The top 5 video game scores of 2017

5 December 2017, 12:06

Jessica Curry is presenter of High Score on Classic FM and a Bafta Award-winning composer in her own right. Here are her top 5 video game soundtracks of the year – and one personal highlight.

In no particular order, these are Jessica Curry’s top 5 video game albums.

Horizon Zero Dawn
Released in early 2017, Horizon Zero Dawn tells the story Aloy, a hunter and archer living in a post-apocalyptic world ruled by the ‘machines’. The haunting soundtrack is by Niels van der Leest, The Flight and Joris de Man.

Here’s what Jessica said:

“I think this game is going to sweep the BAFTAs and every other awards – and I think the music is too. It's fantastic, it doesn't overwhelm the game it just tells a story really beautifully.”

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Zelda series has been around since the 1980s and it’s as popular now as ever. Breath of the Wild was released this year and became one of the best-selling games of the year. The beautiful music has gained lots of fans too. It’s by Manaka Kataoka and Yasuaki Iwata.

Jessica said:

“It's been a big year for nostalgia in game music and this is no exception. But where it's ifferent, is it's very sparse, it's very spare and it leaves room for contemplation. It's a very sophisticated score.”

Get Even
Get Even is as creepy as they come: a first-person survival horror. Cole Black wakes up in an old asylum with only fragmentary memories of what’s happened. Olivier Deriviere’s music makes the game even more atmospheric.

Here’s what Jessica said:

“One of the things that I really like about this score is that it's very sophisticated orchestrally – there's a classical style of play from the orchestra, rather than a film or game-ic model and I think that really marks it out. It's beautiful.”

Monument Valley 2
Monument Valley 2 is a game for iOS (the Apple operating system). A mother and child explore a fantastical landscape solving puzzles as they go. Todd Baker’s music make this game all the more enchanting.

Jessica says:

“This soundtrack is so chilled-out. If you're having a bad day, put on this soundtrack and I guarantee you'll feel better.”

RiME
In RiME, you play a young boy who’s been washed ashore an abandoned island. Except there’s so much more to this game than that. The excellent score is by David García Díaz.

Jessica says:

“If I had to pick one, my favourite soundtrack is RiME by David García Díaz. This one's fallen a little bit under the radar but it's definitely worth a listen to. There's a track called The Departed that has the most beautiful cello line. This is the one for me this year.”

And one more…

This is something that Jessica's enjoyed writing this year. It's the music for 'So Let Us Melt'. She says: “This is probably my favourite music I've written to date”. And here's a taste of it.