Notes: I need to do like 5 more of these. a few songs like to river from to the moon and mice on venus had issues and were removed. So, I'm just going to keep doing these. The video is already super long with just THESE.
Had I thought about it, I would have suggested the Travellers Song (all instruments) from Outer Wilds, personnally that one makes me bawl more than 14.3 Billion Years.
in halo odst your not a sparten like master chief, you're just a human(still the best non augmented human but a human nonetheless) and you're alone, traversing dark streets littered with abandoned cars and coventant death squads on patrol, while you search for your missing fireteam with only the sound of rain to accompany you. Halo ODST one of my favourite games, that i really should replay for the 800th time.
@@darudesandstorm244 go play it try and go as blind as possible the only thing I can say is be prepared to read a lot as that is how basically all the story is told and I know some people don’t like to read so even if you you don’t like to read try and push through it’ll click eventually.
14.3 Billion Years from Outer Wilds is one of those songs that always sends chills down my spine and makes me very emotional, even after hearing it hundreds of times (while finishing my studies I had the soundtrack on repeat for a few weeks as it helped me focus on homework). It's a mix of profound sadness, joy, nostalgia, and hope that is part of a unique video game experience. I hope you will one day jump in the game and enjoy it as much as I did, this game is my personal #1 of all times
Final Duet as a song genuinely hits so much harder once you play Omori and really understand the story it’s trying to tell you. It’s also arguably one of the most important songs in the entire game
I unironically can’t listen to that song without tearing up and feeling intensely melancholic. Doesn’t help that i played this game blind with my sister and that we both play an instrument lmao
That Rain track from Halo 3: ODST brought me back to my teen years. It's the song that made me appreciate how somber, cold yet calming the rain is. To find the beauty or hope in sorrow is what that piece speaks to me
Ugh. Flow ALWAYS gets me. Something about that piece resonates on such a profound emotional level. Maybe it’s just a me thing, because I love bittersweet endings, and Flow perfectly encapsulates all the emotion of an extremely bittersweet ending to me. But I cannot hear it without tearing up at least a little bit, no matter how many times I’ve already heard it.
Flow is a great piece to get people that have never played FFXIV to cry and get emotional. BUT if you want to get someone who HAS played FFXIV to cry and get emotional, then Close in the Distance is the song to play.
@@Stickarms99 for me it's the recent orchestral production of Tomorrow and Tomorrow that overhelms me to the point of nigh ceaseless tears. In regards to XIV's soundtrack anyway.
It's hard to make someone cry with a soundtrack without context, and believe me the scene where that Xenoblade song plays can make grown men cry when you combine it with the dialogue. No game has made me cry, but that part of the game was so close that remembering it still makes me emotional. The whole sequence (like almost an hour of cutscenes and with another great song) is soul destroying, but unless you've gone through the story and been there most of that gets lost.
Yes and no. Context can magnify the emotions, but some tracks can stand on their own (emotionally) with just the limited context of their name and maybe where they come from, even though the imagined context might differ from the actual one. Case in point, I have yet to play Outer Wilds, only know the general premise and haven't listened to anything from the OST, but '14.3 billion years' still did me in.
Never played Outer Wilds but 14.3 billion years always gets me somehow. I'm not an emotional person and i rarely get sad from movies, games or music. but this one hits me like a truck everytime.
It is a game you truly can only experience once. I can't begin to describe how much I love it and how badly I wish I could experience it for the first time again. 14.3 Billion Years is the credits song and it makes me cry every time.
It's worth double the price they ask for. I'd pick it up and try it. It's not a terribly long game, but every moment of it is memorable, and it sticks with you.
If you haven't played Halo 3 ODST you should give it a shot, its a short game. It's about as long as the Witch Queen without all the level grinding. The other Halo games aren't super required to know the story because its an entire spinoff. Bare bone story: a team of ODST get separated on drop and they make it their mission to regroup and escape because the operation is scrubbed. It has a very mellow tone and the songs are so unique compared to the other game. For reference, the game took me under 3 hours to beat on Legendary. However, I am an experienced player. So maybe about 5 videos or something for you. I know you're staying away from one, but I only recommend this because its so good.
I was at Fan Fest in Vegas last year and let me tell you when Amanda Achen sang "well come and well met, my brave little *sparks*" during Keiko's piano performance I saw MANY people wiping tears. Truly something special.
the iconic saxophone from odst is a good one for this imo EDIT: oh nvm he got the song edit edit: it was not what i thought it was? saxophone odst song is still available to be reacted to
Without spoiling anything major, the way you desribed the feeling of A Life Overflowing is exactly the kind of context it plays in and it is insanely good at making you feel the despair, sorrow and frustration the characters feel during the pivotal moment it plays in. Honestly, I'd say playing the third game, even without knowledge of the previous two games, purely for that part alone is absolutely worth it.
Man.. Into the dusk while playing the game. Out of missiles, Down to your machine gun, hearing your comrades cry and still fighting, I couldn't help to cry. We salute you Chopper!
When Chopper went down, I was so angry. And you know it's heartbreaking when you get angry and suddenly you start flying like a real ace. I launched only 2 more missles, and gunned down the rest.
I was thirteen years when I went through Mission 18: Supercircus. How I experienced it: Stage 1: Sandbox galore. Kill any TGTs.🤩 Flew the F15C into the dogfight. Very excited. Stage 2: Gorizant Squadron coming in with their F117 Nighthawks. 😎 Challenge accepted. Felt very confident in hunting them down. Stage 3: The enemy missile now knows where Chopper is. Motormouth gets hit but is still flying. Feeling worried and shaking.😰 Stage 4: Gorizant destroyed. Chooper cannot bail out. Dies and crashes into Stadium... He's gone.😭 Stage 5: More enemy fighters. No SP missiles left. Only few OG missiles ad autocannon... The gloves have come off. The sky just got bloody... And I'm in heap of rage and anger.👿👿👿
@@matthewpoirier3564I had been saving my special weapon up till that scene. First thing I did was switch to my special and light up 2 rapid fire. The first time I played I definitely was so pissed that I kept chasing the 2 planes the game wouldn't let me kill shooting them with my guns.
Ive never played a single Xenoblade, and I almost cried during that song. The notes went exactly where you knew they were gonna go, in the best possible way. Man I need to pick a switch up.
I knew another streamer I will not name bc this is Marco’s channel that actually cried very hard almost 3 times listening to xenoblade music without contest. So yeah it’s worth playing it
Aw man speaking of sad halo music, Never Forget always hits me hard, it’s the peak feeling of nostalgia and missing the good ol days type of feel when I listen to it, fitting title for it
Rain (Deference for Darkness) will always get me. When I was really depressed in the past listening to that song would be the one way I could really let myself cry, release the pent up stress and feelings of worthlessness. A Life Overflowing really got me too and that was the first time I'd heard it, really beautiful tracks
I too am part of the Outer Wilds mind virus epidemic and I honestly beg anyone who has not played it to get it and play it without looking up anything about it. The game's entire progression isn't just BUILT on what you, the player, knows- it is ENTIRELY what you know. There is a single "ability" you can unlock in the game and it is just a /convenience/ function. Everything else is based on your sense of curiosity and your ability to put the pieces together in your head. (And your ability to navigate in Zero-G. but that can be learned! It all can be learned.) The Outer Wilds is, unironically and earnestly, an invitation to discovery. However, the most unexpected discovery may be one you make about yourself.
(Light spoilers ahead) Everything about Roxas' story yanks the heart. The end of the prologue of KH2 stings so bad. He's just a lost kid trying his best to be a kid and the end of his journey of self-discovery is the discovery that he has no self. It's just so... unfair.
The Last Voyage is a melancholy song of memories. It plays during the scenes where a character you've gotten to know and love says their final farewell to you. The swell in music is usually paired with a loving final hug. These scenes flash in my mind whenever I hear the song, and it's enough to make me cry again, every time I hear it. "I have loved you as much as I could"
I was doing ok and then the opening notes for Flow kicked in and I was like "ah yes, this is where my destruction comes in." I heard it in context first as an avid FFXIV player, and when "Hush love, close your eyes" started now in your video, I was sobbing in my chair. I can't listen to it without crying, I can't
To Zanardkand is one that usually gets me, a very simple piano piece that just knows how to hit in the right places. I noticed you've covered that song on the channel, so you already know. Final Fantasy 15 naturally has a couple good ones, but unfortunately short like Sunset Waltz and Nox Aeterna. And of course, naturally, Somnus. You've also covered that, I feel like there's not many tracks I could offer up that you've not already covered here.
Same for me about FFXV but Sunset Waltz is more soothing to me. Somnus is just the one i listen to when i know i need to cry and Ravus Æterna is just the définition of pain
Into the Dusk makes me tear up every time. The emotions that the OST can stir up cements Ace Combat as my favorite game series of all time. I want to take the time to thank you Marco. Thank you for giving us your insight on these tracks to those of us who may not know. Thank you for introducing more people to video game music.
