@dtgreene

No, representation does NOT matter when the context doesn't call for it. What's it got to do with the price of tea in China? Nothing? OK then. Save your agendas for your support group.

The music in W3 is amazing. However I always turn it off. I find the ambiance and sound of wind and nature to add so much more to the atmosphere.

Sunless Sea got it right for me.

When lost at sea, there is no music at all, just an tense silent and your imagination going wild about what horrors are lurking below… But as soon as you approach a remarkable area a thematic music start playing, and you soon learn to know where you are from the music alone. (Wolfstack Docks theme is always a relief)

What they really got right in my opinion is the balance between silent parts and musical pieces, both of them always nicely fit the mood.

A lot of games forgot the value of quiet. For tension, for atmospheric absorption, or just to quietly let the world play out.

Done Right: Bravely Default.

Done right: Obcscure & Obcscure 2

Done right:
1. The Cat Lady. All of the soundtracks to this game are great, especially songs by Warmer, they are so beautiful and suit the game well.
2. The Binding of Isaac. I think I will never forget this awesome music by Danny Baranowsky.
3. Silent Hill series. Nothing to say here really, Akira Yamaoka is genius and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn has the most gorgeous voice.
4. Heroes of Might and Magic III. In particular, the Necropolis theme.
5. Pathologic. Maybe it doesn't have the most awesome soundtrack but it adds up to the atmosphere a lot.

Done wrong:
Sims 3 and 4 soundtracks. I'm not saying they're the worst, but for me, it was so annoying to listen to them. I always mute the music whenever I play either of them.

Done right: Subnautica...best game and soundtrack of 2018 in my opinion.

Done wrong: Axiom Verge...annoying MIDI shrieking drone that attempts to imitate old games and fails in my opinion.

Hyper Light Drifter, To The Moon and Halo 3: ODST are just a few that come to mind.

I like this song better:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lH0ndi9VsSo

(Apparently, the game got a new remake, and I found the remake version of this track, but I didn't like it as much.)

(Also, I would prefer if you wouldn't include surprise YouTube links in your posts; YouTube has the annoying trait of auto-playing video; even worse, it autoplays with audio. (Apparently the new version of Firefox (69) includes a feature to disable all autoplay, but it's not reasonable to assume people will be using it at this point, or that other browsers would follow suit.))

Since this thread was revived, I think I have a few Done Wrongs rattling in my mind.

Done Wrong

Phantom Hourglass: Dull, repetitive, unmemorable. less punch than the GBA titles which is a bit of a shock seeing as the GBA didn't have a sound processor.

Star Fox Adventures: You're given David Wise, the GameCube's disc size, and a substantial hardware upgrade from the N64. The end result? I'm not sure the game actually has music.

(Hot Take!) Super Mario All Stars: Using a boring uniform set of samples between all 4 games.

Necroing a thread: done right ;)

Disclaimer: clicking the first link may severely damage your ears, especially if you use headphones. Click at your own risk!!!

Music done wrong: Manic Miner - In the Hall of the Mountain King - ZX Spectrum version it's just... painful. C64 version was only slightly better

Well, thanks for wrecking my hearing, I guess...I probably should have taken that "painful" as a warning.

;)

You've been warned ;)