History Main / Level1MusicRepresents

* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' has "Burning Town", which is reused in all of the sequels (except ''Seven Sirens'').

The background music of the first level in many video games frequently becomes the theme associated with the series. Sometimes, the "first level" theme becomes so representative of the series that it supplants the planned Main Theme in later games and advertising material. After all, chances are that people will spend more time on the first level learning the ropes rather than admiring the title screen. Since most developers are aware of this, they'll be likely to spend a little more time on the Level 1 music, and perhaps put it in a higher number of levels due to the extra work put into it, further feeding into this trope. This trope is more common in linear games (like platformers and shoot-em-ups) as opposed to sandboxes or [=RPGs=], where level 1 is often either [[QuickSandbox not clearly defined]] or played after spending an appreciable amount of time on the TraversibleWorldMap.

* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpEzYEoV9qY The Overworld Theme]]. It also became remixed for the title theme after the original planned title theme (Music/MauriceRavel's "Bolero" for those curious) turned out to not be in the {{public domain|Soundtrack}} at the time.

* ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' has the appropriately named [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVe1Y6TcARc Theme of Puyo Puyo]] from the first arcade game, which plays in the main course between Draco and Witch's matches. However it gained a lot more traction as the main theme for the series as a whole when SEGA took over, with the theme being used as a recurring leitmotif for Arle Nadja starting with ''Puyo Puyo! 15th Anniversary'', used as the main battle theme in ''Puyo Puyo!! Quest'', and as the main menu song for ''Puyo Puyo Champions''.

* ''VideoGame/MystikBelle'': "Dubious Castle Safety Gigue", the HubLevel theme.
* ''VideoGame/Haven2020'': "Home", which plays on the Islet where Yu and Kay land the Nest at the start of the game.

** Also [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjazC45Qkww "Bloody Tears,"]] the overworld theme for [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaIISimonsQuest the second game".

* The most famous song from ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is "Megalovania," the theme of [[LateArrivalSpoiler (ironically enough)]] [[spoiler:Sans, by far the most difficult FinalBoss in the game]]. It even represented the game in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate''.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-2sE0Napg0 Brinstar]] from [[VideoGame/Metroid1 the origianl]]. They played with it in the VideoGameRemake, ''VideoGame/MetroidZeroMission'' -- there, the item/save tunes are versions that sound far closer to the original game's, which has a different melodic focus than the versions that came from ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' and one that gamers tend to be more familiar with. This is used to great effect when [[spoiler:Samus gets her Power Suit back after being shot down by the Space Pirates]], causing the modified later-game jingle to sound out, reorchestrated, in full force.

The background music of the first level in many video games frequently becomes the theme associated with the series. Sometimes, the "first level" theme becomes so representative of the series that it supplants the planned Main Theme in later games and advertising material. After all, chances are that people will spend more time on the first level learning the ropes rather than admiring the title screen. Since most developers are aware of this, they'll be likely to spend a little more time on the Level 1 music, and perhaps put it in a higher number of levels due to the extra work put into it, further feeding into this trope. This trope is more common in linear games (like platformers and shoot-em-ups) as opposed to Sandboxes or [=RPGs=], where level 1 is often either [[QuickSandBox not clearly defined]] or played after spending an appreciable amount of time on the TraversibleWorldMap.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** [[http://youtu.be/SF9ZLNxHaBY Green Hill Zone.]] Because composer Masato Nakamura owns the copyrights to his ''Sonic'' soundtracks and Sega has to pay him royalties whenever they want to use 'em in later games, the [[http://youtu.be/eQ9l1BsqvAo original title theme]] never appears these days unless as a throwback (such as the title screen in ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'', itself [[MuseumGame a throwback to the whole series]]), as it's primarily Green Hill that Sega is willing to pay Nakamura royalties for.
** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6NaZrPQGfY Escape from the City]]", the song that plays in Sonic's first stage of ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'', is much more iconic than its actual main theme, "[[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3gPBmDptqlQ Live and Learn]]". The song, as well as the stage itself, was remixed (twice) for ''Sonic Generations''.
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda'': [[https://youtu.be/lpEzYEoV9qY The Overworld Theme]]. It also became remixed for the title theme after the original planned title theme (Music/MauriceRavel's "Bolero" for those curious) turned out to not be in the public domain at the time.
* ''VideoGame/{{Kirby}}'': [[http://youtu.be/OCH6nQYflwY Green Greens.]]
* ''VideoGame/FZero'': [[http://youtu.be/a0WzWdSVFmE Mute City.]]
* ''VideoGame/KidIcarus'': [[http://youtu.be/NC0Hr9CrFRc Underworld.]] It has the same intro as [[http://youtu.be/p08wyrAYMrs the title screen music]], but the two themes differ from there. It doesn't help that [[NintendoHard very few people]] [[EarlyGameHell actually got past it]].
* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'': [[http://youtu.be/0AZ5XZHIDh0 Vampire Killer.]]
** Also [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjazC45Qkww Bloody Tears,]] the overworld theme for the second game.
** Also [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78706bv98S8 Beginning,]] the Level 1 theme for the third game. These three tunes are featured more than any others across the series. For example, in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaJudgment'', they're used as the respective themes of Simon Belmont, Carmilla, and Trevor Belmont.
** Also [[https://youtu.be/KR0UjAQIX6E Opposing Bloodlines,]] the Level 1 theme for ''Castlevania: Rondo of Blood'', also known as Richter's theme.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqQPr3ZcbtE Ruined Castle Corridor]], the BGM for the first area of ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaAriaOfSorrow,'' is used to represent the game in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaHarmonyOfDespair'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate''.
* ''VideoGame/{{Contra}}'': [[http://youtu.be/Tifv7qh_hmY Battle in the Jungle,]] which is remixed in ''Contra: Shattered Soldier'' and ''Contra 4''.

* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'': [[http://youtu.be/Ep9N-jFCht4 "DK Island Swing,"]] also known as "Jungle Level," or by the name of its rearrangement for ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong64'', "Jungle Japes". Slightly unusual in that the music changes tone halfway through in the original game, due to it actually being a mashup of two different pieces, but only the first half is usually remembered.
* ''VideoGame/{{Metroid}}'': [[http://youtu.be/T-2sE0Napg0 Brinstar]]. They played with it in ''VideoGame/MetroidZeroMission'' -- in it, the item/save tunes are versions that sound far closer to the original game's, which has a different melodic focus than the versions that came from ''Super Metroid'' and one that gamers tend to be more familiar with. This is used to great effect when [[spoiler:Samus gets her Power Suit back after being shot down by the Space Pirates]], causing the modified later-game jingle to sound out, reorchestrated, in full force. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhAQfpbsymU Theme of Super Metroid]] is also considered to be this by some as well.
* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'': [[http://youtu.be/BSsfjHCFosw At Doom's Gate]] AKA "[=E1M1=]" for the first game, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qURei6svd90 Running from Evil]] for [[VideoGame/DoomII the second]].
** ''VideoGame/FinalDoom, TNT: Evilution'' has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAi1q0LkTs4 Sadistic,]] while its sister game ''The Plutonia Experiment'' has [[http://youtu.be/cBu0Iqlrunw The Imp's Song.]]
* ''VideoGame/FinalFight'': [[http://youtu.be/AgJq48fcySk BGM 1]] was remixed as [[http://youtu.be/sy8VW_VXgOA Guy's theme]] in almost all of his fighting game appearances (starting with the original ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha''), and also served as [[http://youtu.be/lqE-5y_q1dk Haggar's theme]] in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3''. A hip-hop version of the title theme would be used as Cody's theme in ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV Super Street Fighter IV]]''.
* ''VideoGame/StarFox'': [[http://youtu.be/eclAC0JQJYk Corneria.]]
* ''VideoGame/RType'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXrxov_0oj0 R9, To the Front!]]
* ''VideoGame/GhostsNGoblins'': [[http://youtu.be/gA_e0QpVdLc Haunted Graveyard,]] which was used as Arthur's theme for ''VideoGame/NamcoXCapcom'', ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3'', and ''VideoGame/ProjectXZone''. Also used as an alternate EasterEgg theme for [[BigBoosHaunt Shade Man's stage]] in ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man 7}}''.
* ''VideoGame/{{Raiden}}'': "Gallantry".
* ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'': "Challenger 1985", whose melody also appears in the intro to the Stage 2 music for ''Gradius V''.
* ''VideoGame/BlasterMaster'': [[http://youtu.be/y7L9KXVMSQs "Area 1 (Forest)."]] Remixes of this appeared in the first levels of ''Blaster Master: Blasting Again'', ''Blaster Master: Overdrive'' and ''Blaster Master Zero''.
* ''VideoGame/JourneyToSilius'': [[http://youtu.be/NjG2ZjPqzzE "Space Colony Ruins"]] which is better remembered than the [[http://youtu.be/jkWYvENgxwA title theme]] (although the former uses the same bassline as the latter in its refrain) and is reused for the [[BookEnds last stage.]]
* The NES ''VideoGame/{{Batman|Sunsoft}}'' game's first stage theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIAk6SQjXQY "Streets of Desolation"]], is closely associated with the title and there are plenty of covers and remixes of the song, both because of its sheer coolness and because the NintendoHard nature of the game made it the most frequently heard tune for players.
* ''VideoGame/{{Valis}}'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPl24eXTZTA "Flash of Sword"]](Stage 1), although the series also has an official recurring title theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM-D5TV0ND4 "Fantasm Soldier."]]
* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xh8Odw3wQbE The Theme of Tara]], the main infiltration theme in the [=MSX2=] version, was later reused as [[http://youtu.be/2swZCYSRFt8 Metal Gear's theme]] in ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'', as well as the [[http://youtu.be/jW0BurBNB58 VR Training]] theme in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLRIn6NwbTI plays]] during Solid Snake's debut in the story mode of ''Super Smash Bros Brawl''. Despite the first NES game using a different base theme, ''VideoGame/SnakesRevenge'' features a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XJCSg4UgrQ more upbeat rendition]] that plays during the first enemy base.