The song that will make me cry 100% of the time is The Weight of the World from NieR:Automata. When the chorus kicks in, I'm ugly-crying usually, with big sobs. No other piece of music has this effect on me. The Bahamut OST makes me feel short of breath and gives me goosebumps, like I'm in love, but Weight of the World breaks me and renders me useless for a time, like very bad break up after a bittersweet relationship. I'm at the point where I'm scared this song will come up somewhere I'm not prepared for it and just break down in public haha
Mesh from Before Your Eyes hits me in the same way. The song perfectly portrays everything that came before it. .. I don't know just something about. It's just the perfect song to end off the game.
For me it's Sound of the End (Corruption), that plays near the beginning of Route C when 2B is on her way to meet A2. The quiet version of Sound of the End is already heartbreaking to listen to, but adding in the static buildup and with the surrounding context the Corruption version is the only song I've ever listened to that I can only describe as being physically painful. Like someone's slowly, slowly stepping on your chest and forcing the air out of you.
Never played nier. Have heard this song a hundred times and had tears in my eyes every time. I'm almost afraid to play the game because, like, if just the song alone does this who knows what the whole game will do to me
No spoilers of course, but the cutscene where "A Life Overflowing" plays is the only time I've ever cried at any piece of media - be it video game, movie, TV show or anything - ever. Perhaps this is too personal for a TH-cam comment, but I think it's pertinent to the point of the video: I have a real problem with crying. As of writing this, the last time I cried was when xenoblade 3 came out and I played it at launch. It's something I'm actively working on, and trying to be able to do when I need to let out my emotions, but still. For this scene to make even someone like me cry I think speaks to how amazing it was. I think a large part of the reason behind that goes to the music, particularly that string soloist towards the end. I'm not musically literate enough to put into words why it affected me so deeply, but my god it's just an incredible piece of music. Of course, the voice actors, animators and directors deserve their fair share of the credit too, but without "A Life Overflowing" I think the scene wouldn't have nearly the impact it does. God I love video games and their music. Hats off to all the composers out there. You all do such an incredible job.
Outer Wilds ftw! Heh, but that soundtrack is wonderful. A space game that carries so much heart and heartache across time… Surprised Spiritfarer’s Final Voyage didn’t getcha, tho perhaps the version with vocals would have done it? Certainly got me more than once. Then again… if you’re struggling with grief, that is not the game nor song for you. It touches that nerve so gently but firmly.
Gotta say, listening to a Life Overflowing with all the context in Xeno 3 is absolutely heartbreaking. Even moreso was the scene and music directly after it. Probably the best experience I've ever had with a modern video game.
It's interesting how well he described the scene the song is attached to just from the music. It's a real testament to both the quality of the music and Marco's skill in interpreting it.
Xenoblade 3 literally makes my breath skip knowing when this happens. It's one of the only games to really emotionally break me because of how tragic things are. I remember days afterwards I was still thinking about it.
Everything's Alright from To the Moon. A small indie game that I only know about because I watched Markiplier play it, but the ending song is probably one of the saddest songs I've ever heard especially in context to the story.
I was really thinking this. While the original really hits you in the feels, it's hard to stack that up against all of these well orchestrated tracks. It has the weight of context and nostalgia if you have the history, but the fidelity really does kind of hold it back. It got to keep it's gloves on for the rest of these track's sake.
@@licking9334 Aerith's the sassy action girl who knows far more than she's letting on - Tifa is the pure and innocent one! They just look and present themselves the opposite way, Tifa may know martial arts and dress like a punk but she's a simple country gal who just wants to live in peace, while Aerith may dress like a sweetheart but she hears the cries of the planet and understands the horrors of what is really going on from the spires to the slums of Midgar - and faces it with a smirk and a steel staff.
10:50 The progression of time, the rythmic ticking, and the journey you are on. I've always had a soft spot for stories that progress through time that in the end, really makes you reflect on the past journey. Imagine sitting at the end of time, thinking back to the beginning when it all started. It's both sad to see everything that ever was be taken by time, but also precious to think what the beginning is yet to experience in time. Never played Outer Wilds or watched anything of it. Think I might play that next.
She just wanted to bring a bit of colour to a dark corner of the world, and yet as fate dragged her to greater and more perilous heights she took all of it in stride with a smile on her face. A simple flower girl, too strong for hatred to overcome.
I'm going to Fanfest this weekend, and I just *know* that hearing the live piano concert with Keiko and Amanda Achen doing Flow is going to wreck me. I can't wait.
@@JamisonthaBRO15 I had never openly cried in front of ANYONE before but for both flow during the piano concert and for close in the distance during the primal I SOBBED. like shaking hunched over. my friends were very worried haha they were hugging me asking me if I was ok likE YES IT IS JUST THE SONG I SWEAR
@@TomboySnow Just hearing the opening notes for either song causes me to break down a little, and I always end up saying something to the effect of "Don't do this to me, not right now". The power of music, my friend.
For me it has a lot to do with context. As soon as I heard the music from Spiritfarer, I started crying because I basically cried through most of that game (in the best way - it was wonderful). Same thing with Flow from FFXIV. Suddenly I was right back at the end of Endwalker, crying my eyes out. Another one that wasn't in this video that gets me every time is Weight of the World from Nier Automata. I've never shed so many tears in a game as I did while I was playing that one.
Yeah. I think for music to make you cry... it has to resonate with something. Flow is a beautiful, emotional song but for me... its that bit towards the end that always get me and its because i hear a bit of dialogue that isn't in the song, its from the game and it pushes me over everytime. Its the same with many other songs, not just from games but from films or anime. The songs are beautiful, and often have some sad undertones, but i think for it to really make you cry... you need to know the fuller story, something a song isolation cannot give you.
FF14 will ALWAYS break me, like whether it's Flow or Dynamis, both songs just fill me with so many conflicting emotions, good and sad but it's so powerful !
Spiritfarer finally getting some attention somewhere. I didn't actually finish the game because it was just too sad for me to continue. It's a game where you meet and care for souls before they are ultimately released into death's grasp. You form connections with them by bringing them to different places, hearing their story, feeding them their favorite foods, etc. And at the end of each questline, you bring them to the everdoor where they depart the mortal realm forever.
The Uncle's one got me most. You have a lovely group meal together and then he just disappears and you find out that he moved on without needing your help to get there. You don't get that final goodbye. As someone who lost their Uncle when they were young to cancer and didn't get a final goodbye it stuck with me.
I cannot get over the KHUX version: th-cam.com/video/vCBHPUBLE2U/w-d-xo.html Forget the game for a moment. This is the one where it sounds like it's supposed to be a happy song, but it's what they would play at the end of a game where your beloved characters are going through something tragic. I'm probably the only person in existence who reads the song this way, but damn.
The Ace Combat 5 one is so nostalgic for me. It's basically a more tragic version of "15 Years Ago" of the same game. I was a young buck back then in 2005.
The fact you just said outright you don’t know much about halo then proved that by saying something not even a simple halo fan would BUT THEN you frikin NAILED a large idea of the plot and story of ODST just by listing to that one track. Thats so absolutely incredible to me. I just came here looking for that exact song from a different short. A comment in that short said that it was called music theory and it a language and then I watch this and you just proved that. Absolutely awesome to see
ODST is where you play, not as Master Chief, but as a squadron of ODST shocktroopers. The main character is the Rookie, who, in between the flashback levels of his other squadmates, has to navigate the wartorn city of New Mombasa in search for his squad, and the way you described Rain is spot on
Man I really loved watching these. Especially the Xenoblade one. Xenoblade ismy fav franchise so im glad u got to enjoy this piece because during the part of the game where this song plays is legit one of the most hard to watch scenes in the game. I also just love the idea of doing a try not to cry for music, i love music and I can always tell how much you do. Like yea it was ur profession and you learned so much about it but the way you listen to the music and move ur body I can really tell you arent just listening to the music you are feeling it, and I just think its super cool. That and everyone has something different to make them cry and its intereting to see who will cry at what so im excited to see more like this in the future keep up the great vids.
Oh man... oh man... As a FFXIV player, I haven't heard of Flow for so long, but as song as the chorus hit. My memory of the story come flushing back, that really hit hard. I know it's not from this song, but the simplest quote such as... Upon your return, I will gift you a beautiful flower. It got my sobbing crazy.
The saddest, most bittersweet song I know is Da Capo, which you’ve already reacted to. But it’s really the context and journey behind it that really gets me. That, or the concert version of Rubia.
lol @ MarcoMeatball. I'm so DAMN proud of you. to know one's self is the only true road any of us can take without hesitation... for the rewards of insight into one's soul is one of the true gifts of this universe. lol - music is a key to that door.
