For me it’s a split between MDK 2 and Super Meat Boy.
None at all, i turn music off straight away in all games. In fact if there are subtitles I also turn off most sound effects as well.
I have, but completely forgot to check out their music! Awesome.
Also: OCRemix.org will eat up many hours for those really into vg music.
Much as I hate every other aspect of the game, Xenogears has one of the best soundtracks ever.
Wings
My Village is Number One!
Longing
Dazil, Town of Scorching Sands
Blue Traveler
Soaring the Skies
The One Who Bares Fangs At God
And it may just be that it’s one of the first console CD games I ever played, but I will always love the soundtrack to Ys III: Wanderers From Ys, and the TurboGrafx CD version will always be my favorite arrangement of it.
The Boy’s Got Wings
Ilberns Ruins
A Searing Struggle
Prelude to the Adventure
The Strongest Foe
Although it must be said that the recent PSP remake, Ys: The Oath in Felghana, has some exceptional versions of these tracks: The Boy’s Got Wings, Ilberns Ruins
The correct answer is M.U.L.E.
If you answered otherwise you have either never played the game or are a big stinking liar.
While M.U.L.E. is waaaay up there, for me it goes to the music from the Ultima series, particularly III - V.
Diablo II, particularly “Desert”, is also wonderful. It is a soundtrack I still listen to at work on at least a monthly basis.
Finally I’d like to recognize Bully for it’s incredible soundtrack, particularly the bass parts. Love that game.
…and not just that one piece, but everything.
Also, Guided by Wind from Soul Calibur 2. The whole piece feels like swirling constant motion - completely representative of the stage in game. The meter is always changing but listening to it casually you don’t really notice it. It flows together so well.
My absolute favorite is the music over the end titles from The Last Express.
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura has some wonderful music as well:
Main Theme
Isle of Dispair
Demise of the Zephyr
The Gabriel Knight series is another favorite of mine:
Main theme from Sins of the Fathers
The Beast Within prologue
Main theme from Blood of the Sacred Blood of the Damned
Nocturne from Blood of the Sacred Blood of the Damned
Morrowind has been mentioned already. The main theme really sets the stage for that game.
My favorite game soundtrack is from a game that isn’t good. It’s Republic: The Revolution. It’s a wonderfully evocative soundtrack by James Hannigan, who also did Evil Genius. For Republic, he draws on Eastern European extended-tonality orchestral music and folk band music to create a wonderful mood for the game. A couple of samples:
A New Day Begins
Journey to Pugachev
While a lot of music in games acts best in the background, and music that can be listened to independently can be distracting in a game, I think this soundtrack works well both ways. I got rid of the discs years ago because the game was so disappointing. When GOG added it to their catalog, I bought it again simply because the soundtrack was an extra. (Unfortunately, it seems to have been removed from the catalog back in January.)
Yes! I’m only familiar with MM3, but it was definitely memorable.
Didn’t you see my “I’m surely forgetting something, so if someone mentions something awesome, I can be retroactively cool and popular” clause?
How about Myst? I loved the moody fail/quit theme.
Oh yeah, Blaster Master! (Area 2 Area 7/Final Boss assorted)
The odd percussive menu music of Carnage Heart (sorry, low quality) won’t go on any all time great lists, but it did get stuck in my head many a time.
Disco Dan’s complete MM3 OST Remix album, which is awesome. Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ERYq_enBRI
Full Album
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=S0VXAQT8
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=GX9H0P7T
Enjoy.
Baldur’s Gate 2:
Main Theme
Others i can’t think of, good soundtrack overall
Crysis
Shadow of the Colossus
Mass Effect 1/2
Anachronox has a spectacularly varied and well-made soundtrack. While the main theme is suitably epic, I’ve always had a particular fondness for the peppy Democratus theme.
More of my faves:
Secret of Evermore, reminding us that Square and Jeremy Soule need to team up again
Absolutely, especially the Siege of Madrigal theme: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hTgvNsqb9Y
I’m also greatly enjoying pretty much every track from Mount and Blade Warband. In fact I’m hoping the soundtrack files are in .mp3 format so I can put them on my iPod.
And the soundtrack to the game GUN-- so evocative of Western movies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH5NXtDJhHc