History SoundtrackDissonance / Videogames

* ''VideoGame/{{Skullmonkeys}}'' has the level Castle de los Muertos, a level with a creepy red skyline and black castle towers that shoot into the sky. Monkeys poke out from the ground with spears and you can barely see Klaymen with how dark it is. The level theme? A ListSong about ''Mexican food.'' Yeah, it's that kind of game.

* ''VideoGame/ReturnOfTheObraDinn'': The soundtrack is rather catchy, and can make discovering the grisly fates of the crew rather jaunty all things considered. "The End", "Escape", and "The Doom" are roughly in line with what you'd expect given the content and reveals of those chapters -- but when you get to the synthy bells of the upbeat sea shanty tune in "Soldiers of the Sea", [[spoiler:that plays during the gruesome battle with the [[GiantEnemyCrab crab riders]] on the lower decks]], the tone of the game takes a [[BlackComedy decided turn]].

* The trailer for the up-and-coming zombie game ''VideoGame/DeadIsland'' {{exaggerate|dTrope}}s this; the only thing more emotionally destructive than watching a family get torn apart by zombies (including ''a little girl'') [[FromBadToWorse is the unbelievably]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ialZcLaI17Y melancholy soundtrack.]]

** At one point during "The Parish" the survivors activate a parade float to use it as a makeshift platform to get to other side of a gap. By doing this, a cheery jazz tune plays while the survivors fight off waves of zombies because the music alerted the horde. While the song is pretty out of the place, its name is very fitting: "The Saints Will Never Come". A pretty depressing name for such an upbeat tune.

* Anyone whose played ''VideoGame/SpecOpsTheLine'' probably will find it hard to forget the sequence where [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6JQ2Vzr0bQ this song]] plays over you gunning down American soldiers.
** This was done intentionally at multiple points throughout Spec Ops: The Line. One of the game's first unsettling moments is gunning down American soldiers to the tune of Deep Purple's "Hush", a song that would sound cool in most other games, but clashes chillingly with the more serious context of this game's gunfights.

* An unintentional example happens in ''VideoGame/SpyroYearOfTheDragon'', due to a glitch. The final boss battle is backed, not by a dramatic battle theme, but by the theme of the game's first hub-world. Only applies in the [[ObviousBeta initial US release]] however. The European version recycles a boss-theme from earlier in the game, and the Greatest Hits re-release gives the battle its own proper battle-theme.
* In ''VideoGame/StalinVsMartians'', {{UsefulNotes/Reds With Rockets}} fight colorful cartoony aliens while techno music, Hong Kong pop and {{Camp}}y-sounding GlamRock plays in the background. Then again, given [[WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs the above premise]], it's doubtful if ''any'' soundtrack could be made for this game without falling into this trope.

* ''VideoGame/StubbsTheZombie'' twists this trope all around. The soundtrack consists of 50s tunes like "Earth Angel", "My Boyfriend's Back", "Mr. Sandman", "If I Only Had a Brain" and others, covered by modern alt bands. (Which are appropriate in the RaygunGothic setting.) Played straight with such upbeat tunes playing while you eat peoples' brains and turn them into mindless zombie minions. Subverted in that, if you notice, ''all'' of the song titles could have alternate, ominous meanings in the context of the game. Further subverted in the the whole ''point'' of the game is to [[AffectionateParody parody]] more serious zombie games & movies and the soundtrack helps make it all the more silly.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'''s American soundtrack got hit with a musical form of AmericanKirbyIsHardcore, as much of the music, particularly the boss, final boss and game over themes, sound more appropriate for a shoot-'em-up than a ''Sonic'' game. Wacky Workbench's BadFuture is accompanied with a disco-like theme in the American version (the Japanese and European versions have something much more appropriately sinister), while its Good Future has more emphasis on work tools in the background despite the zone being turned into a [[ToyTime toy land]].

** One of the more amusingly infamous stages in the series is based on ''Pac-Land'' a cheery-looking game that appears to have graphics drawn with MS Paint. So it's perfect for playing Pac-Man theme remixes on, apparently. Even better in ''Ultimate'', since it's the only Pac-Man stage in the base game, and now you can play epic-sounding remixes of ''Galaga'' and ''Dragon Spirit'' songs on it!

** In the second game, after [[VillainSong Flumpty's jingle that vaguely explains the goal of the game]], the soundtrack is peaceful and pleasant "classical-ish" music (as it's named on the soundtrack). At least until around the 3 AM mark, where the music fades away and you're left with silence and the occasional eerie ambient tone. For [[HarderThanHard Hard-Boiled Mode]], it plays the Toreador March instead.

*** If you play the game on [[HarderThanHard Hard-Boiled Mode]], its choice for music is a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csF9MtyonhM beautifully calm cover]] of Schwanengesang D 957: No. 4 Ständchen, by Music/FranzSchubert.