Luna is a good woofer. She had input, man! I listened to this while i was on a frustrating drive from work, for work. It helped calm me immensely, thank you for the wonderful interpretations and letting us listen with you!
I just hear the name Spiritfarer and I start to bawl. Just such a beautiful game/experience that will stick with me forever. (The lyrics to this piece will crush you) "take my hand"
It hurts so good. Replaying it is really interesting too because you have to sit and reflect on what you know is coming. No other game has taught me things about life (and death) the way this one has.
That main theme of Spiritfarer has a special little place in my heart. I hear it when I think of someone who has passed and mourn them. Everytime that happens that theme pops back up from that place in my heart, and reminds me to remember all of the good things they brought also.
You are completely valid for all of these and this was honestly a super rough challenge for me too and I haven’t played most of these games! Particularly the Xenoblade song and Last Voyage gets me every time. Those minor progressions and instrument choices! I’m so weak to the cello…
Rain from ODST just gives me "I am alone" vibes. The way I visualize it is as looking outside a balcony window, its dusk and raining. It's not about being sad... but more like acceptance.
With Omori...it opens with just the piano before the violin joins in...and it ends with the final notes just being the violin as the piano has fallen silent... Tiny bits of narrative in how the music is structured. The Omori soundtrack has a bunch of great tracks but I do feel they need the context of the game ot have their impact. Something like 'It Means Everything' is kinda...meh...on its own. But played during it's own scene it has so much more impact because of what it's telling us about how a character feels.
Wow I actually never thought about it like that, I guess it portrays how Mari was the firstborn, then sunny (hence the violin joining in). Then the piano stopping symbolising her unfortunate end. Thats some amazing songwriting and very dark ;-;
Flow is sooo good!! I cry because of the story of the game and lyrics, but there is also the personal life experience and our life journey, which is something highlighted in ff14, the journey of both the characters in game and ours in real life… this song is an emotional rollercoaster lol
If you do end up doing another one of these, I recommend “Epilogue” from Dark Souls 3 OST Not necessarily “sad” in the sense, but very melancholic and reflective and it has brought me to tears before. Its very impactful when you listen to it and think of the journey you just completed essentially starting from DS1. This song is essentially a farewell to the entirety of Dark Souls as a series and the experience and it hits extra hard when you listen to it and think about what it symbolizes and the motif of “this is the end, but there is never truly an end” - a perfect embodiment of Dark Souls as a whole and a beautiful track to finish off a one of a kind journey.
Same reaction for me but I think it really benefits from its context: "There is not going to be more dark souls" at least that is the third game's promise.
Personally, Zelda's lullaby of Skyward sword, always makes me cry, is so beautiful but so awesome, the theme itself is so charming and, deep, that i can't help but just cry, to such magnificent piece
"The Price of Freedom" from FF7: Crisis Core made me sob into my PSP. Knowing you don't "win" the game until Zack dies, but you still use up all of your Phoenix downs, mega potions, elixirs to stay alive.
Grandma from the original release of Nier is legitimately the saddest song I’ve ever heard, and knowing the context behind it makes it even worse but it’s oh so beautiful. Would be great to see what you think about it !
Spot on with Halo! That theme plays for the protagonist separated from the rest of his squad when he encounters traces of his squad around the city and the game shows how said traces came to be, in a "what happened here?" kind of way. No superhuman-grade Master Chief saving the day, just a reasonably normal human soldier alone roaming the streets of a city ravaged by an invading alien army.
I would love more of these. Maybe one of these days a song I recommend will get on the list one day, I'll continue hoping :) Plague Tale is not a popular franchise sadly. I'm really glad to see Deference for Darkness and 14.3 billion years on this list. I'm touched by how Outer Wilds reminded you of your father. ODST is really one of my favourite stories from all of the Halo games. Being a lone soldier in abandoned, neon lit streets with saxophone in the background is an incredible experience.
I really love the Plague's Tale (1 & 2 but especially 1) soundtracks too! There’s some really unique, powerful and touching songs in that game. It’s hard to explain but there is this rawness to them that just makes you feel a lot of things when listening to them. It’s been years since I’ve played ODST but as soon as I heard Deference for Darkness all the feelings I felt when I played that game came rushing back. Beautiful song. 14.3 billion is one of my favorites so I’m happy to hear it here too. This one always gets me emotional.
I highly recommend the JP version of Weight of the World from Nier Automata. The English version is great too, but the Japanese version has one moment that sets it apart that I don't want to spoil.
HALO 3 ODSTs theme is perfect for the theme, you wake up after being knocked out from a crash and you’re basically a lone soldier in an enemy controlled city trying ti investigate and find his squad. Small story but super calming and unnerving at times too
"Vector to the Heavens" from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (and the series as a whole) is one that always gets me. While the games have plenty of tracks that carry significant emotional weight, this particular song, and what it represents, has terrorized the fandom for over a decade. It has been historically associated with a particular character but is more accurately assigned to a collective feeling of overwhelming tragedy and loss that is ultimately beyond the control of our main characters. The other one is "Don't Think Twice" from Kingdom Hearts 3 because in context it's a song about people that were separated by impossible circumstances finally coming together and sharing their true feelings, that plays over the most heartbreaking display of cosmic irony in the entire series as the two people the song is ostensibly about are forced apart for the crime of being good people.
My recommendation is "Parting" and/or "The Tomorrow With You" from Xenoblade 2 The former made someone who had no context cry (Music theory for gamers) which I find says a lot about the raw feeling it oozes
Rainfall from ODST brings back quite a few memories of me and my younger brother playing together, so some tears there for me. But 14.3 billion years, even though I've never played the game it made me shed a couple tears as well. Beautiful song.
Rain is a different feeling. It's sad and sombre because it's the rainy night over a ruined and abandoned city. It is sad, but it doesn't let you stay sad for long, simply because there's a tension; it's not _entirely_ abandoned, and it's not safe. You gotta keep moving, watch the roofs and the streets because, whilst it is sad, there is danger, and it intends on hunting you. But you're not so helpless yourself, and you've got a job to do.
An absolutely wonderful video Marco, I love these types of emotional/powerful songs so I am glad you made this video. If I were to pitch in a few songs myself it would be: - Bastion: Mother, I'm Here (Zulf's Theme) - Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core - The Price of Freedom - Dust An Elysian Tail - Gone Home (Journey's End) - Kingdom Hearts - Dearly Beloved - World of Warcraft - Anduin's Theme Keep up the great work! Looking forward to any and all videos you put out in the future!
This is the first time Flow got me to choke up some. I was in a really bad way when Endwalker launched, and I was unable to accept the finality of the piece, the gentle farewell it expresses. I wasn't ready to let go of the people I had just lost. I am now though, and Flow is now the peaceful goodbye I needed.
So halo ODST takes place on earth at the end of the human covenant war. Humanity has just gone through years of systematic extermination at the hands of the covenant and now they are on earth. The game starts with your orbital drop going to shit and your whole unit being separated. You go through the game walking through war torn city streets trying to piece together what happened to your fellow ODSTs. Occasionally you play through a flash back from your allies perspective. This is the only first person halo game where you play as just a regular old human. You got the intended emotions and thoughts spot on for the track.
would love to see more of these! im skipping the xenoblade 3 one cuz im currently playing it and i want to hear the song blind in the game so it hits with maximum sadge, but ill come back to see your reaction later!
Yeah, I've palyed XB 3 already, but I'm exactly the same way. I will go out of my way to avoid a game's OST if I know I want to play it just so I can hear each track for the first time in its propper context.
I was just commenting to see if Aerith theme was included! I think for music context is everything music can definitely convey a meaning but accompanying a scene or event really adds some strength to it.
"We may not have much in common, you and I. Still, I consider you as a friend" - Solanum Probaly i say this in all videos of outer Wild, because that game is magic
Dude. I lost it at Last Voyage. Its the song that plays as you lead a restless spirit- whom you have spent the past 5 to 10 hours feeding, building them a house and decorating it, going on quests for and with them- to the portal to the afterlife. I remember the old lady hedgehog (Alice) who calls your character "sweetheart" all the time. I remember feeding her veggie pot pies to make her as happy as possible. I remember cozying up her little cottage on my boat adding a bed and pretty flowers. I remember her getting excited in the final part of her quest, craving adventure just like her late husband did with her. I remember her standing on that high peak when she stumbled and began to lose her memory as Dementia kicked in, how she couldn't leave her house and I had to move it down for her. I remember taking her to the portal, mistaking my character for her daughter. I remember as the music increased in intensity as the portal lit up and the tears forming, falling as she vanished in a flash of white light. Man, what a great game.
