Pokémon: The Best Soundtracks from the Games

If you are a gamer or if you greatly enjoy setting some time apart frequently to play video games, there is a huge chance you have at least one or two songs from these games in your daily playlists. It’s common for us to hear the soundtracks from our favorite titles, especially when they take us back to the stories and campaigns which have been leaving their mark on us for so many years.

This is an element in which the globally renowned Pokémon franchise excels at. No matter the critics to new games and mechanics introduced throughout the generations you hear, how many things people will pick apart to complain and act nostalgic towards the older games, or haters wanting to bad-mouth it: Such harsh words will never be directed towards the background music making us company during the games. Even in the dullest, most dragged out or frustrating parts, the music was always there, with the player, making the experience the best possible even in such moments.

In this article, we’ll go through different generations and games from the series to remember some of the most memorable pieces which took part in our lives as Pokémon trainers.

Around a year and a half ago… (Flashback)

Since we are talking about remembering memorable musical pieces, we can also go through the most recent games in the franchise’s mainline, Scarlet & Violet.

Unlike many songs from this game, which aim for immersion in the location or battle, "Around a year and half ago..." is a full song with a beginning, middle and an end, and could easily be a part of some pop/melodic pop-rock album, fitting very well in the playlist with our other favorite songs.

Area Zero

The addition of a choir singing alongside the instruments, which brings a mysterious immersion full of anguish to your progress helps “Area Zero” have the power to teleport us directly to the scene happening in-game right at the moment.

The different instruments, echoing beats and synthesizer variations, there is so much going on that you are never feeling just one emotion at a time.

Wild Area (South)

It’s not common for a single song from a game soundtrack - much less in Pokémon - to be more than three or four minutes long, but the opposite is true for "Wild Area (South)".

An orchestrated piece, practically complete and over seven minutes long, going through happy, scary, mysterious, victorious moments and much more. The level of immersion it brings us is also an excellent tip for tabletop RPG players looking for songs to take them out of the game room and transport them directly into a fantasy world filled with adventures.

Professor Sycamore’s Theme

The instruments played give out the feeling of being in a 90s or 2000s JRPG, with much higher quality than the limitations of its time, or course, which makes everything that much better.

The guitar with a Hispanic touch to it, maybe inspired by something close to flamenco or Romani influences, matches the game style, being one of the best Pokémon Specialist themes ever released.

Battle! (Ghetsis)

Ghetsis’s battle theme is memorable and unforgettable: practically considered as Pokémon's “One-Winged Angel”, in which the opponent's name is repeated in a chilling choir, with an addictive rhythm, though hard to follow. You can feel the chill of the importance and difficulty of this battle, and it’s not by chance that many mention it as one of the most iconic end-game battle songs in the entire franchise.

Nuvema Town

The first town presented to us in Pokémon Black & White has one of the best initial map music. All requirements are met: a calm, tranquil theme, with acoustic instruments (emulated by the hardware limitations of its time, but still working well) which gives you both the urge to start your adventure at once and to finally choose your starter Pokémon.

From Pallet Town in the first generation, this kind of music is common in starting cities and always approached in its own way to match the climate of the region or the game, and Nuvema does it very well.

Battle! (Cynthia)

Ok, we already know very well that the Black & White entire generation has excellent battle themes, especially the most acclimated and hard towards the end of the game. This game’s version of the cherished battle theme against Cynthia is wonderful in creating a unique feeling of excitement and apprehension all at once, the feeling we usually get in battles of such magnitude.

Route 201 (Day)

How can such short, simple music like “Route 1” songs make us so happy? One of the most memorable of all time is the one from Diamond and Pearl, specifically for Route 201 during the day.

Even though I have not played a lot of Diamond and Pearl, every time I hear it I have the feeling of knowing it by heart ever since I was born, and this is a hugely positive point to a song which is so simple, with so little game time.

Jubilife City

Jubilife City is not only where we spend a good portion of our campaign, but also a place with background music of the most memorable kind. It is usually one of the first ones mentioned when we ask 4th generation fans which song comes to mind when thinking of the games. And it’s also crucial that the music which plays for a long time in the region’s “big city” is not repetitive and tiring to hear.

