I don't know if this thread was already made and if there is one already, then I'm sorry, but I really want to know what people think.
I put Wild World and City Folk together as they have the same soundtrack. I didn't include any spin-offs as well.
So anyways, which AC has the best OST, and why? What do you guys think?
I personally think it's WW/CF, though NL is a close second.
wild world, definitely - wild world’s soundtrack is hella nostalgic and brings back a lot of memories of playing it for years so it’s special to me ;u;
NH isn't annoying perse, it has it's own charm.
It's just too tropical for me tbh. The trumpets and whatever were just kinda too much.
Like certain tracks like 12pm and 5pm were perfect because they didnt use the weird trumpets (or at least I didn't hear them)
City Folk and New Leaf have so much nostalgia in their soundtracks! I also love the New Horizons music at night. Such a hard choice to pick a favourite -w-
I feel like New Leaf is the first time in the series that the games began to have music that was intended to be listened to for long periods of time. The original Animal Crossing had a sort of sameyness to it that seemed to be made with the mindset that you were expected to mute the TV and turn on your own music. None of it was bad or anything, but I found myself unable to listen to it for more than a few minutes before I would just mute the TV and open VLC on my phone. But with New Leaf, the huge amount of variety in terms of both melodic structure, keys, and tempo which all have long entire, entire musical phrases before you get back to the loop point, and they're all so lovingly well crafted, I don't ever really find myself bored of the OST.
That being said, because the original GameCube game's OST was so unified, it also had the most personality, in my opinion. There was such a unique and interesting way in which the soundscape of the GameCube game was designed that really captured the feeling of being the sole human, dwelling in a forest full of oddball animals. The instrumentation just feels alien and bizarre, playful and calming, and just really brings the world to life. If you had me listen to one of the tracks completely blind, I would immediately think "That sounds like a song from Animal Crossing." Whereas with New Leaf, as beautiful as the music is, I wouldn't be able to place it if I hadn't played New Leaf extensively.
So I guess if I were to grade it solely on compositional merit, I'd say New Leaf has the overall better soundtrack. But I think there's something special about the original OST that a lot of the more recent games really don't capture quite as well. And it's kind of a shame because I don't think the series had to get rid of its entire musical identity to make it easier to listen to.
Not gonna lie, it changes a lot but I think Gamecube just surpasses it. Wild World is a close second despite the game being my least favourite in the series.
Like come on, you can't tell me this song has a genius way of putting cat sounds in. Animal Crossing is an interesting case cause there's no song I actually hate, I love them all equally but some just a bit more than others
Personal ranking:
Always loved the soundtrack from Wild World/City Folk, especially the theme song is so lovely. The GC one is also pretty good. New Leaf's was not bad overall, like I'm a huge fan of the 7 PM music, but it's to be honest not my favorite one, sometimes a bit stale in my opinion. New Horizons' is so far quite good, the night/morning music is kinda enjoyable.
New Horizons is probably my least favorite after listening to it for so long its gotten a little annoying and I just wish there was more music or be able to change from all the sound tracks from the other older animal crossing games, that would be so great after decorating and doing daily tasks for a while!
While each game has its own standouts, most of my favorite themes are from New Leaf. New Horizons is a lot more upbeat compared to the very chill and relaxing melodies of New Leaf.
even though acnl wasn't my first animal crossing game, the track stuck with me in a way that acww and accf never had. most of the themes are unique and fitting to the hour. on the other hand the only acww ost that i could hum off the top of my head is the 11pm song.
Wild world is most nostalgic but I think new leaf was my preferred. I don’t actually mind it in new horizons but haven’t even collected all the K.K. songs yet so that’s definitely on my to-do list!
I haven't played any other mainline game besides New Leaf and New Horizons. I voted for New Leaf. It makes me feel cozy when I hear it. It gives me good vibes. New Horizons is okay, but to me it's kind of forgettable background music. Pleasant, but overall a big meh.
I looooooved and miss New Leaf’s soundtrack so much tbh. I always felt as if it had the most variety and heart compared to the other games, especially New Horizons. I know New Horizons can always have updates to music and stuff, which is good, but I do feel as if that is a field of the game that’s highly ignored at the moment?
But I still love the game a lot, which is what matters most!
Actually, if I can just to turn this topic on its head real quick: Which game has the worst soundtrack? Pocket Camp. None of the music is offensively bad, but I don't think I've ever played an officially licensed Nintendo game that just sounded so drab and boring. Like music that is so ambiguous in mood that it fits just about everything because it also doesn't evoke anything specific whatsoever.
Actually, that's not true. I've played Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen, too.