Surprised this was the track they chose as I don't think it's remotely the saddest one on the OST! 'A Step Away' or 'Where We Belong' I would have thought.
@@sirbobulouspersonally I believe that the vocal songs from Xenoblade are good because of the context, but on their own quite cheesy and not the saddest music in the game
*Tearless Souls of Byakuya.* Will always leave my heart empty because everytime I heard that play in Genshin it just tugged my heartstrings. That song alone tells all we need to know about Enkanomiya as a whole and that's what really made me so emotional for it. Enkanomiya's entire soundtrack in Genshin alone is just one of the most somber, sad and lonely pieces of music i've ever heard. It's really, really good. And i'll always consider that to be one of the saddest songs ever. [Had to respost since I couldn't remember the name of the track for a second, oopsies lol.]
Aeriths theme hits hard for me. Especially as i was quite young when i played the first time, I was completely blindsided by the event, I went back to her house where her mother was waiting for her and sat in The garden. And i think that was the first time i felt loss like that... i was straight up sobbing and my mother had to comfort me.
Thanks for these beautiful new pieces in my collection. :) If I may be so bold and recommend some tracks that very much tug at my heartstrings and to which I myself have shed a few tears: "Milly's Theme", from Q.U.B.E. 2 "A Writer Writes", from "Lost Worlds: Beyond the Page" "Journey's End", from "The Outer Worlds" "Trespasser - Lost Elf Theme", from "Dragon Age: Inquisition" "Dawn Of A New Time", from "Battlefield 1"
The odst song being about why is this happening this way makes alot of sense, as the game is essentially a whole story of why is this happening and nothing is going right.
Not gonna lie, I didn't think I'd cry to this video, music gets me emotional but it doesn't make me cry. But listening to 14.3 billion years and taking it all in made me think about my life. I didn't just cry, I broke down sobbing. Felt like I've lost myself recently, lost what my true goals were and what younger me wanted as a grown up. Now I'm 25 years old and all I can think about is the people I've loved and never speak to anymore, the journey I've set myself on, what lies ahead. I think I'm gonna go buy Outer Wilds and play it now.
Personally; the song OMORI from OMORI hits harder than Final Duet. It might sound like a simple piece at first, but it's such a well crafted piece that manages to portray the pain as the conflict builds up and intensifies. Idk if Marco reads comments, but whomever does read this, I highly recommend taking a listen if you like pain in music form :) As the song is dynamic, there's two versions of the song, so if you wanna listen I recommend finding a video that play both after each other
If you happen to do another one of these, “Ideals and Reality” from the Triangle Strategy OST would be a good pick. It’s got such a dark, heavy atmosphere, even outside of the context of the game it hits me in the feels every time I hear it. I don’t even necessarily know how to describe the feeling, the closest I can get is just really heavy, painful regret.
14.3 Billion Years never fails to make me emotional. Outer Wilds had such a profound impact on me and genuinely changed how I view life and the universe. It is one of the best games I've ever experienced and everyone should play it.
Loved your choices. I like to add some songs if you don't mind. First would be "Gris Pt.1+2" as well as "In your hands" (from Gris, a game about loss), "Kimi no kioku" from Persona 3 (which doesn't sounds sad at all until you realize what the ending actually implies, "Apotheosis" from Journey (mainly because I always played with lovely people and cried like a dog at the end evertime) and "The Price of Freedom" from FF7 Crisis Core (a game where you know the outcome but when you arrive at the end still try to change it...) ;_;
You noted that Aerith's Theme ends weirdly. This is because of a limiting requirement of some video game music that's not present in every other style of music. Songs like Aerith's theme have to seamlessly be able to loop to run for as long as the player is hanging around in that portion of gameplay. Not like a film or an Opera where the music is written to be as long as needed for the scene. It's an extra constraint that has to be taken into account for some music from video games if it's going to be played during a point where the player has direct control and agency over the length of the scene.
It was certainly more of a constraint back then when the games were much smaller. However, it is exclusively (except for small independents with very limited resources) a creative decision today, and even back then, it was mostly just an undying tradition from ancient jrpgs like Dragon Quest. Nowadays, the given sound effects and white noise of a zone are far more than enough to fill the void left by a lack of music. Minecraft and Halo (from the very first one on) are both examples of ways that completely repudiate that approach with the latter tying music to specific set pieces and zone transitions and the other inserting a new location-appropriate track after a random timespan.
If this gets a second part, there needs to be something from Pokemon Mystery Dungeon in it. There's so many tracks one could choose from, but I'd suggest "Don't ever forget..." or "In the morning sun" (or "Memories returned"...). So many beautiful, heartwrenching songs in those games, though I don't think they'll hit as hard without the context.
I still remember watching the Ori and the Blind Forest/Will of Wisps trailer and nearly crying for the first few times. I've seen a full playthrough of Outer Wilds and that song is just so perfect you have to see what it accompanies to understand it properly. As for Halo 3 ODST that is something i played solo on the lowest difficulty purely for the story and it's emotional feel and oh boy does it hit you hard, it's something you have to personally experience to feel in its fullest. Another very beautiful and sad soundtrack is the one at the end of a certain Sumeru mainline quest in which a lot of things happen, you get to a particular place and it hits your soul like a nuke as the space opens up before you(before you've even done anything in it) as the music kicks into gear. That soundtrack i've put in my teapot just because i feel it fits.
Notes: I need to do like 5 more of these. a few songs like to river from to the moon and mice on venus had issues and were removed. So, I'm just going to keep doing these. The video is already super long with just THESE.
You mean mice on venus minecraft track?
yea@@63Limar
Aww that's too bad about For River. That song and To The Moon itself had me full on bawling at the end.
To The Moon has an amazing soundtrack. Too bad there were issues :(
Had I thought about it, I would have suggested the Travellers Song (all instruments) from Outer Wilds, personnally that one makes me bawl more than 14.3 Billion Years.
in halo odst your not a sparten like master chief, you're just a human(still the best non augmented human but a human nonetheless) and you're alone, traversing dark streets littered with abandoned cars and coventant death squads on patrol, while you search for your missing fireteam with only the sound of rain to accompany you.
Halo ODST one of my favourite games, that i really should replay for the 800th time.
14.3 billion years man… Outer Wilds is something else
Agreed. Hell, the game itself is also a masterpiece man.
This might be the track that convinces me to play the game. What the fuck was that that was incredible
@@darudesandstorm244 go play it try and go as blind as possible the only thing I can say is be prepared to read a lot as that is how basically all the story is told and I know some people don’t like to read so even if you you don’t like to read try and push through it’ll click eventually.
@@darudesandstorm244 You are in for a treat.
heat death of the universe. The fact not even the planet we are walking is immortal. Even existence itself.
14.3 Billion Years from Outer Wilds is one of those songs that always sends chills down my spine and makes me very emotional, even after hearing it hundreds of times (while finishing my studies I had the soundtrack on repeat for a few weeks as it helped me focus on homework). It's a mix of profound sadness, joy, nostalgia, and hope that is part of a unique video game experience. I hope you will one day jump in the game and enjoy it as much as I did, this game is my personal #1 of all times
someone did a vocal cover and its really nice
@@FlutterSwag do you have a link please ?
@@RR-lz1zf th-cam.com/video/G_LrAq8-NDw/w-d-xo.html
@@RR-lz1zf
I'm sure you could type in "14.3 billion years vocal cover" and find it.
To me it's always felt like "it's all over, but hey, that's ok" - which, yknow, in context... Kinda perfect.
Final Duet as a song genuinely hits so much harder once you play Omori and really understand the story it’s trying to tell you. It’s also arguably one of the most important songs in the entire game
“You know, waltzes were always my favorite…”
I unironically can’t listen to that song without tearing up and feeling intensely melancholic. Doesn’t help that i played this game blind with my sister and that we both play an instrument lmao
it's the main theme in a way
@@_elynas it's a canon event
@@thefull9746 it's the "completed" main theme, which fits given that a major part of the MC's arc is his struggle with being unable to move forward
That Rain track from Halo 3: ODST brought me back to my teen years. It's the song that made me appreciate how somber, cold yet calming the rain is. To find the beauty or hope in sorrow is what that piece speaks to me
Ugh. Flow ALWAYS gets me. Something about that piece resonates on such a profound emotional level.
Maybe it’s just a me thing, because I love bittersweet endings, and Flow perfectly encapsulates all the emotion of an extremely bittersweet ending to me. But I cannot hear it without tearing up at least a little bit, no matter how many times I’ve already heard it.
Flow can be strong. But what gets me is Hopeful Dynamis.
Which is essentially an instrumential version. But both are great.
Flow is a great piece to get people that have never played FFXIV to cry and get emotional.
BUT if you want to get someone who HAS played FFXIV to cry and get emotional, then Close in the Distance is the song to play.
