Nietzsche once said, “Without music, life would be a mistake.”
Imaginary philosopher Richard Riemenschneider once said, “People who begin articles with Nietzsche quotes are the worst.”
Let’s agree to meet somewhere in the middle. And with that, let’s look back at the best of Kotaku Melodic this year.
The idea of doing discrete Kotaku “Programming Blocks” was an interesting one: By focusing on specific areas of expertise, individual writers could build up blocks of content that stood apart from the general flow of stories on our site. It worked for some beats more than others, but on the whole I’ve been really happy with how Kotaku Melodic came together.
From critical essays to retrospectives to features to interviews to Carly Rae Jepson fan-mail, we shared all sorts of writing about the worlds of music, video games, and beyond. I hope you had as much fun as we did.
Here now, the best of Kotaku Melodic, 2012.
The Best Video Game Music of 2012
https://kotaku.com/the-best-video-game-music-of-2012-5968289
Let’s start with our look back at the best video game music of 2012. There was a lot. It was great. Give it all a listen. More ยป
Gameplay and Story Are Exactly Like Music and Lyrics
https://kotaku.com/gameplay-and-story-are-exactly-like-music-and-lyrics-5885432
The first and last thing I’ve had to say about the gameplay vs. story debate. This is an idea I’d been chewing on for a long time, and one I was very happy to finally articulate. More ยป
The Silly Bulls*** of Censored Soundtracks in Sports Video Games
https://kotaku.com/the-silly-bulls-of-censored-soundtracks-in-sports-vi-452564827
Owen looks at the silly practice of censoring sports-game soundtracks. More ยป
This Amazing Credits Anthem Mostly Plays at Night. Mostly.
https://kotaku.com/this-amazing-credits-anthem-mostly-plays-at-night-most-5889370
Up close and personal with one of the most amazing credits anthems of all time. More ยป
Some Video Games Are Better Without Music
https://kotaku.com/some-video-games-are-better-without-music-5899519
Sure, we write about music. But some games are better without it. More ยป
Mass Effect 3‘s Musical Secret
https://kotaku.com/mass-effect-3s-musical-secret-5895616
Hidden in the background of Mass Effect 3 lay a small, wonderful love-letter to series fans. More ยป
I Don’t Usually Like ‘Guy With Instruments Playing Video Game Music’ Videos, But This Shit Is Amazing
https://kotaku.com/i-dont-usually-like-guy-with-instruments-playing-video-5902897
Of all of the “check out this video” posts we ran this year, this one might be my favorite. Sick. More ยป
Let This Street Fighter II Song be Your Gateway to Shirtless Keyboard Fun
https://kotaku.com/let-this-street-fighter-ii-song-be-your-gateway-to-shir-5887896
Of course, not all ‘guy in his room with instruments’ videos need to demonstrate chops like that last one. They can be wonderful in other ways. Luke shows us how. More ยป
I Can Predict The Entire Halo 4 Plot, Using Only The Halo 4 Soundtrack
https://kotaku.com/i-can-predict-the-entire-halo-4-plot-using-only-the-ha-5937029
An attempt at discerning the entire plot of Halo 4 using only the track-listing from the soundtrack. Not entirely accurate, but surprisingly so. More ยป
The Case for Video Games as Music
https://kotaku.com/the-case-for-video-games-as-music-5920350
Sure, video games have music. But in a lot of ways, they are music. What the heck am I talking about? Let’s explore. More ยป
Good Lord, Computer Gaming World Had Some Hip Menu Music
https://kotaku.com/good-lord-computer-gaming-world-had-some-hip-menu-musi-5893323
Believe it or not, the bundled CDs that came with CGW had some fabulous original music. More ยป
An Open Letter To The Creators Of Rock Band
https://kotaku.com/an-open-letter-to-the-creators-of-rock-band-5899207
Jason has an important message for the makers of Rock Band. More ยป
A Game Design Legend, Still Chasing The Video Game Musical Of His Dreams
https://kotaku.com/a-game-design-legend-still-chasing-the-video-game-musi-5941200
The legendary designer Warren Spector dreams of making a video game musical. Hopefully, one day he will. More ยป
Turns Out Max Payne is a Decent Piano Player. Who Knew?