* ''VideoGame/OneNightAtFlumptys'' is a fan of this:

** In the third game, for the final and most intense two hours of Flumpty Night, the music shifts from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEgqxNaHVzw this intense and ominous ambience]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P9s3wqBBmI this upbeat and jaunty tune titled "Eleggtroswing"]]. And furthermore, if you play the game on [[HarderThanHard Hard-Boiled Mode]], its choice for music is a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csF9MtyonhM beautifully calm cover]] of Schwanengesang D 957: No. 4 Ständchen, by Music/FranzSchubert.

* When [[spoiler: Dick Gumshoe]] bursts into the room for a BigDamnHeroes moment in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations'' his theme music plays. While this makes sense since he's become the focus of the scene, his theme song is not-particularly-exciting piano and guitar piece that makes it feel a little less epic.

** In the third game, for the final and most intense two hours of game, the music shifts from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEgqxNaHVzw this intense and ominous ambience]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P9s3wqBBmI this upbeat and jaunty tune called "Eleggtroswing"]]. And furthermore, if you play the game on [[HarderThanHard Hard-Boiled Mode]], the game's choice for music is a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csF9MtyonhM beautifully calm]] cover of Schwanengesang D 957: No. 4 Ständchen, by Music/FranzSchubert.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV''[='s=] extensive library of songs can get kind of depressing depending on what's on the radio at the moment. For instance, they have 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins, which is gentle and sad, and a touching rap track by Russian hip-hop group Basta which is about a gangster apologizing to his mother about the way he turned out and asking her what his life is worth now. If you understand Russian, it takes some of the fun out of gleefully mowing down prostitutes and cops.

* On ''[[VideoGame/OneNightAtFlumptys One Night At Flumptys III]]'', for the final and most intense two hours of game, the music shifts from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEgqxNaHVzw this intense and ominous ambience]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P9s3wqBBmI this upbeat and jaunty tune called "Eleggtroswing"]]. And furthermore, if you play the game on [[HarderThanHard Hard-Boiled Mode]], the game's choice for music is a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csF9MtyonhM beautifully calm]] cover of Schwanengesang D 957: No. 4 Ständchen, by Music/FranzSchubert.

* On ''[[VideoGame/OneNightAtFlumptys One Night At Flumptys III]]'', for the final and most intense two hours of game, the music shifts from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEgqxNaHVzw this intense and ominous ambience]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P9s3wqBBmI this upbeat and jaunty tune called "Eleggtroswing"]].

* Towards the end of VideoGame/GuitarHero III, you and your band are dragged down to Hell and must play a gig to free yourself from the devil’s contract. Songs in the set list include “One” by {{Music/Metallica}}, “The Number of the Beast” by Music/IronMaiden, “Raining Blood” by {{Music/Slayer}}… and the rather uplifting “Cliffs of Dover” by Music/EricJohnson.

* Towards the end of GuitarHero III, you and your band are dragged down to Hell and must play a gig to free yourself from the devil’s contract. Songs in the set list include “One” by {{Music/Metallica}}, “The Number of the Beast” by Music/IronMaiden, “Raining Blood” by {{Music/Slayer}}… and the rather uplifting “Cliffs of Dover” by Music/EricJohnson.

* Towards the end of Guitar Hero III, you and your band are dragged down to Hell and must play a gig to free yourself from the devil’s contract. Songs in the set list include “One” by Music/Metallica, “The Number of the Beast” by Music/IronMaiden, “Raining Blood” by Music/Slayer… and the rather uplifting “Cliffs of Dover” by Music/EricJohnson.

* On ''[[VideoGame/OneNightAtFlumptys One Night At Flumptys III]]'', for the final and most intense hour of game, the music shifts from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEgqxNaHVzw this intense and ominous ambience]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P9s3wqBBmI this upbeat and jaunty tune called "Eleggtroswing"]].

** Also, the UpdatedRerelease of ''3'' on ''Complete Works'' and ''Anniversary Collection'' with Navi Mode enabled features arranged music for some of the levels. Notably, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc-12guILlE Top Man]]'s level theme gets replaced with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAiERYeVvho a remix of the intro stage]] from ''VideoGame/MegaMan7''. While it's still great music, it doesn't really fit the aesthetic of Top Man's stage.

* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1'', while the SadBattleMusic "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCHt8Eaesyo Tragic Decision]]" is used only a handful of times during some of the most dramatic moments over the course of the story, it's used a fourth time for a deliberately jarring effect as the theme of the BonusBoss fought at the end of [[SidequestSidestory a long sidequest chain]]. The dissonance? The boss is a blatant CardCarryingVillain [[spoiler:''and'' a member of the local RidiculouslyCuteCritter race at that]].

** Do you enjoy running over pedestrians and destroying all the vehicles you cam across with all over [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity Vice City]] while listening to romantic music like "Tempted" or "Africa"? then Emotion 98.3 is the station for you.