@@LadyTsunade777 I think it just depends on the person. I love Close in the Distance, but it doesn’t make me bawl quite the way Flow does
@@Stickarms99 for me it's the recent orchestral production of Tomorrow and Tomorrow that overhelms me to the point of nigh ceaseless tears. In regards to XIV's soundtrack anyway.
@@FireWarrior2013 that one gets me pretty good too!
It's hard to make someone cry with a soundtrack without context, and believe me the scene where that Xenoblade song plays can make grown men cry when you combine it with the dialogue. No game has made me cry, but that part of the game was so close that remembering it still makes me emotional. The whole sequence (like almost an hour of cutscenes and with another great song) is soul destroying, but unless you've gone through the story and been there most of that gets lost.
Yeah with context, that bit HURTS.
I didn’t just cry. I actually wept. My first time weeping at a video game and it’s Xenoblade. Man, such a great game.
Perfectly explained
Tbh my mom didn’t really know the context of the other piece of OST, A Step Away, and even she felt like crying.
Yes and no. Context can magnify the emotions, but some tracks can stand on their own (emotionally) with just the limited context of their name and maybe where they come from, even though the imagined context might differ from the actual one.
Case in point, I have yet to play Outer Wilds, only know the general premise and haven't listened to anything from the OST, but '14.3 billion years' still did me in.
Never played Outer Wilds but 14.3 billion years always gets me somehow. I'm not an emotional person and i rarely get sad from movies, games or music. but this one hits me like a truck everytime.
It is a game you truly can only experience once. I can't begin to describe how much I love it and how badly I wish I could experience it for the first time again. 14.3 Billion Years is the credits song and it makes me cry every time.
It's worth double the price they ask for. I'd pick it up and try it. It's not a terribly long game, but every moment of it is memorable, and it sticks with you.
The outer wilds track was the only one that really gripped my heart and made me cry. Absolutely beautiful piece.
My first time hearing it, and man....that song takes you on a JOURNEY, it's almost concerning how powerful it is at times. I need to play that game.
sounds great but didn't make me sad in any way, the ODST one did.
If you haven't played Halo 3 ODST you should give it a shot, its a short game. It's about as long as the Witch Queen without all the level grinding. The other Halo games aren't super required to know the story because its an entire spinoff. Bare bone story: a team of ODST get separated on drop and they make it their mission to regroup and escape because the operation is scrubbed. It has a very mellow tone and the songs are so unique compared to the other game.
For reference, the game took me under 3 hours to beat on Legendary. However, I am an experienced player. So maybe about 5 videos or something for you. I know you're staying away from one, but I only recommend this because its so good.
*Flow starts playing* "I'll be fine this time."
"Well come and well met, my brave little spark" *bawling*
No XIV player is ever “fine” when Mom’s song gets going.🥲
Maybe I'm just basic, but Answers hits harder for me. Especially after 6.0 recontextualized it into a veritable soul-crusher.
I was at Fan Fest in Vegas last year and let me tell you when Amanda Achen sang "well come and well met, my brave little *sparks*" during Keiko's piano performance I saw MANY people wiping tears. Truly something special.
There's at least one song out of each HALO game to fit a list like this. Hope Ashes from HALO Reach makes it. That one pangs my heart.
the iconic saxophone from odst is a good one for this imo EDIT: oh nvm he got the song
edit edit: it was not what i thought it was? saxophone odst song is still available to be reacted to
The one that always gets me is Never Forget from Halo 3
For me personally, the music from the Reach trailer “Deliver Hope” always gets me misty-eyed
Without spoiling anything major, the way you desribed the feeling of A Life Overflowing is exactly the kind of context it plays in and it is insanely good at making you feel the despair, sorrow and frustration the characters feel during the pivotal moment it plays in. Honestly, I'd say playing the third game, even without knowledge of the previous two games, purely for that part alone is absolutely worth it.
Man.. Into the dusk while playing the game. Out of missiles, Down to your machine gun, hearing your comrades cry and still fighting, I couldn't help to cry.
We salute you Chopper!
When Chopper went down, I was so angry. And you know it's heartbreaking when you get angry and suddenly you start flying like a real ace. I launched only 2 more missles, and gunned down the rest.
I was thirteen years when I went through Mission 18: Supercircus. How I experienced it:
Stage 1: Sandbox galore. Kill any TGTs.🤩 Flew the F15C into the dogfight. Very excited.
Stage 2: Gorizant Squadron coming in with their F117 Nighthawks. 😎 Challenge accepted. Felt very confident in hunting them down.
Stage 3: The enemy missile now knows where Chopper is. Motormouth gets hit but is still flying. Feeling worried and shaking.😰
Stage 4: Gorizant destroyed. Chooper cannot bail out. Dies and crashes into Stadium... He's gone.😭
Stage 5: More enemy fighters. No SP missiles left. Only few OG missiles ad autocannon... The gloves have come off. The sky just got bloody... And I'm in heap of rage and anger.👿👿👿
Don’t forget the missing man formation at the end. 😭 I couldn’t play anymore that day.
@@matthewpoirier3564I had been saving my special weapon up till that scene. First thing I did was switch to my special and light up 2 rapid fire. The first time I played I definitely was so pissed that I kept chasing the 2 planes the game wouldn't let me kill shooting them with my guns.
Ive never played a single Xenoblade, and I almost cried during that song. The notes went exactly where you knew they were gonna go, in the best possible way. Man I need to pick a switch up.
I knew another streamer I will not name bc this is Marco’s channel that actually cried very hard almost 3 times listening to xenoblade music without contest. So yeah it’s worth playing it
Bit late for that innit. We are probably gonna get a new backwards compatable nintendo console in the next 2 years
@@ShikiRyougi05 That's a LONG, LONG 2 years.
@@lockekappa500 go ahead then but you better buy the switch Xenoblade 1,2 and 3 at the same time ;)
The switch has the entire trilogy on it so you'll at least have no issues with needing multiple consoles for the games.
Aw man speaking of sad halo music, Never Forget always hits me hard, it’s the peak feeling of nostalgia and missing the good ol days type of feel when I listen to it, fitting title for it
Rain (Deference for Darkness) will always get me. When I was really depressed in the past listening to that song would be the one way I could really let myself cry, release the pent up stress and feelings of worthlessness. A Life Overflowing really got me too and that was the first time I'd heard it, really beautiful tracks
I too am part of the Outer Wilds mind virus epidemic and I honestly beg anyone who has not played it to get it and play it without looking up anything about it. The game's entire progression isn't just BUILT on what you, the player, knows- it is ENTIRELY what you know. There is a single "ability" you can unlock in the game and it is just a /convenience/ function. Everything else is based on your sense of curiosity and your ability to put the pieces together in your head. (And your ability to navigate in Zero-G. but that can be learned! It all can be learned.)
The Outer Wilds is, unironically and earnestly, an invitation to discovery. However, the most unexpected discovery may be one you make about yourself.
More impressively Marco seems to have such an understanding and emotional connection with music he looks like he’s always on the cusp of tears
Roxas' theme from KH always gets me. It's the phrasing and dynamics. They're just masterfully done to yank the heart.
(Light spoilers ahead)
Everything about Roxas' story yanks the heart. The end of the prologue of KH2 stings so bad. He's just a lost kid trying his best to be a kid and the end of his journey of self-discovery is the discovery that he has no self. It's just so... unfair.
@@SuperMac2007 I guess my summer vacation... is over...
@@riikka9842 Dude I'm listening to it right now after reading your comment, this just set me over the edge :'( lmao
@@SuperMac2007 Aw... I know those feels.
I love Kh music, especially Roxas’s theme. But the one that always gets me is Xion’s theme; always brings me to tears
The Last Voyage is a melancholy song of memories. It plays during the scenes where a character you've gotten to know and love says their final farewell to you. The swell in music is usually paired with a loving final hug. These scenes flash in my mind whenever I hear the song, and it's enough to make me cry again, every time I hear it.
"I have loved you as much as I could"
I was doing ok and then the opening notes for Flow kicked in and I was like "ah yes, this is where my destruction comes in." I heard it in context first as an avid FFXIV player, and when "Hush love, close your eyes" started now in your video, I was sobbing in my chair. I can't listen to it without crying, I can't
To Zanardkand is one that usually gets me, a very simple piano piece that just knows how to hit in the right places. I noticed you've covered that song on the channel, so you already know.
Final Fantasy 15 naturally has a couple good ones, but unfortunately short like Sunset Waltz and Nox Aeterna. And of course, naturally, Somnus. You've also covered that, I feel like there's not many tracks I could offer up that you've not already covered here.