* ''VideoGame/DynamiteHeaddy'' uses a variation of the level 1 music as its title theme.
* While ''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'' has a few songs to choose from, the level 1 music is especially infectious and the main part of it is used again near the end of the game. The only other recurring song is a tune that plays for three bosses, including the one in level 1.

* The first stage music of ''VideoGame/SupraMayroBross'' returned for ''Supra Mayro Kratt'' as the stage select theme. Since then, it is considered the main theme of the series.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdL3CjiVLEo Final Battle]], the theme of the titular fortress from ''VideoGame/LufiaAndTheFortressOfDoom''.

* ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' has the appropriately-named [[https://youtu.be/FVe1Y6TcARc Theme of Puyo Puyo]] from the first arcade game, which plays in the main course between Draco and Witch's matches. However it gained a lot more traction as the main theme for the series as a whole when SEGA took over, with the theme being used as a recurring leitmotif for Arle Nadja starting with ''Puyo Puyo! 15th Anniversary'', used as the main battle theme in ''Puyo Puyo!! Quest'', and as the main menu song for ''Puyo Puyo Champions''.
* Most Zone A and Alpha themes in the main ''VideoGame/{{Darius}}'' games, several of which also appear in ''VideoGame/GrooveCoaster'', another Taito series. Examples include:

* ''VideoGame/CadenceOfHyrule'', an IntercontinuityCrossover between ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' and ''VideoGame/CryptOfTheNecrodancer'', does this for both continuities. ''The Legend of Zelda'' is represented, as ever, by its Overworld Theme, discussed above. ''Crypt of the Necrodancer''[='=]s 1-1 music, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPe3LT37h-Y Disco Descent]], serves the same purpose for the ''Necrodancer'' side. Music from both continuities show up in the game's music, but these two themes serve as the primary theme for each, most prominently combined in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf1bckXK99Y Tutorial and Kakariko Crypt]].

* The ''VideoGame/BionicCommando'' theme appears to be a straight example, being the zone 1 music from the UsefulNotes/{{NES}} game, but in the original arcade game, the music is used on the second level.

** In the original game for the Nintendo 64, this trope was in effect for most of the stages (including the aforementioned Mario, DK, Zelda, etc.). However, Kirby's stage uses "Crash! Gourmet Race" from ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'' instead.
** ''Melee'' stepped it up with the Rainbow Cruise level, which uses "Slider" from ''VideoGame/SuperMario64''; said theme was used for the GrandFinale of the live orchestral rendition of the soundtrack (a recording of which was used as a subscriber bonus by ''Magazine/NintendoPower''). Though the theme plays in multiple levels, and actually gains its name because it's used in all of the slide sub-levels (one of which is accessible ''very'' early in the game, though not right at the start), the level also cemented the tune as being associated with the absolute ''last'' non-Bowser level, Rainbow Ride.