Littleroot Town

Even more than Nuvema, Littleroot is the supreme starter city song for the Pokémon franchise. It sticks to our ears, it’s pleasant, calm and exciting at the same time, gives off the perfect small-town feeling which Littleroot has, and gets the player in the perfect mood to start their new adventure in Hoenn.

Elite Four Battle

Elite Four themes are always tense and challenging, but if there’s one which sets itself apart above the others, it’s the one from the third generation. The feeling of entering a decisive battle is even stronger in these games, and the intensity only rises the more the battle drags on.

This is an incredible factor which differentiates trainer battles from wild Pokémon battles, for example. Wild battles tend to be shorter, and their music as shorter loops which get more repetitive in case you come across a Chansey ten levels above your strongest party member and that doesn’t damage you, but leaves you there waiting for seven minutes until being finally defeated.

In the case of the Hoenn Elite Four theme, the pacing of the song elevates you gradually and keeps a perfect constant when it reaches the peak of the final fight mood.

Johto Trainer Battle

When the second Pokémon generation came out, the big objective was to expand what was already known about Kanto and its 151 initial monsters. Johto arrived as a slap in the face to the players who managed to explore both regions in just one single game, and also brought some of the most well-made musical pieces so far.

The hardware limitations for the time were the same as the previous generation: they had to be made for the Game Boy Color, which had the same audio card used in the classic Game Boy from the Red & Blue era. Even so, Gamefreak brought long, diversified, new and complex songs, such as the battle theme against Johto trainers, constantly changing and bringing more mood and new sequences so that we can enjoy every second in combat.

Azalea Town

Azalea Town is usually a calm and pleasant place, when we do not have Team Rocket members trying to invade the Slowpoke Well. And what makes us all the more comfortable in staying in this town is a very well-made song for the GBC, with a nice and not repetitive composition.

Rival Battle

Even though the Gold & Silver rival is one of the worst rivals the Pokémon mainline has given us, this is completely inverted to the quality of their battle theme song. If you’ve never paid much attention to this piece due to being the theme to some of the most anticlimactic battles in all the franchise, try to stop and listen to it a bit more fondly, and you will realize it is not nearly as weak as its trainer.

Red Battle

Few sensations are as chilling as being a kid in the 2000s, finding out that your last challenge in this game is defeating the protagonist of the previous title, seeing that he has all of Kanto’s starters, a powerful Pikachu and their famous Snorlax which destroys any attempts at sweeps. Their theme is extremely fitting and brings out perfectly the mixed moods of Johto and Kanto which you have been exploring throughout your campaign. Worth adding to the playlist!

Opening

How can we not mention the song which started it all, right? The one which played for the first time when the first sold Pokémon copy was started up in its buyer’s Game Boy - and which became the main theme alongside all generations. Not necessarily the title or opening as it was in the first gen, but always there and made even more famous for its presence is all the anime episodes, starred by Ash Ketchum.

Gym Leader Battle

“You don’t know what’s hardship until Pokémon Yellow, when you get a Pikachu and need to defeat Brock”, states the most relevant comment in the video above, with several likes and replies. The pioneers in the franchise could occupy dozens of places in this list for being the first ones to create an entire culture which perpetuated itself throughout the future games, but only some of them really have to be mentioned for being well above the others - and the Kanto leaders are too iconic to not have their theme as one of the best of all time.

Lavender Town

This piece has given nightmares to plenty of people, but it is remarkable by its musical quality in creating a completely eerie and scary feeling to the ghost town. If we’re looking for the definition of an iconic Pokémon song, it occupies this place quite well.

Final Rival Battle

You never forget your “first last boss”, especially after thinking you’re already the champion and then realizing you’re mistaken because your biggest rival got there and did it all before you. The rival has their specific theme during the campaign, but suddenly, it changes and becomes a much more intense and thrilling song, symbolizing that this battle is truly worth the big title you’ve always dreamt about.

It’s interesting how every generation kept bringing something new, such as a musical style being incorporated, with its improvements in more advanced consoles, and even so, all games had and continue having excellent songs.

Some have stronger points, others could vary some more, but they are always good. And even for those who are not huge fans of the older 8-bit sounds or of the instruments used in the Game Boy Advance, the internet is full of versions, remixes and even updated versions of the same songs in more recent games.

Comment with your favorite songs and help us expand our playlist! I am already going to do that while I prepare myself to go out searching for some more Pokémon.