2017 Original Game Score of the Year
And another year of beautiful video game music. Over the weekend, we uploaded our nominees and winner of our 2017 Original Game Score of the Year. This year, I felt was more difficult to choose our nominees then the previous three years that we've been doing these award videos. Each year, we usually have a generally idea of which soundtracks will make our final list but there were so many great video game soundtracks this year that making the final decision on our nominees was a tough call.. But each year we try our best to showcase the top soundtracks the video game industry has to offer and I think we succeeded with that. We listened through over 40 official soundtracks during the course of 2017 and for me, at least 15 of them I've had and will continue to have on my weekly playlists. One of my favorite aspects of video game soundtracks is diversity, everything from sweeping orchestral scores to speedy guitar solos are represented, there is something for everyone. I'm going to list our nominees and winners here on our site as well as original scores that didn't make our cut for the awards this year but everybody should listen to at least once.
2017 Original Game Score of the Year
Rime
NieR: Automata
Cuphead
Destiny 2
Gravity Rush 2
2017 Vocal Track of the Year
Life is Strange: Before the Storm - Burn it Down
Resident Evil 7 - Go Tell Aunt Rody(-Resident Evil 7-)
Super Mario Odyssey - Jump up, Super Star!
NieR: Automata - Weight of the World the End of YoRHa
The Evil Within 2 - Ordinary World
2017 Rock Track of the Year
ARMS - Grand Prix Hedlok Battle
Forza Motorsport 7 - Snaps
Tales of Berseria - Daemon's Assault
Yakuza 0 - Debt Cleanup
SONIC FORCES - Fist Bump(Instrumental Ver.)
2017 Electronic Track of the Year
RUINER - Disappear
SONIC MANIA - Steel Cortex(Titanic Monarch Act 2)
TEKKEN 7 - Arctic Snowfall 2nd
SONIC FORCES - Arsenal Pyramid-Interior
REDOUT - On My Own
Here are a few Original Game Scores of 2017 that we wanted to give an honorable mention to: Horizon Zero Down(PS4) Gorgeous orchestral work by Joris De Man gives the sense of openness and exploration that fills the lush landscapes of Horizon Zero Dawn; Valkyria Revolution(PS4, Xbox One, Vita)As a big fan of Valkyria Chronicles, the game is very disappointing but that shouldn't distract you from the downright wonderful orchestral score throughout the game; Divinity: Original Sin 2(PC)Soothing soundtrack with ethnic instruments, choir played in bard/tavern style manner to compliment this medieval fantasy world; Fire Emblem Warriors(Switch)Fantastic blend of rock and orchestra give off an epic sound - it has some impressive guitar solos as well, Persona 5(PS3, PS4)Smooth Jazz, Bass and Rock make this soundtrack an easy listen; Little Nightmares(PS4)Haunting, eerie soundtrack that makes the Maw of Little Nightmares even creepier; The Sexy Brutal(PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC)Jazz and piano solos make this soundtrack a fun listen; Uncharted - The Lost Legacy(PS4)I personally still hold Uncharted 2 as the best OST in the series but The Lost Legacy has some beautiful orchestral work that keeps pace with the events in the game and Injustice 2(PS4, Xbox One, PC, iOS)An Epic orchestral score that fits the superhero world very well.
Thanks to all of you that submitted soundtracks this year, we're hoping to add even more categories next time around so make sure to check back for that in December. Now, we'll be getting back to our various video game music projects including new uploads, playlists and our own soundtrack recommendations!