Gaming Music Mix – The Sound of Summer 2022

Gaming music is great as summer music. The music fits a bunch of scenarios and settings that happen to fit the summer theme. Sometimes directly sometimes less so. In your average game, there are going to be a bunch of characteristic settings that need tunes to accompany them. A battle theme for Bowser in the Mario games will (almost) always feature some sense of intimidation, drama, and sometimes even eeriness or horror. For the extra dramatic fights, some games even choose to feature an organ or a choir (looking at you, Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy). The music captures the imagination – you’re in a high-stakes battle on which everything depends!

It’s the same for summer! Music that’s composed for highly specific settings captures the imagination pretty easily. Lately, the video game music branch has been gaining more and more recognition. Recently, the Grammy Awards announced that it will include awards for the best video game soundtrack. However, in the past, video game music did already receive some, albeit little recognition. In 2014, “Baba Yetu” by Christoper Tin received a Grammy and this year, Charlie Rosen and Jake Silverman’s big-band arrangement of “Meta Knight’s Revenge” won a prestigious Grammy as well. Video game music is undeniably on the upswing, although full recognition is still miles away.

What’s the sound of summer like?

So, what makes a good summer track? There are loads of situations that you can associate with summer, although some are definitely more direct than others. Of course, there’s the classic laid-back beach soundtrack, where people would come to relax on a hot summer’s day. But what about the more quiet beaches, where it’s silence more than sunshine that spearheads its appeal? What about camping trips, garden barbecues, or hanging out in the urban environments of big cities? And that’s not to mention themes that have nothing to do with summer directly but do have that bright atmosphere that you’d expect of the season.

Summer has a lot of sides, and of course, they’re all subjective. That said, the point of this gaming music mix is to give you the impression of summer, whatever the season may mean to you.

Songs featured on the Gaming Music Mix – The Sound of Summer 2022

1. Pokémon Sun and Moon ~ Welcome to the Alola Region Ver.1
2. Wii Sports Resort ~ Title Screen
3. Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr.’s Journey ~ Plack Beach DX
4. OutRun ~ Magical Sound Shower
5. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 ~ File Select
6. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ~ Starshine Beach Galaxy
7. Super Mario 3D World ~ Sunshine Seaside
8. Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies ~ Trucy’s Theme
9. Shantae and the Seven Sirens ~ Arena Town
10. Sonic Mania Plus ~ Angel Island Zone
11. Splatoon ~ Quick Start
12. Overcooked! 2 Surf ‘N’ Turf ~ The Resort
13. Paper Mario Sticker Star ~ Peaceful Little Desert Resort, Damp Oasis
14. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ~ Wild Glide Galaxy
15. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword ~ Crimson Loftwing Theme
16. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild ~ Kass’ Theme
17. Animal Crossing New Horizons ~ 11 AM (Sunny)
18. The Sims 4 ~ Hello Tomorrow
19. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire ~ Battle Resort
20. Jet Grind Radio ~ Electric Toothbrush
21. Stardew Valley ~ Summer (Tropicala)
22. Super Mario Odyssey ~ Bubblaine
23. Banjo-Kazooie ~ Treasure Trove Cove
24. Cuphead ~ Floral Fury
25. Stardew Valley ~ Summer (Nature’s Crescendo)
26. Super Mario Galaxy ~ Beach Bowl Galaxy
27. Pilotwings Resort ~ Hang Glider
28. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker ~ Dragon Roost Island
29. Sonic R ~ Resort Island: Can You Feel The Sunshine
30. Final Fantasy XV ~ Galdin Quay
31. Pokémon X and Y ~ Gate
32. Pixelmon ~ A Simple Moment by the Sea
33. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong’s Quest ~ Stickerbrush Symphony
34. Hades ~ From Olympus
35. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword ~ Follow Fi
36. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire ~ Crossing the Sea
37. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door ~ Rogueport