Beyond the Controller: Top 25 Soundtracks 2011: Number 9

Number 9: Command and Conquer

Command and Conquer hails from the heyday of computing, back when PC games were the unchallenged kings of style and innovation and new genre's were coming out every month. Command and Conquer was one of the first RTS games, and for many the first true RTS ever developed. When Westwood studios went to work on it, they knew that every bit of it needed to be a blast. Fortunately they had a lot of incredible advantages on their side. They were the only ones who had made an RTS game (ever) at that point, so it was their market to do with as they pleased. They were also on the PC, which meant they could make use of the extra space offered by CDs for full motion video, lots of levels, and some jamming music.

The game delivered on every key but the one that's stayed with gamers in the near two decades since the games release is Frank Klepacki's soundtrack, which jams above and beyond anything we'd expected at the time.

Command and Conquer's soundtrack is immediately distinct. When Klepacki worked to compose the soundtrack, he drew from a number of different musical sources, blending them together to create a very new, very different soundtrack. The resultant sound is something that is uniquely part of the C&C mythos, and very few other games have been fortunate enought to have had such a strong signature style associated with them. The sound of C&C is unmistakable to any that hear it.

C&C's soundtrack is also known for generating some severely catchy melodies. These are songs that once heard can stick in your mind for days on end. You have been warned. But like many other soundtracks on this list, C&C's songs succeed because even after three days, you're still grooving to them.

C&C scores high on all accounts. As old as it is, it has a great nostalgic appeal for those who grew up ordering GDI and Nod armies around in frantic little clumps. For those who have never played the game, the musics qualities still stand strong. The melodies are solid, and the style is wholly unique. Command and Conquer is a classic example of what a soundtrack can be.

Command and Conquer
Enjoyment: 4.25

Stand Alone Quality: 4.25

Composition: 4

Emotional Reaction: 4.25

Non-Gamer Enjoyment: 0

Nostalgia: 1

Total: 4.48

Number 9--Command and Conquer by Frank Klepacki

Number 10--Final Fantasy: The Crystal Chronicles by Kumi Tanioka

Number 11--Planetary Pieces by Various

Number 12--Donkey Kong Country 2 by David Wise

Number 13--Mirror's Edge by Solar Fields