionic theme on the big screen again. Fortunately the franchise has successfully branched out into the gaming industry across multiple platforms, introducing key elements from the film series, like the music, to new audiences. In the online sphere, gaming community Foxy Games has a number of titles inspired by the franchise, including Terminator 2 and The Terminator I’ll Be Back, with each game using the iconic theme as the main soundtrack. It has been 36 years since the original film was released, and Brad Fiedel’s theme has transcended pop culture to become not just an iconic film score, but an iconic and globally recognised game score that gaming companies continue to promote today.

Super Mario Bros.

Of course, this list wouldn’t be complete without again mentioning Koji Kondo’s masterpiece—the Super Mario Bros. (1985) theme song. This 8-bit delight, called Ground Theme, is an entire minute of fun, 1980’s gaming. Kondo actually made a previous version of it that was a bit slower in tempo. However, upon seeing the final stages of the game’s development, he realised that it needed to be more upbeat. What came out is a theme song that would be remembered for decades to come.

Green Hill Zone

Another song that probably got stuck in every gamer’s head at some point is the theme song of Sonic the Hedgehog’s first stage, Green Hill Zone. In the past, save files weren't an option. So, if players wanted to advance to the next level, they would have to go through Green Hill Zone. This level is so iconic that SEGA has made it a point to include it in almost every Sonic game, even Nintendo combat game Smash, according to Metabomb. The theme song is refreshing, kind of like running through, well, green hills.

Much like how music genres are beautiful in their own unique way, so are gaming soundtracks. Whether you like it 8-bit, synth, or full-blown orchestra, you can be sure that in-game music will always deliver and add to the experience.