>Load up FFX
>Cry
Same for me about FFXV but Sunset Waltz is more soothing to me. Somnus is just the one i listen to when i know i need to cry and Ravus Æterna is just the définition of pain
Sorry i misread Nox with Ravus. But yeah... sorry i dont like Nox Aeterna, it is more Noctis that get me
It may not be a "sad" song, but the "Oracion" from Pokemon: legend of Darkrai always gets me, either it be nostalgia or just the music itself.
Into the Dusk makes me tear up every time. The emotions that the OST can stir up cements Ace Combat as my favorite game series of all time.
I want to take the time to thank you Marco.
Thank you for giving us your insight on these tracks to those of us who may not know.
Thank you for introducing more people to video game music.
The song that will make me cry 100% of the time is The Weight of the World from NieR:Automata. When the chorus kicks in, I'm ugly-crying usually, with big sobs.
No other piece of music has this effect on me. The Bahamut OST makes me feel short of breath and gives me goosebumps, like I'm in love, but Weight of the World breaks me and renders me useless for a time, like very bad break up after a bittersweet relationship.
I'm at the point where I'm scared this song will come up somewhere I'm not prepared for it and just break down in public haha
The first few notes alone just make me tear up
The english version is rough but the JP version is soul-crushing. Even not knowing the words she's singing, the voice cracks and stuff are brutal
Mesh from Before Your Eyes hits me in the same way. The song perfectly portrays everything that came before it. .. I don't know just something about. It's just the perfect song to end off the game.
For me it's Sound of the End (Corruption), that plays near the beginning of Route C when 2B is on her way to meet A2. The quiet version of Sound of the End is already heartbreaking to listen to, but adding in the static buildup and with the surrounding context the Corruption version is the only song I've ever listened to that I can only describe as being physically painful. Like someone's slowly, slowly stepping on your chest and forcing the air out of you.
Never played nier. Have heard this song a hundred times and had tears in my eyes every time. I'm almost afraid to play the game because, like, if just the song alone does this who knows what the whole game will do to me
No spoilers of course, but the cutscene where "A Life Overflowing" plays is the only time I've ever cried at any piece of media - be it video game, movie, TV show or anything - ever. Perhaps this is too personal for a TH-cam comment, but I think it's pertinent to the point of the video: I have a real problem with crying. As of writing this, the last time I cried was when xenoblade 3 came out and I played it at launch. It's something I'm actively working on, and trying to be able to do when I need to let out my emotions, but still. For this scene to make even someone like me cry I think speaks to how amazing it was.
I think a large part of the reason behind that goes to the music, particularly that string soloist towards the end. I'm not musically literate enough to put into words why it affected me so deeply, but my god it's just an incredible piece of music. Of course, the voice actors, animators and directors deserve their fair share of the credit too, but without "A Life Overflowing" I think the scene wouldn't have nearly the impact it does.
God I love video games and their music. Hats off to all the composers out there. You all do such an incredible job.
Outer Wilds ftw!
Heh, but that soundtrack is wonderful. A space game that carries so much heart and heartache across time…
Surprised Spiritfarer’s Final Voyage didn’t getcha, tho perhaps the version with vocals would have done it? Certainly got me more than once. Then again… if you’re struggling with grief, that is not the game nor song for you. It touches that nerve so gently but firmly.
Gotta say, listening to a Life Overflowing with all the context in Xeno 3 is absolutely heartbreaking. Even moreso was the scene and music directly after it.
Probably the best experience I've ever had with a modern video game.
It's interesting how well he described the scene the song is attached to just from the music. It's a real testament to both the quality of the music and Marco's skill in interpreting it.
Xenoblade 3 literally makes my breath skip knowing when this happens. It's one of the only games to really emotionally break me because of how tragic things are. I remember days afterwards I was still thinking about it.
Everything's Alright from To the Moon. A small indie game that I only know about because I watched Markiplier play it, but the ending song is probably one of the saddest songs I've ever heard especially in context to the story.
Much agreed.
To the Moon and its OST crushed my soul
Man, Aerith's theme always destroys me. The one from the remake game is gorgeous.
I was really thinking this. While the original really hits you in the feels, it's hard to stack that up against all of these well orchestrated tracks. It has the weight of context and nostalgia if you have the history, but the fidelity really does kind of hold it back. It got to keep it's gloves on for the rest of these track's sake.
Aerith is just too pure and innocent for such a cruel world of FF7. Salute to Nobuo Uematsu for creating this masterpiece
@@licking9334 Aerith's the sassy action girl who knows far more than she's letting on - Tifa is the pure and innocent one! They just look and present themselves the opposite way, Tifa may know martial arts and dress like a punk but she's a simple country gal who just wants to live in peace, while Aerith may dress like a sweetheart but she hears the cries of the planet and understands the horrors of what is really going on from the spires to the slums of Midgar - and faces it with a smirk and a steel staff.
3 first notes are enought.
I lost to Omori only cause the context made my reaction 100x worse. Flow and life overflowing is just made to make ya cry tho :P
10:50 The progression of time, the rythmic ticking, and the journey you are on. I've always had a soft spot for stories that progress through time that in the end, really makes you reflect on the past journey.
Imagine sitting at the end of time, thinking back to the beginning when it all started. It's both sad to see everything that ever was be taken by time, but also precious to think what the beginning is yet to experience in time.
Never played Outer Wilds or watched anything of it. Think I might play that next.
Definitely play it.
But absolutely NO SPOILERS
Aerith's theme never fails to bring me to tears immediately. It just punches me right in the gut
She just wanted to bring a bit of colour to a dark corner of the world, and yet as fate dragged her to greater and more perilous heights she took all of it in stride with a smile on her face. A simple flower girl, too strong for hatred to overcome.
I'm going to Fanfest this weekend, and I just *know* that hearing the live piano concert with Keiko and Amanda Achen doing Flow is going to wreck me. I can't wait.
The video they uploaded already made me cry. Enjoy the live performance. :)
Heard it live from the Primals and at the Eorzean Symphony... Fuck, that broke me.
@@JamisonthaBRO15 I had never openly cried in front of ANYONE before but for both flow during the piano concert and for close in the distance during the primal I SOBBED. like shaking hunched over. my friends were very worried haha they were hugging me asking me if I was ok likE YES IT IS JUST THE SONG I SWEAR
@@TomboySnow Just hearing the opening notes for either song causes me to break down a little, and I always end up saying something to the effect of "Don't do this to me, not right now". The power of music, my friend.
For me it has a lot to do with context. As soon as I heard the music from Spiritfarer, I started crying because I basically cried through most of that game (in the best way - it was wonderful). Same thing with Flow from FFXIV. Suddenly I was right back at the end of Endwalker, crying my eyes out.
Another one that wasn't in this video that gets me every time is Weight of the World from Nier Automata. I've never shed so many tears in a game as I did while I was playing that one.
The solo walk RUINED me when I got there and oh god, it was to the point I was ugly crying into ice cream. Though 10/10 would do that again
Yeah. I think for music to make you cry... it has to resonate with something. Flow is a beautiful, emotional song but for me... its that bit towards the end that always get me and its because i hear a bit of dialogue that isn't in the song, its from the game and it pushes me over everytime.
Its the same with many other songs, not just from games but from films or anime. The songs are beautiful, and often have some sad undertones, but i think for it to really make you cry... you need to know the fuller story, something a song isolation cannot give you.
FF14 will ALWAYS break me, like whether it's Flow or Dynamis, both songs just fill me with so many conflicting emotions, good and sad but it's so powerful !
Even before Endwalker and that cutscene Answers hit me hard.
I cant recall how many times FF14 curled me into a messy ball, and EW was ROUGH 😅
Spiritfarer finally getting some attention somewhere. I didn't actually finish the game because it was just too sad for me to continue. It's a game where you meet and care for souls before they are ultimately released into death's grasp. You form connections with them by bringing them to different places, hearing their story, feeding them their favorite foods, etc. And at the end of each questline, you bring them to the everdoor where they depart the mortal realm forever.
It's not the mortal realm they are leaving; it's the spirit world they are leaving and finally going to rest.
The Uncle's one got me most. You have a lovely group meal together and then he just disappears and you find out that he moved on without needing your help to get there. You don't get that final goodbye. As someone who lost their Uncle when they were young to cancer and didn't get a final goodbye it stuck with me.
Dearly Beloved from Kingdom Hearts 1 always kills me. Tears running, trembeling Lips. All this for such a little, soft piece of Music.
I cannot get over the KHUX version: th-cam.com/video/vCBHPUBLE2U/w-d-xo.html
Forget the game for a moment. This is the one where it sounds like it's supposed to be a happy song, but it's what they would play at the end of a game where your beloved characters are going through something tragic. I'm probably the only person in existence who reads the song this way, but damn.
The Ace Combat 5 one is so nostalgic for me. It's basically a more tragic version of "15 Years Ago" of the same game.