https://kotaku.com/turns-out-max-payne-is-a-decent-piano-player-who-knew-5914660
A look at a hilarious musical easter egg that turned up in an unlikely place. More ยป
Chiptunes, Schmiptunes: Embracing The Human Side of Video Game Audio
https://kotaku.com/chiptunes-schmiptunes-embracing-the-human-side-of-vid-5907460
Chiptunes are great, but some amazing video game sounds have been made using only the human voice. More ยป
Olympic Gymnast Uses Zelda Medley During Performance
https://kotaku.com/olympic-gymnast-uses-zelda-medley-during-performance-5930983
The Zelda medley heard ’round the world, literally. More ยป
The Rise of the New Music Games
https://kotaku.com/the-rise-of-the-new-music-games-5895659
As our coverage this year has borne out, we’re at an exciting time for musical games. Here’s a rundown of the latest trends. More ยป
Guitar Hero 7 Was Going To Have Six-String Guitars, No Drums, No Singing. Was Cancelled In 2011.
https://kotaku.com/guitar-hero-7-was-going-to-have-six-string-guitars-no-5965684
Sources gave us all sorts of info on the now-cancelled Guitar Hero 7, which sounds like it was a real disaster. More ยป
The Mind-Numbing Music of the PlayStation Vita
https://kotaku.com/the-mind-numbing-music-of-the-playstation-vita-5885430
The first of our “menu music” features took a look (and listen) at/to the boring-ass music that played in the Vita’s menus. More ยป
The Many Melodies of the Nintendo 3DS
https://kotaku.com/the-many-melodies-of-the-nintendo-3ds-5887751
As a follow-up, we also took a look at the (much better!) music that plays in the 3DS’ menus. More ยป
Morrowind Really Did Have The Best Elder Scrolls Music, Didn’t It
https://kotaku.com/morrowind-really-did-have-the-best-elder-scrolls-music-5905585
Suddenly it hit me. Morrowind really had the best soundtrack. More ยป
May The Incredible Music of Final Fantasy Live On Forever
https://kotaku.com/may-the-incredible-music-of-final-fantasy-live-on-forev-5920112
Jason looks back at the amazing music of the Final Fantasy games. More ยป
From Uematsu to Lucasarts: A Kotaku Melodic Mix-Tape Roundup
https://kotaku.com/from-uematsu-to-lucasarts-a-kotaku-melodic-mix-tape-ro-5907533
Chris Person put together an incredible collection of a/v mixtapes for us, and this post rounds up most of them. More ยป
This Game Will Make Your Epic Sax Guy Dreams Come True
https://kotaku.com/this-game-will-make-your-epic-sax-guy-dreams-come-true-5897506
We all want to be Epic Sax Guy. Pippin Barr’s game let us understand what that would be like. More ยป
Geeks and Gamers are Taking Over Hip-Hop
https://kotaku.com/geeks-and-gamers-are-taking-over-hip-hop-5908939
Patricia took a look at backpack rap, and the various ways gaming and hip-hop are and have collided. More ยป
Geek Rap Star Kicks Fan Out Of Concert Over Tweet
https://kotaku.com/geek-rap-star-kicks-fan-out-of-concert-over-tweet-upda-5927150
Drama! Hurt Feelings! Twitter! More ยป
Choosing The Perfect Victory Music For Life’s Little Triumphs
https://kotaku.com/real-life-should-have-jrpg-victory-music-5905529
It’s important to choose JRPG victory music for the triumphant moments in your life. So, we did. More ยป
Jonathan Blow’s The Witness is an Exercise in Symphonic Game Design
https://kotaku.com/jonathan-blows-the-witness-is-an-exercise-in-symphonic-5893336
A game can work like a symphony, and Jonathan Blow’s upcoming The Witness feels more symphonic than most. More ยป
Why the Chrono Cross Soundtrack is My Favorite
https://kotaku.com/why-the-chrono-cross-soundtrack-is-my-favorite-5885428
We ran a lot of short pieces about various writers’ favorite video game music, but this one by Leigh Alexander is still my favorite. More ยป
I Can’t Stop Listening To This Portal 2 Dance Remix
https://kotaku.com/i-cant-stop-listening-to-this-portal-2-dance-remix-5909420
Another favorite among the “Here, listen to this” posts. I still listen to this track. More ยป
Somehow The Video For The Song From Robot Unicorn Attack Is Even Weirder Than Robot Unicorn Attack
https://kotaku.com/somehow-the-video-for-the-song-from-robot-unicorn-attac-5913179
Worth keeping in mind. More ยป
The Many Samples and Sound-Alikes of Earthbound
https://kotaku.com/the-many-samples-and-sound-alikes-of-earthbound-5887789
Chris put together a fantastic video assembling the many musical echoes in the Earthbound soundtrack. More ยป
Video Games are the New Best Way to Make a Living Composing Music
https://kotaku.com/video-games-are-the-new-best-way-to-make-a-living-compo-5887745
A look at how video games offer a fantastic new way to make a living composing music. More ยป
Non Game-Related Stuff
In addition to video game music, we also covered a fair bit of non-game-related music. When there was something that needed to be said, sometimes it got said here. And when there were harp-playing blonde twins that needed to be recognized, that happened too.
