Kirby and Waddle Dee were just having fun. They didn’t want to get sucked up into a bigger adventure. However, sometimes that’s just fate. While they’re playing, a hole rips open in the sky and sucks all the color out of Dreamland, freezing everything in time. In fact, Kirby and Waddle Dee get stopped too until Elline, a paintbrush fairy, immediately restores their color. As it turns out, Elline’s bestie Claycia decided to become evil out of nowhere and started sucking up color so she could build her own worlds. Now Kirby and Waddle Dee are off to save Dreamland once again!

Everyone loves the music in Kirby. There are so many iconic tunes from the franchise that it’s hard to pick a favorite. So, rather than composing a ton of original new music for Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, the composers decided to just remix everyone’s favorite tunes. Not just from the classic games either! You’ll see a ton of representation from across the entire franchise, from Kirby’s Adventure all the way up to Return from Dreamland. Maybe it’s not the most ambitious OST, but it’s got some killer remixes of all the best Kirby tracks.

Ganondorf has been defeated. His soul is split into four parts, each separated over different periods of time. However, one of those pieces manages to get in contact with the goddess Cia, who was tasked with protection of the Triforce. She harbors deep feelings towards Link but is forced to keep her distance. Ganondorf manages to corrupt her heart and split her into 2 parts: one of light and one of dark. Now Link is driven to fight off the evil armies of Hyrule and save it from Ganondorf over several different periods of time.

The Dynasty Warriors franchise is notorious for mixing all of its tracks with shredding electric guitars, and Hyrule Warriors is no exception! Mixing the famous Legend of Zelda music with sick guitar riffs was a great move, as it really captures the energy needed for fighting hours on the battlefield. After all, Dynasty Warriors is all about the on-the-nose power fantasy of fighting off thousands of enemies per level. Why should Hyrule Warriors be any different?

The planet Koppai is going through some serious famine. It’s time for them to, once again, send a team out to explore PNF-404, home of the Pikmin. The government sends three of their most promising explorers - Alph, Brittney, and Charlie - in hopes that they’ll bring back enough food to sustain Koppai. But, as tradition dictates, their craft breaks down and the crew gets split up. Now Alph will have to track down Brittney and Charlie while maintaining a steady juice supply.

Since the Pikmin franchise is all about survival in nature, the OSTs have always required them to have some more earthy tones. Listening to the Pikmin 3 OST then is less like hearing your normal video game melodies and more akin to a CD filled with jungle noises. However, these blend in seamlessly with the atmosphere, and are in fact, actual tracks. They just mix so well with the environment you just may not notice!

Captain Cuttlefish needs YOU to join his army. The Octolings managed to capture the provider of all power to Inkopolis, the Great Zapfish. You’ll need to fight off hoards of Octolings at their different bases all around the surrounding area to rescue smaller Zapfish. They’re needed to energize transportation to the next section of the map until you finally make it to the Octolings’ home base!

If you were a fan of Sega in the late 90s/early 00s, you’ll feel right at home with Splatoon’s OST. It’s like Jet Set Radio never left and finally made it to the big time. The underground electronic music keeps you right in the flow of Splatoon’s turf warfare gameplay, giving it a very punk vibe. Sure, the core gameplay is phenomenal and the art is inspired, but let’s face it, it’s the decidedly “un-Nintendoness” of the OST that gives Splatoon its edge. You’ve even got pop idol-inspired themes mixed with electronica thanks to Callie & Marie!

It’s Christmas Eve. Bayonetta is out shopping with her best friend Jeanne and her slave… er, “acquaintance” Enzo. Her night of fun is ruined when angels take control of a nearby stunt plane. Bayonetta and Jeanne manage to fight them off when Bayonetta summons a demon, but then something goes wrong! Jeanne’s soul gets claimed in the process! Now Bayonetta has to spend her Christmas rescuing Jeanne from the bowels of Hell.

Bayonetta is all about one idea and one idea alone: its titular character does not care in the least what you might think about her. Bayonetta knows she’s cool, and that’s all that matters. This is especially made clear with the OST, which is something like 1950s lounge music combined with glamazon rock. This bizarre fusion is what truly enhances the wicked combat; not only are you slaying hundreds of demons and angels, but you look good while doing it. They’re some of the most unconventional battle anthems out there, but don’t pretend you don’t sing along to “Tomorrow is Mine” when smashing in angel faces.

