Gift Guide: For Someone Who Loves Stories
Are you shopping for someone who loves to cry at cutscenes, puzzle through plots, and learn about lore? This particular list is curated with the story-oriented gamer in mind: folks who are drawn to games for their intricate stories, complex characters, and heart-rending choices.
Time’s End: Majora’s Mask Remixed
Buy Time’s End I and II (CD or vinyl)
The unusual darkness of its time-bending story combined with the Zelda series’ polished gameplay made Majora’s Mask just as classic as its sunnier older sibling, Ocarina of Time. Theophany’s remix albums emphasize the original soundtrack’s fantasy-adventure feel without shying away from the darkness at its heart. The albums definitely tell a story: If you close your eyes and listen, you can imagine yourself battling to save Termina alongside Link. (The saga isn’t over yet — we can’t wait for the third and final volume!)
Best for: Zelda players, lovers of classic Nintendo games, orchestral music fans
MOTHER and MOTHER 2 Original Game Soundtrack
Buy the MOTHER albums (CD or vinyl)
The MOTHER series, known as EarthBound outside Japan, defied genre norms throughout its too-brief lifespan. Its modern setting and offbeat sense of humor won the hearts of an entire generation of gamers, and its tale of friendship and love paved the way for games like UNDERTALE to come along. These albums are as quirky as the games themselves. The MOTHER (EarthBound Beginnings) album features live reimaginings of the first game’s music with original English vocals as well as a medley of the original NES compositions. The MOTHER 2 (EarthBound) album spans 24 tracks from the original SNES game, including three remixes.
Best for: serious JRPG fans, fans of retro games and music, collectors of unusual objects
The Eightfold Road: Metal Arrangements from Octopath Traveler
Octopath Traveler brought the aesthetics of classic JRPGs to the Nintendo Switch, melodic leitmotifs included. Jules Conroy (aka famed YouTube guitarist FamilyJules7x) took the original score’s fantasy flavor and shifted it to pure metal; you’ll hear the odd ocarina here or there and some softer acoustic moments, but mostly this album was designed to rock. It does so brilliantly. Featuring guests including insaneintherainmusic, Dan DeSimone, Sab Irene, ToxicxEternity, and Adriana Figueroa.
Best for: RPG fans, metalheads, guitarists, sweet folks with inner rebels, the dark cottagecore aesthetic
Project Destati: Light and Darkness
Buy Project Destati: Light and Darkness (CDs and lapel pins)
The sprawl of the Kingdom Hearts universe is beyond the scope of this article, but it speaks to the success of the series: it’s evolved from a straightforward Disney/Final Fantasy crossover into an anime-esque saga all its own. Project Destati has released hours’ worth of orchestral Kingdom Hearts homages on two albums, aptly titled Light and Darkness, with the attention to detail and emotional journey that you’d expect from something made by Kingdom Hearts superfans.
Best for: people who love Disney, Final Fantasy, anime, orchestral music, spending hours mapping out complex lore, or (better yet) all of those things at once
OMEGA: A Tribute to Xenogears
Buy OMEGA: A Tribute to Xenogears (CD)
It’s over twenty years old, but Xenogears still tops many best-of lists. This classic JRPG took game storytelling to new heights, blending existentialism and Abrahamic mythology into a serious tale of conflict (giant robots notwithstanding). Its score by Yasunori Mitsuda is no less iconic, and OMEGA features a broad range of styles that both mirrors and departs from the original’s Celtic-Balkan melodies. This is because OMEGA is a product of Materia Community, featuring dozens of musicians from around the world to create the perfect homage to a beloved game.
Best for: deep thinkers, graduate students, people with truly eclectic musical taste, old millennials
The Keyblade War
Buy The Keyblade War (CD)
Another take on the music of Kingdom Hearts, but this album leans hard into the shadowy side of the game, turning down the Disney and turning up the eldritch beings without hearts. Rozen’s arrangements lend the soundtrack sweeping orchestral grandeur, buoyed by Reven’s haunting vocals. Adult fans who grew up with the series will have plenty to chew on here. If you’re familiar with Rozen’s other work, you know the epic scope to expect from this album.
Best for: Symphony and film score lovers, people who like dark fairy tale adaptations
Kingdom Heartbeats and One Beat Angel
Buy Kingdom Heartbeats (CD and vinyl)
Buy One Beat Angel (CD)
If you’ve been thinking “this is all well and good, but my friend isn’t a fan of symphonic music,” Kingdom Heartbeats and One Beat Angel might be more up their alley. Not every RPG arrangement needs to be classically inspired, as RoboRob so handily proves. The soundtracks of Square Enix favorites Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy VII have been reimagined into hard-hitting EDM tracks that would be at home in any underground venue. Dance your hearts out, nerds.
Best for: EDM and/or dance music fans, DJs, people with vinyl collections, extroverts (maybe)