---
title: Top 10 Game Albums
subtitle: The Best In-Game Music
author: Mixed Signals staff
date: 2019-02-25 14:00
publish_date: 2019-02-25 14:00
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hero_image: vinyl-1600x800.jpg
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taxonomy:
category: culture
tag: [ gaming, music ]
---
<p>
Do you play music during your game to set the mood?
Here are the top 10 albums that have been playing in the background of <em>our</em> D&D sessions.
</p>
<h2>1. Basil Poledouris - Conan the Barbarian</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://i3.cdn.hhv.de/catalog/475x475/00448/448303_1.jpg" />
<p>
Most Poledouris soundtracks are great for a game, but the power and might of the original <strong>Conan</strong> is an invigorating start to any campaign.
</p>
<h2>2. Trevor Jones - Excalibur</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://img.discogs.com/fVncSvmN1pnwCFv3OeSIWzi0EmI=/fit-in/468x452/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-640107-1248379831.jpeg.jpg" />
<p>
The majesty and mystery of the legends of King Arthur, Merlin the Magician, Mordred, and Lancelot and Guinevere come alive in this beautiful and dark soundtrack.
</p>
<h2>3. Martin Romberg - Witch Mass</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://shop.new-art.nl/content/img/new_products/1447076569.jpg" />
<p>
This independent album features ancient magic spells and hymns to nature spirits and Aradia, the daughter of the Moon goddess Diana. And yes, it is as enchanting as it sounds.
</p>
<p>
You can get a copy from <a href="
https://www.challengerecords.com/products/14482758027365" target="_blank">Challenger Records</a> or listen to it on many streaming music sites.
</p>
<h2>4. Harry Manfredini - Friday the 13th</h2>
<img width="300" src="
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Nn7E0pO7Ww/UyRis2d3rRI/AAAAAAAAMXo/vHR0sDwU5us/s1600/friday13th.gif" />
<p>
Harry Manfredini was the composer for most <a href="
https://mixedsignals.ml/games/blog/culture_friday-13-1">Friday The 13th films</a>, and his music is consistently haunting, suspenseful, sensitive, urgent, threatening, creepy, and generally everything you ever need in a D&D game.
Put this on in the background of your game, and everything you describe to your players takes on a new meaning.
Every NPC becomes just a little more suspicious.
Every mission feels a little more deadly.
</p>
<p>
And as an added bonus, your jumpscares will actually work, sometimes when you don't even mean them to be jumpscares.
</p>
<h2>5. Jeremy Soule - Neverwinter Nights</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://lastfm-img2.akamaized.net/i/u/ar0/c50a1cfd06b7486fa9974d3996e47719" />
<p>
The nostalgia with this one is strong, but it's no less an excellent soundtrack for a fantasy game. There's excitement, magic, and suspense. It was the perfect backdrop for countless of hours on the PC, and it's just as perfect for your tabletop.
</p>
<h2>6. Ennio Morricone - Hamlet</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG_1080/MI0001/628/MI0001628144.jpg?partner=allrovi.com" />
<p>
The bombastic initial track aside, Morricone's music for Hamlet is subdued, dark, and foreboding. It's the very sonic embodiment of a dangerous, dark dungeon.
</p>
<h2>7. Basil Poledouris - Hunt for Red October</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://img.discogs.com/liHzMokFtpKtXhz2tsaId5CeCFg=/fit-in/600x600/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-7104519-1433827698-4361.jpeg.jpg" />
<p>
This may seem an unusual choice, but the soundtrack for this movie about an international submarine standoff is actually a symphonic masterpiece of tension and intrigue. For slow, investigatory campaigns, this album is exactly what you need.
</p>
<h2>8. Inon Zur - Dragon's Age: Origins</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71z2VOIk-lL._SS500_.jpg" />
g>
<p>
There are actually at least three soundtracks in this series: <strong>Dragon's Age: Origins</strong>, <strong>Dragon's Age: Leliana's Song DLC</strong>, and <strong>Dragon's Age 2</strong>. All of them are bold and powerful, with heaps of atmosphere and, if you're a fan, nostalgia worthy of any adventurer's late night fireside musings.
</p>
<h2 >9. Popul Vuh - Aguirre: The Wrath of God</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://img.discogs.com/KUmq95xozWtbsk0zV173BT55HUU=/fit-in/600x600/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-2100620-1360598319-3054.jpeg.jpg" />
<p>
The soundtrack for Werner Herzog's film of obsession and decay, this isn't a guaranteed fit for your gaming table, but it can be a good break from the predictable orchestral grind. Filled with lilting synthesizers, soft electric guitars, this album is a meditation on why we are sometimes compelled to follow obviously harmful and dangerous passions; any D&D adventurer can relate to that, surely.
</p>
<h2>10. Grant Kirkhope - Kingdoms of Amalur (and DLC)</h2>
<img width="300" height="300" src="
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51CUk2nC8TL._SY355_.jpg" />
<p>
Magical, inspiring, heroic, mysterious. This is the soundtrack to your game you've been looking for, and it's available from <a href="
https://grantkirkhope.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank">bandcamp.com</a>. Grant Kirkhope is a talented composer, and for Amalur he had the budget to record with a full orchestra, so you won't be hearing sampled brass and programmed drums here. This is a rich tapestry of game excitement and mood, and can spark life into even the most mundane moments of your campaign.
</p>
<h2>What else?</h2>
<p>
This list is incomplete! What albums do <em>you</em> play during D&D? Let us know in the comments!
</p>
<div class="mxs_attribution">
<p>
<a href="
https://unsplash.com/photos/CMnNiQBkwBI" target="_blank">Spinnin' Record</a>
by Jack Hamilton
<a href="
https://unsplash.com/license" target="_blank">Unsplash License</a>.
</p>
</div>