Mario and gang are out for another kart race. Choose your racer, whether you want to ride a kart or motorcycle, affix your vehicle of choice with the proper parts, and you’re off. You can either go it solo in the various difficulties and cups of the grand prix, play with some friends for some party shenanigans, or hop online to test your abilities against the entire world!

While Super Mario 3D World was the first Mario game to go for a big band theme for its OST, Mario Kart 8 is the game that solidified the sound as the one for Mario. Those blaring brass hours unexpectedly keep your energized as you race at high velocity speeds. But even more enthralling is the dynamic flowing in and out of different tracks during different laps on some of the courses to indicate where you are in the race, like on Mount Wario. It’s a neat little psychological trick to keep the race feeling fresh!

Five years ago, Tsubasa Oribe lost her sister during one of her opera performances. Like, literally lost. As in she disappeared along with the rest of the audience into thin air. Now, Oribe is practicing to become a pop idol in order to move up into the entertainment industry and investigate what happened to her. However, she may not have to go that far, as during one of her tryouts, she’s captured by a creature called a Mirage. Oribe’s sucked into an Idolsphere, and now her best friend, Itsuki Aoi, will have to jump in and save her!

For a game all about the thrill of enticing audiences with heart-rending pop performances, you better believe Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE has a great OST! The entire plot revolves around the dedication it takes to truly be a pop star. Watching the characters struggle with their problems in conjunction with the awesome song vocals makes these performances an incredible way to kick off every new chapter of the game!

It’s Donkey Kong’s birthday! Diddy, Dixie, and Cranky are all celebrating Donkey Kong’s special day when it’s rudely interrupted by the Snowmads, a group of arctic Viking animals on a quest for island domination. The Snowmads freeze the entire island and take root on top of the Volcano. Now, it’s up to the entire Kong family to free their home from the vice-like grip of the Snowmads.

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze needs special recognition for one reason and one reason alone: the return of David Wise. If you’ve followed the Donkey Kong franchise with any regularity, you know that David Wise was the one responsible for the SNES Donkey Kong Country games’ incredible OSTs. Wise’s return to modern hardware gave us one of the strongest OSTs we’ve ever gotten out of the Donkey Kong Country franchise.

Earth is done for. It got destroyed by an alien invasion. However, the leaders of Earth were thankfully not caught off guard, as they managed to board as much of humanity as they could aboard a few cruisers and ran off to a new planet. They chose Mira as their new home, but were forced to make a crash landing as the alien race devoted to wiping them out tracked them down and attacked the White Whale (one of the ships). However, they managed to get a city in place, dubbed New Los Angeles. You’ll work as a member of BLADE to scout out Mira and investigate the untamed wilderness of the planet.

Xenoblade Chronicles X marks the debut of Hiroyuki Sawano, famed composer of Attack on Titan, to the Xenoblade franchise. As it turns out, his distinctive contemporary electronica hymnal tracks were a perfect fit for the explorative gameplay of Xenoblade Chronicles X, really adding to the feeling that you’re out stranded in the wilderness with no one to fall back on. There are some… let’s say “eclectic” choices here and there (looking at you, NLA Night theme), but the environmental and vocal themes otherwise are truly awe-inspiring.

It’s a crossover of all your favorite Nintendo characters! Mario! Pikachu! Link! Samus! And dozens more! You’ll find over 60 characters total in this jam-packed party fighter with the DLC. Even some thought to be impossible third party guests like Cloud and Ryu join in the brouhaha. Play on your own in the wealth of single player modes, get a party going and have as many as 8 players in a single battle, or even go online and test your skills against the best players in the world!

It was really tough choosing a game for the number 1 spot. We decided in the end that rather than going with one game, we’d go with them all. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U boasts over 500 different songs from dozens of different games, an OST that would make up over 20 CDs if they ever put out an entire physical collection! What’s even neater is how you’re able to fully customize which song plays at what frequency with the My Music options, making it the ultimate game music collection available on any console!