Blonde Twins Playing A Metallica Cover On Harps While Standing In The Desert
https://kotaku.com/blonde-twins-playing-a-metallica-cover-on-harps-while-s-5929354
Sometimes the headline says it all. More ยป
Blonde Twins Playing The Elder Scrolls Theme On Harps While Standing In A Forest
https://kotaku.com/blonde-twins-playing-the-elder-scrolls-theme-on-harps-w-5935833
Other times, the headline still says it all. More ยป
Blonde Twins Playing Final Fantasy Music On Harps While Standing Next To A Lighthouse
https://kotaku.com/blonde-twins-playing-final-fantasy-music-on-harps-while-5951395
Yet other times, the headline continues to say it all. More ยป
Avishai Cohen, One of the Great Composers of our Time
https://kotaku.com/avishai-cohen-one-of-the-great-composers-of-our-time-5885436
I was happy to share the wonderful music of bassist Avishai Cohen with a few new listeners. More ยป
Antรดnio Carlos Jobim, The Great Romantic Melodist
https://kotaku.com/antonio-carlos-jobim-the-great-romantic-melodist-5903568
Ditto A.C. Jobim, a composer everyone should know. More ยป
The Best (And Worst) TV Show Opening-Credit Anthems
https://kotaku.com/the-best-and-worst-tv-show-opening-credit-anthems-5918560
I love TV, and this was a good excuse to write about opening credits themes, reminisce about Veronica Mars, and piss off West Wing fans. More ยป
The Band That Made the Scott Pilgrim Movie Like 300% Better
https://kotaku.com/the-band-that-made-the-scott-pilgrim-movie-like-300-be-5920377
I continue to be in lesbians with Metric. More ยป
Miles Davis Hated Everything
https://kotaku.com/miles-davis-hated-everything-5927583
Everybody loves Miles, but Miles hardly loves anything. More ยป
Amanda Palmer Asks Musicians To Play For Free, Pisses Off Musicians
https://kotaku.com/amanda-palmer-asks-musicians-to-play-for-free-pisses-o-5943112
An interesting look at the many challenges plaguing professional instrumentalists today, and how an innocuous request can go off the rails. More ยป
This Gloriously Cheesy MIDI File Was Windows’ Greatest Hit
https://kotaku.com/this-gloriously-cheesy-midi-file-was-windows-greatest-h-5949071
Canyon.mid! Canyon.mid! More ยป
Forget Gotye, Kimbra Is The Most Exciting Singer I’ve Heard in Ages
https://kotaku.com/forget-gotye-kimbra-is-the-most-exciting-singer-ive-he-5918581
Another of the standout “Here’s a thing” posts, this was just too good not to re-share. More ยป
A Hidden Gem on the Greatest Jazz Album of All Time
https://kotaku.com/a-hidden-gem-on-the-greatest-jazz-album-of-all-time-5897511
Sometimes you just have to geek out about “Flamenco Sketches” and modal jazz. More ยป
Growing the Jazz Audience ‘Can’t Be Done.’ Maybe That’s Okay?
https://kotaku.com/growing-the-jazz-audience-cant-be-done-maybe-thats-oka-5913112
Jazz is in trouble. What’s to be done? More ยป
The 12 Greatest Drum Solos On The Internet
https://kotaku.com/the-12-greatest-drum-solos-on-the-internet-5931058
A worthy list, if ever there was one. Incomplete, of course, but there is some great stuff on here. More ยป
And at last, we come to the end, where I’d like to recognize what I’ve come to think of as, just for me personally, the Coolest Musical Thing That Happened All Year: the TV series Kids on the Slope
Here are two articles; one about the show, and one about the music.
From The Creators of Cowboy Bebop, a Dreamlike Ode to Youth, Love and Jazz
https://kotaku.com/from-the-creators-of-cowboy-bebop-a-dreamlike-ode-to-y-5914624
I loved this show so much. More ยป
A Listener’s Guide to the Music of Kids on the Slope
https://kotaku.com/a-listeners-guide-to-the-music-of-kids-on-the-slope-30786490
I loved the music on this show even more. More ยป
And that’s that. Thanks for reading, and for bearing with us as we explored the wild and wonderful world of music. I hope you’ll stick around next year, and if there’s some musical something or other you’d like to see us talk about more, shoot me an email with “Melodic” in the subject or let me know in the comments.
I’ll leave you with a final thought from Mr. Albus Dumbledore:
“Ah, music,” he said, wiping his eyes. “A magic far beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!”