** The [[http://youtu.be/fqtKBlK3YII title theme]] of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' was an arrangement of the [[http://youtu.be/TBx-8jqiGfA underwater theme]] from the original.
** Likewise, when ''VideoGame/SuperMarioAllStars'' gave each game their own title themes, they were all based on the underwater theme as well. In order, here are the ''All-Stars'' themes for the original ''[[http://youtu.be/ZBny76cJGgc Super Mario,]]'' ''[[http://youtu.be/iE1U6iM1glA Lost Levels]]'' and ''[[http://youtu.be/Z9UmwpiCZZE 3.]]''
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey'' is most associated with the vocal track ''Jump Up, Super Star,'' which features prominently in the New Donk City stage. You'd think, from the previews so heavily advertising it (and the stage inviting frequent comparisons to ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'''s main hub world Station Square), that New Donk City would be the first level in the game. However, it's actually one of the middle stages. Going further, the main instrumental theme associated with the game is "Fossil Falls", which is the theme for the second level, not the first.

** Averted and subverted in ''VideoGame/MegaMan2'', where the title theme is used to represent Mega Man in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomClashOfTheSuperheroes'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' and the other iconic theme is the first level... of the final fortress, which also represents Mega Man in ''Smash Bros.'' as a medley with the title theme.
** The ''VideoGame/MegaManLegends'' subseries averts this by having "The Flutter Vs. Gesellschaft" theme from later in the game as the iconic theme for the subseries as a whole.
** The {{retraux}} [[http://youtu.be/TwbQi_G9cB0 advertisement]] for ''VideoGame/MegaMan10'' featured a cheesy jingle set to the tune of the opening stage of ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X1}}'', of all things.
** ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' keeps having opening stage music as his themes in crossover games, but ''which game''[='=]s opening stage music they can't quite settle on yet. In ''VideoGame/ProjectXZone'', X's theme is that of ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X4}}''[='=]s opening stage. In ''Project X Zone 2'', it's instead ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X3}}''[='=]s opening stage. In ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'', it's ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X1}}''[='=]s opening stage.
* ''VideoGame/DoubleDragon'': the title theme is played during [[ThemeMusicPowerUp the final boss battle]], but during the bonus sibling match that occurs when two players complete the game together, the music changes to the Mission 1 theme. This also holds true to the NES version, which has Machine Gun Willy as the [[DemotedToDragon penultimate boss]] and Jimmy Lee [[AdaptationalVillainy as the final boss]].

* ''{{VideoGame/MOTHER|1}}'': "Pollyanna" is the overworld tune that plays at the start of the game when Ninten is the only party member. It is not considered the theme song for the game, (that is usually either [[http://youtu.be/f5_R4WMBZjg "Mother Earth"]] (the title screen theme) or [[http://youtu.be/85XM_Nl7_oo Eight Melodies]]), but it is considered the theme for ''the {{VideoGame/MOTHER}} series as a whole''.
* ''VideoGame/NightsIntoDreams'' plays with this trope. While the main character's theme, Dream Dreams, is considered the series' main theme, the first level's song, Paternal Horn, is treated as a secondary theme and is used in every ''VideoGame/SegaSuperstars'' game that features a [=NiGHTS=] level.
* ''VideoGame/AnarchyReigns'' has many {{Leitmotif}}s for its characters, but the theme that caught on most is Tre-Dot's ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqPT26AH940 Ruthless,]]'' which was used as the first song in-game from the demo.
* Reversed in ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' where the first level's theme was Zero's theme from the original X game. ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3'' averts this by using the Copy Zero battle theme from ''X2''.
* The Stage 1 music in ''Shockman is'' the title theme.