I was a young buck back then in 2005.
The fact you just said outright you don’t know much about halo then proved that by saying something not even a simple halo fan would BUT THEN you frikin NAILED a large idea of the plot and story of ODST just by listing to that one track. Thats so absolutely incredible to me. I just came here looking for that exact song from a different short. A comment in that short said that it was called music theory and it a language and then I watch this and you just proved that. Absolutely awesome to see
ODST is where you play, not as Master Chief, but as a squadron of ODST shocktroopers. The main character is the Rookie, who, in between the flashback levels of his other squadmates, has to navigate the wartorn city of New Mombasa in search for his squad, and the way you described Rain is spot on
Man I really loved watching these. Especially the Xenoblade one. Xenoblade ismy fav franchise so im glad u got to enjoy this piece because during the part of the game where this song plays is legit one of the most hard to watch scenes in the game. I also just love the idea of doing a try not to cry for music, i love music and I can always tell how much you do. Like yea it was ur profession and you learned so much about it but the way you listen to the music and move ur body I can really tell you arent just listening to the music you are feeling it, and I just think its super cool. That and everyone has something different to make them cry and its intereting to see who will cry at what so im excited to see more like this in the future keep up the great vids.
Oh man... oh man... As a FFXIV player, I haven't heard of Flow for so long, but as song as the chorus hit. My memory of the story come flushing back, that really hit hard. I know it's not from this song, but the simplest quote such as... Upon your return, I will gift you a beautiful flower. It got my sobbing crazy.
The saddest, most bittersweet song I know is Da Capo, which you’ve already reacted to. But it’s really the context and journey behind it that really gets me.
That, or the concert version of Rubia.
lol @ MarcoMeatball. I'm so DAMN proud of you. to know one's self is the only true road any of us can take without hesitation... for the rewards of insight into one's soul is one of the true gifts of this universe. lol - music is a key to that door.
Luna is a good woofer. She had input, man!
I listened to this while i was on a frustrating drive from work, for work. It helped calm me immensely, thank you for the wonderful interpretations and letting us listen with you!
I just hear the name Spiritfarer and I start to bawl. Just such a beautiful game/experience that will stick with me forever. (The lyrics to this piece will crush you) "take my hand"
It hurts so good. Replaying it is really interesting too because you have to sit and reflect on what you know is coming. No other game has taught me things about life (and death) the way this one has.
That main theme of Spiritfarer has a special little place in my heart. I hear it when I think of someone who has passed and mourn them. Everytime that happens that theme pops back up from that place in my heart, and reminds me to remember all of the good things they brought also.
"I can't believe he didn't cry during the Titanic"
"do men even have feelings?"
Final Fantasy 7:
Should absolutely do a part 2, 3, 4, etc. so many good sad songs out there. I personally love the sad songs in the Suikoden series
You are completely valid for all of these and this was honestly a super rough challenge for me too and I haven’t played most of these games! Particularly the Xenoblade song and Last Voyage gets me every time. Those minor progressions and instrument choices! I’m so weak to the cello…
Rain from ODST just gives me "I am alone" vibes. The way I visualize it is as looking outside a balcony window, its dusk and raining. It's not about being sad... but more like acceptance.
With Omori...it opens with just the piano before the violin joins in...and it ends with the final notes just being the violin as the piano has fallen silent...
Tiny bits of narrative in how the music is structured.
The Omori soundtrack has a bunch of great tracks but I do feel they need the context of the game ot have their impact. Something like 'It Means Everything' is kinda...meh...on its own. But played during it's own scene it has so much more impact because of what it's telling us about how a character feels.
Wow I actually never thought about it like that, I guess it portrays how Mari was the firstborn, then sunny (hence the violin joining in). Then the piano stopping symbolising her unfortunate end. Thats some amazing songwriting and very dark ;-;
@@jeffiszename2928 Makes me want to go back and see if there's anything else I can pick up in the tracks on that OST.
Flow is sooo good!! I cry because of the story of the game and lyrics, but there is also the personal life experience and our life journey, which is something highlighted in ff14, the journey of both the characters in game and ours in real life… this song is an emotional rollercoaster lol
If you do end up doing another one of these, I recommend “Epilogue” from Dark Souls 3 OST
Not necessarily “sad” in the sense, but very melancholic and reflective and it has brought me to tears before. Its very impactful when you listen to it and think of the journey you just completed essentially starting from DS1.
This song is essentially a farewell to the entirety of Dark Souls as a series and the experience and it hits extra hard when you listen to it and think about what it symbolizes and the motif of “this is the end, but there is never truly an end” - a perfect embodiment of Dark Souls as a whole and a beautiful track to finish off a one of a kind journey.
Same reaction for me but I think it really benefits from its context: "There is not going to be more dark souls" at least that is the third game's promise.
Personally, Zelda's lullaby of Skyward sword, always makes me cry, is so beautiful but so awesome, the theme itself is so charming and, deep, that i can't help but just cry, to such magnificent piece
"The Price of Freedom" from FF7: Crisis Core made me sob into my PSP. Knowing you don't "win" the game until Zack dies, but you still use up all of your Phoenix downs, mega potions, elixirs to stay alive.
Grandma from the original release of Nier is legitimately the saddest song I’ve ever heard, and knowing the context behind it makes it even worse but it’s oh so beautiful. Would be great to see what you think about it !
Spiritfarer, Flow and Aerith’s theme always gotta be the ones that get me
For me, Zanarkand is the one that makes me cry
Spot on with Halo! That theme plays for the protagonist separated from the rest of his squad when he encounters traces of his squad around the city and the game shows how said traces came to be, in a "what happened here?" kind of way.
No superhuman-grade Master Chief saving the day, just a reasonably normal human soldier alone roaming the streets of a city ravaged by an invading alien army.
I would love more of these. Maybe one of these days a song I recommend will get on the list one day, I'll continue hoping :) Plague Tale is not a popular franchise sadly. I'm really glad to see Deference for Darkness and 14.3 billion years on this list. I'm touched by how Outer Wilds reminded you of your father.
ODST is really one of my favourite stories from all of the Halo games. Being a lone soldier in abandoned, neon lit streets with saxophone in the background is an incredible experience.
ODST is the best story in all of the Halo series, like bar none.
I really love the Plague's Tale (1 & 2 but especially 1) soundtracks too! There’s some really unique, powerful and touching songs in that game. It’s hard to explain but there is this rawness to them that just makes you feel a lot of things when listening to them.
It’s been years since I’ve played ODST but as soon as I heard Deference for Darkness all the feelings I felt when I played that game came rushing back. Beautiful song.
14.3 billion is one of my favorites so I’m happy to hear it here too. This one always gets me emotional.
Damn, I was not expecting Spiritfarer.
That game gives you memories, and they're not happy ones.
Aliceeee noooo!
I'll move your home to the ground floor! Let me help you off the bow!
I highly recommend the JP version of Weight of the World from Nier Automata. The English version is great too, but the Japanese version has one moment that sets it apart that I don't want to spoil.
he did reacted to that one already, but still it would fit here perfectly
Hope to hear some Mass Effect 3 in part 2. Can think of at least 3 tracks from it that are real tearjerkers.
“An End Once and For All” is powerful for sure.
Don't forget: "A Future For The Krogan". That one's sublime.
HALO 3 ODSTs theme is perfect for the theme, you wake up after being knocked out from a crash and you’re basically a lone soldier in an enemy controlled city trying ti investigate and find his squad. Small story but super calming and unnerving at times too
"Vector to the Heavens" from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (and the series as a whole) is one that always gets me. While the games have plenty of tracks that carry significant emotional weight, this particular song, and what it represents, has terrorized the fandom for over a decade. It has been historically associated with a particular character but is more accurately assigned to a collective feeling of overwhelming tragedy and loss that is ultimately beyond the control of our main characters.
The other one is "Don't Think Twice" from Kingdom Hearts 3 because in context it's a song about people that were separated by impossible circumstances finally coming together and sharing their true feelings, that plays over the most heartbreaking display of cosmic irony in the entire series as the two people the song is ostensibly about are forced apart for the crime of being good people.
My recommendation is "Parting" and/or "The Tomorrow With You" from Xenoblade 2
The former made someone who had no context cry (Music theory for gamers) which I find says a lot about the raw feeling it oozes
Rainfall from ODST brings back quite a few memories of me and my younger brother playing together, so some tears there for me. But 14.3 billion years, even though I've never played the game it made me shed a couple tears as well. Beautiful song.
Rain is a different feeling. It's sad and sombre because it's the rainy night over a ruined and abandoned city. It is sad, but it doesn't let you stay sad for long, simply because there's a tension; it's not _entirely_ abandoned, and it's not safe. You gotta keep moving, watch the roofs and the streets because, whilst it is sad, there is danger, and it intends on hunting you. But you're not so helpless yourself, and you've got a job to do.
An absolutely wonderful video Marco, I love these types of emotional/powerful songs so I am glad you made this video.
If I were to pitch in a few songs myself it would be:
- Bastion: Mother, I'm Here (Zulf's Theme)
- Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core - The Price of Freedom
- Dust An Elysian Tail - Gone Home (Journey's End)
- Kingdom Hearts - Dearly Beloved
- World of Warcraft - Anduin's Theme
Keep up the great work! Looking forward to any and all videos you put out in the future!
This is the first time Flow got me to choke up some. I was in a really bad way when Endwalker launched, and I was unable to accept the finality of the piece, the gentle farewell it expresses. I wasn't ready to let go of the people I had just lost. I am now though, and Flow is now the peaceful goodbye I needed.
That Outer Wilds's song is CRAZY!!! I got emotional without any context at all, HOLY SHIT!!!
So halo ODST takes place on earth at the end of the human covenant war. Humanity has just gone through years of systematic extermination at the hands of the covenant and now they are on earth. The game starts with your orbital drop going to shit and your whole unit being separated. You go through the game walking through war torn city streets trying to piece together what happened to your fellow ODSTs. Occasionally you play through a flash back from your allies perspective. This is the only first person halo game where you play as just a regular old human. You got the intended emotions and thoughts spot on for the track.
would love to see more of these! im skipping the xenoblade 3 one cuz im currently playing it and i want to hear the song blind in the game so it hits with maximum sadge, but ill come back to see your reaction later!
Yeah, I've palyed XB 3 already, but I'm exactly the same way. I will go out of my way to avoid a game's OST if I know I want to play it just so I can hear each track for the first time in its propper context.
I was just commenting to see if Aerith theme was included! I think for music context is everything music can definitely convey a meaning but accompanying a scene or event really adds some strength to it.
"We may not have much in common, you and I. Still, I consider you as a friend" - Solanum
Probaly i say this in all videos of outer Wild, because that game is magic
Dude. I lost it at Last Voyage. Its the song that plays as you lead a restless spirit- whom you have spent the past 5 to 10 hours feeding, building them a house and decorating it, going on quests for and with them- to the portal to the afterlife. I remember the old lady hedgehog (Alice) who calls your character "sweetheart" all the time. I remember feeding her veggie pot pies to make her as happy as possible. I remember cozying up her little cottage on my boat adding a bed and pretty flowers. I remember her getting excited in the final part of her quest, craving adventure just like her late husband did with her. I remember her standing on that high peak when she stumbled and began to lose her memory as Dementia kicked in, how she couldn't leave her house and I had to move it down for her. I remember taking her to the portal, mistaking my character for her daughter. I remember as the music increased in intensity as the portal lit up and the tears forming, falling as she vanished in a flash of white light. Man, what a great game.
If that Xenoblade 3 song almost got you, imagine it in context. Anyone who played the game knows that I'm talking about lol
Surprised this was the track they chose as I don't think it's remotely the saddest one on the OST! 'A Step Away' or 'Where We Belong' I would have thought.
@@sirbobulouspersonally I believe that the vocal songs from Xenoblade are good because of the context, but on their own quite cheesy and not the saddest music in the game
*Tearless Souls of Byakuya.* Will always leave my heart empty because everytime I heard that play in Genshin it just tugged my heartstrings. That song alone tells all we need to know about Enkanomiya as a whole and that's what really made me so emotional for it. Enkanomiya's entire soundtrack in Genshin alone is just one of the most somber, sad and lonely pieces of music i've ever heard. It's really, really good. And i'll always consider that to be one of the saddest songs ever. [Had to respost since I couldn't remember the name of the track for a second, oopsies lol.]
FInal duet makes me tear up every time i hear it oneof the greatest emotional themes for me of all time
Aeriths theme hits hard for me. Especially as i was quite young when i played the first time, I was completely blindsided by the event, I went back to her house where her mother was waiting for her and sat in The garden. And i think that was the first time i felt loss like that... i was straight up sobbing and my mother had to comfort me.
Thanks for these beautiful new pieces in my collection. :) If I may be so bold and recommend some tracks that very much tug at my heartstrings and to which I myself have shed a few tears:
"Milly's Theme", from Q.U.B.E. 2
"A Writer Writes", from "Lost Worlds: Beyond the Page"
"Journey's End", from "The Outer Worlds"
"Trespasser - Lost Elf Theme", from "Dragon Age: Inquisition"
"Dawn Of A New Time", from "Battlefield 1"
Time to board the feels train
Just give him all videos from honkai 3rth, its will be easy
The odst song being about why is this happening this way makes alot of sense, as the game is essentially a whole story of why is this happening and nothing is going right.
Not gonna lie, I didn't think I'd cry to this video, music gets me emotional but it doesn't make me cry. But listening to 14.3 billion years and taking it all in made me think about my life. I didn't just cry, I broke down sobbing. Felt like I've lost myself recently, lost what my true goals were and what younger me wanted as a grown up. Now I'm 25 years old and all I can think about is the people I've loved and never speak to anymore, the journey I've set myself on, what lies ahead.
I think I'm gonna go buy Outer Wilds and play it now.
Personally; the song OMORI from OMORI hits harder than Final Duet. It might sound like a simple piece at first, but it's such a well crafted piece that manages to portray the pain as the conflict builds up and intensifies.
Idk if Marco reads comments, but whomever does read this, I highly recommend taking a listen if you like pain in music form :) As the song is dynamic, there's two versions of the song, so if you wanna listen I recommend finding a video that play both after each other
If you happen to do another one of these, “Ideals and Reality” from the Triangle Strategy OST would be a good pick. It’s got such a dark, heavy atmosphere, even outside of the context of the game it hits me in the feels every time I hear it. I don’t even necessarily know how to describe the feeling, the closest I can get is just really heavy, painful regret.
"Fly my wings" from limbus company got me in a differetn dimension completely
14.3 Billion Years never fails to make me emotional. Outer Wilds had such a profound impact on me and genuinely changed how I view life and the universe. It is one of the best games I've ever experienced and everyone should play it.
Loved your choices. I like to add some songs if you don't mind. First would be "Gris Pt.1+2" as well as "In your hands" (from Gris, a game about loss), "Kimi no kioku" from Persona 3 (which doesn't sounds sad at all until you realize what the ending actually implies, "Apotheosis" from Journey (mainly because I always played with lovely people and cried like a dog at the end evertime) and "The Price of Freedom" from FF7 Crisis Core (a game where you know the outcome but when you arrive at the end still try to change it...) ;_;
You noted that Aerith's Theme ends weirdly. This is because of a limiting requirement of some video game music that's not present in every other style of music. Songs like Aerith's theme have to seamlessly be able to loop to run for as long as the player is hanging around in that portion of gameplay. Not like a film or an Opera where the music is written to be as long as needed for the scene.
It's an extra constraint that has to be taken into account for some music from video games if it's going to be played during a point where the player has direct control and agency over the length of the scene.
It was certainly more of a constraint back then when the games were much smaller. However, it is exclusively (except for small independents with very limited resources) a creative decision today, and even back then, it was mostly just an undying tradition from ancient jrpgs like Dragon Quest. Nowadays, the given sound effects and white noise of a zone are far more than enough to fill the void left by a lack of music.
Minecraft and Halo (from the very first one on) are both examples of ways that completely repudiate that approach with the latter tying music to specific set pieces and zone transitions and the other inserting a new location-appropriate track after a random timespan.
Adagio for strings, Samuel Barber, Homeworld.
Oh, I forgot about ODST. That song always gets me, I can't handle that first piano trill.
If this gets a second part, there needs to be something from Pokemon Mystery Dungeon in it. There's so many tracks one could choose from, but I'd suggest "Don't ever forget..." or "In the morning sun" (or "Memories returned"...). So many beautiful, heartwrenching songs in those games, though I don't think they'll hit as hard without the context.
i love to listen to "The color of sunrise" from three houses. That song had me bawling.
I still remember watching the Ori and the Blind Forest/Will of Wisps trailer and nearly crying for the first few times. I've seen a full playthrough of Outer Wilds and that song is just so perfect you have to see what it accompanies to understand it properly. As for Halo 3 ODST that is something i played solo on the lowest difficulty purely for the story and it's emotional feel and oh boy does it hit you hard, it's something you have to personally experience to feel in its fullest.
Another very beautiful and sad soundtrack is the one at the end of a certain Sumeru mainline quest in which a lot of things happen, you get to a particular place and it hits your soul like a nuke as the space opens up before you(before you've even done anything in it) as the music kicks into gear. That soundtrack i've put in my teapot just because i feel it fits.
fuck...he put into the dusk...damn, got me from the start, RIP Chopper.