** Pac-Man lacked any level music in the orginal game. However, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJd6TMOZuJQ Intermission music]] is often used instead. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8d6mvLswDkU A remix]] is the theme for Pac-Man's room in ''[[CompilationRerelease Namco Museum]] Vol. 1'', and it's also remixed into the theme of the second set of levels from ''Pac-Mania'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sir7iTg_CU Pac-Man's Park,]] which in turn is used as a recurring theme in other games and as ThemeMusicPowerUp in the animated series ''WesternAnimation/PacManAndTheGhostlyAdventures''. However, the music from the first set of ''Pac-Mania'' levels, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wlg9weUmP9w Block Town,]] is used [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaJIqf0b56c as part of a medley]] with the Pac-Man Park theme in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U''.
** VideoGame/WonderMomo's theme isn't the level music but rather the [[ThemeMusicPowerUp theme]] that plays when in Wonder mode.
* ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' has [[https://youtu.be/qv0TSofXC1w Unbreakable Determination]] (aka Ryu's Determination), which despite being an iconic song from the series actually appears on stage 4-2 in ''Ninja Gaiden'' on NES.
* The most famous song from ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is Megalovania, the theme of [[LateArrivalSpoiler (ironically enough)]] [[spoiler: Sans, by far the most difficult FinalBoss in the game]]. It even represented the game in VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMqTOz5lHoQ&index=2&list=PLF0FAD6732B277862 Bombing Mission]] continues from the opening cutscene to the first few screens, with a musical transition between the two. The whole thing is iconic to the game.

* The two themes most associated with the original ''Videogame/XenobladeChronicles'' are Gaur Plain, the overworld music from the titular second major area of the game, and "You Will Know Our Names", the boss battle music.
* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'':''
** The first of the ''VideoGame/Wolfenstein3D'' levels in ''VideoGame/DoomII: Hell on Earth'', a recreation of its [=E1M1=], is set to "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veJp8Qjcymo Evil Incarnate]]", the theme of the FinalBoss from ''[=Wolf3D=]''[='=]s "Spear of Destiny" ExpansionPack, rather than its original theme, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-3IXOELMeI Get Them Before They Get You]]". Likewise, in a variation, the second secret level, a recreation of [=E1M9=], uses the boss music from E''3''M9, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HupoB2x4yQY The Ultimate Challenge]]", rather than "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT6pr0OpdeA March to War]]" it originally used.

** Also averted with the UsefulNotes/PlayStation/Saturn version of the original two, whose most memorable tune is the orchestral intro theme, while the in-game MIDI rock has been replaced with an [[NightmareFuel eerie dark]] {{ambient}} score by Aubrey Hodges.

** The first of the ''VideoGame/Wolfenstein3D'' levels in ''VideoGame/DoomII: Hell on Earth'' is set to "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veJp8Qjcymo Evil Incarnate]]", the theme of the FinalBoss from ''[=Wolf3D=]''[='=]s "Spear of Destiny" ExpansionPack, rather than its original theme, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-3IXOELMeI Get Them Before They Get You]]". Likewise, in a variation, the second secret level uses the boss music from [=E3M9=], "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HupoB2x4yQY The Ultimate Challenge]]", rather than "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT6pr0OpdeA March to War]]" used for the previous two bosses.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** The "Ground Theme." This also tends to be an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], as while the music plays on all the above-ground levels, it's mostly associated with World 1-1.
** Averted in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2''. The [[http://youtu.be/fqtKBlK3YII title theme]] was an arrangement of the [[http://youtu.be/TBx-8jqiGfA underwater theme]] from the original.
** Likewise, when ''VideoGame/SuperMarioAllStars'' gave each game their own title themes, they were all based on the underwater theme as well. In order, here are the ''All-Stars'' themes for the original ''[[http://youtu.be/ZBny76cJGgc Super Mario,]]'' ''[[http://youtu.be/iE1U6iM1glA Lost Levels]]'' and ''[[http://youtu.be/Z9UmwpiCZZE 3.]]''

** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6NaZrPQGfY Escape from the City]]", the song that plays in Sonic's first stage, is much more iconic for those who have played ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' than its actual main theme, "[[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3gPBmDptqlQ Live and Learn]]". The song, as well as the stage itself, was remixed (twice) for ''Sonic Generations''.

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'': [[http://youtu.be/BSsfjHCFosw At Doom's Gate]] AKA "[=E1M1=]" for the first game, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qURei6svd90 Running from Evil]] for the second.
** ''Final Doom, TNT: Evilution'' has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAi1q0LkTs4 Sadistic,]] while its sister game ''The Plutonia Experiment'' has [[http://youtu.be/cBu0Iqlrunw The Imp's Song.]]
** Averted with ''VideoGame/Doom2016'', whose signature song in public consciousness is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHRuTYtSbJQ "BFG Division,"]] a mid-game battle theme.
** Also averted with the UsefulNotes/PlayStation/Saturn version, whose most memorable tune is the orchestral intro theme, while the in-game MIDI rock has been replaced with an [[NightmareFuel eerie dark]] {{ambient}} score by Aubrey Hodges.

* ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey'' is most associated with the vocal track ''Jump Up, Super Star,'' which features prominently in the New Donk City stage. You'd think, from the previews so heavily advertising it (and the stage inviting frequent comparisons to ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'''s main hub world Station Square), that New Donk City would be the first level in the game. However, it's actually one of the middle stages.
** Going further, the main instrumental theme associated with the game is "Fossil Falls", which is the theme for the second level, not the first.

* The first of the ''VideoGame/Wolfenstein3D'' levels in ''VideoGame/DoomII: Hell on Earth'' is set to "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veJp8Qjcymo Evil Incarnate]]", the theme of the FinalBoss from ''[=Wolf3D=]''[='=]s "Spear of Destiny" ExpansionPack, rather than its original theme, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-3IXOELMeI Get Them Before They Get You]]".

** In the original game for the Nintendo 64, this trope was in effect for most of the stages (including the aforementioned Mario, DK, Zelda, etc.). However, Kirby's stage uses "Gourmet Race" from ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'' instead.

* ''{{VideoGame/MOTHER|1}}'': "Pollyanna" is the overworld tune that plays at the start of the game when Ninten is the only party member. It is not considered the theme song for the game, (that is usually either [[http://youtu.be/f5_R4WMBZjg the title screen theme]] or [[http://youtu.be/85XM_Nl7_oo Eight Melodies]]), but it is considered the theme for ''the {{VideoGame/MOTHER}} series as a whole''.

** Averted and subverted in ''VideoGame/MegaMan2'', where the title theme is used to represent Mega Man in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomClashOfTheSuperheroes'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros 4'' and the other iconic theme is the first level... of the final fortress, which also represents Mega Man in ''Smash Bros.'' as a medley with the title theme.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda'': [[https://youtu.be/lpEzYEoV9qY The Overworld Theme]]. It also became remixed for the Title theme after the original planned title theme (Music/MauriceRavel's "Bolero" for those curious) turned out to not be in the public domain at the time.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGX4obVl64w The "Ground Theme."]] This also tends to be an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], as while the music plays on all the above-ground levels, it's mostly associated with World 1-1.

* ''{{VideoGame/MOTHER|1}}'': [[http://youtu.be/QYqDCPg7GPE "Pollyanna"]] is the overworld tune that plays at the start of the game when Ninten is the only party member. It is not considered the theme song for the game, (that is usually either [[http://youtu.be/f5_R4WMBZjg the title screen theme]] or [[http://youtu.be/85XM_Nl7_oo Eight Melodies]]), but it is considered the theme for ''the {{VideoGame/MOTHER}} series as a whole''.

* The NES ''VideoGame/{{Batman|Sunsoft}}'' game's first stage theme is closely associated with the title and there are plenty of covers and remixes of the song, both because of its sheer coolness and because the NintendoHard nature of the game made it the most frequently heard tune for players.

* ''VideoGame/CadenceOfHyrule'', an IntercontinuityCrossover between ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' and ''VideoGame/CryptOfTheNecrodancer'', does this for both continuities. ''The Legend of Zelda'' is represented, as ever, by its Overworld Theme, discussed above. ''Crypt of the Necrodancer''[='=]s 1-1 music, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPe3LT37h-Y Disco Descent]], serves the same purpose for the ''Necrodancer'' side. Music from both continuities show up in the game's music, but these two themes serve as the primary theme for each, most prominently combined in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AT96SYSvcCg Tutorial and Kakariko Crypt]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' has "Burning Town", which is reused in all of the sequels.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGX4obVl64w The "Ground Theme."]] This example also tends to be an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], as while the music plays on all the above-ground levels, it's mostly associated with World 1-1.

A Sub-Trope of BootstrappedTheme. If sequels continue to use the level 1 music from the first game, it's also a form of FirstInstallmentWins. If the Level 1 music gets remixed in a darker style, it's DarkReprise.

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'': [[http://youtu.be/BSsfjHCFosw At Doom's Gate]] for the first game, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qURei6svd90 Running from Evil]] for the second.