Scratch that: the Persona series might be the closest to it in terms of style, but it doesn’t even compare to TWEWY’s adventurous approach to just about… well, everything! Even if it’s already showing its age(in-game flip phones, anyone?) it’s still a playable adventure with an incredible soundtrack to gush over. Seriously it’s like a hipster kid’s aural dream come true. “Genre” is such a loose term for most of the songs featured in the game that it really won’t do justice to just write about them; you really, really need to hear them to figure out why TWEWY soundtrack works the way it does. If it’s not obvious enough; yes, I just love the hell out of this game so much that I’m kinda thankful Square Enix isn’t even considering a sequel for it. The World Ends With You is a singular creative piece, and so are the songs that accompanied it. Here are ten of the best tracks from the game:
10. It’s So Wonderful
If you’ve watched any anime from Japan it’s easy to assume that the people over there have mastered the art of creating (or even licensing) an appropriate theme tune for their shows. “It’s So Wonderful” is the track that plays in the game’s opening. It has that unenviable task of setting up expectations. I’m ranking this in 10th place because of one simple reason: it’s a set-up track, albeit a good one at that. The theme is wonderfully dissonant, featuring a melange of hip-hop, funk, and techno, and god knows what else. Yet it remains controlled, which is probably by design. As you’ll see further in this list, the songs just get crazier from this point.
9. OWARI-HAJIMARI
It’s no surprise that there’s plenty of rapping going on in TWEWY. What is surprising, though, are the Japanese artists going out of their way to record English versions of those songs. I’m gonna be honest: only a few of those lyrics make real sense. They didn’t go full-on “Engrish” with the lyrics, though, so you have to give them kudos for that. And even then, how can you not bump with that kind of energy blasting through your earbuds as you’re playing the game?
8. Rush Hour
Are you old enough to remember Dance Dance Revolution at its peak popularity? If not, here’s a typical scenario that you would have encountered in arcades back in 1999: a gangly teen steps up to the dance pad and picks up the hardest song in the game…. and on “Maniac” setting, no less. This is what I’m reminded of when I hear Rush Hour from TWEWY.I It’s bassline slapped so hard and fast, and set against an insane tempo of drum-and-bass. What resulted is rhythm that doesn’t care if anyone can dance along to it. And just like any good battle song, it ends just as suddenly as it starts. Yes it doesn’t just sound insane; it is insane.
7. Hybrid
For a battle theme, Detonation doesn’t sound as intense as any of its counterparts in TWEWY. However it does feature many of the genre-mashing hallmarks that the TWEWY soundtrack would be known for. Honestly, would it hurt Atlus to commission more battle themes for Persona other than one song that gets used over and over again? (The rheotrical answer is “no”, obviously.)
6. Detonation
For all the sonic adventurousness that the hiphop tracks boast in TWEWY, the lyrics rhyme like it came straight out of the ‘90s (and with a dash of some “brainy” words like “cortex” and “diffusion” that would make backpack rappers nod their heads). But you know, these are Japanese lyricists. So I guess they get a pass. And the track is still banging, if I may say so.
5. Give Me All Your Love
Sounds like a techno club song, right? It sure is, and with lyrical content to match too. If you get to the line, “feel me when you come inside” you probably won’t hear dance music the same way ever again. Like suddenly wising up to what the kids meant when they were showing you their 420 sign or whatever kids are up to these days.
4. Twister
Twister is such an unavoidable track in TWEWY. The version I’ve linked above is the one that plays during the opening cinematic, but there’s two other remixes that were used throughout the game. So for better or worse, this is probably the song that any player would likely associate with the game. At least because of the countless times it has played.
3. Calling
Calling is popular with the TWEWY fanbase because of this one thing: it really sounds like a damn good song. It’s electro-pop in all the good ways. Even in its uncut version, it sounds like it’s produced to be a single track. Even clocking in at a respectable 3:30! The more telling mark of its “quality” is in the lyrics. It reads like an inner anime monologue from one of the characters in TWEWY. Gotta respect that storyline consistency!
2. Transformation
Now THIS is a battle theme! And listen to it clearly; can you hear the Linkin Park influence permeating the song? There’s even an electro version of this song that sounds even more intense than the original cut, which you can listen to here.
1. Lullaby For You
Should it come as any surprise that the most memorable song from The World Ends With You is the one that sounds the most different from the rest of the soundtrack? Because of the fact that this song plays at the game’s end. This song definitely gives off some Final Fantasy 8 level feels. You can’t end the game any better than this. Yes, I’m aware that I did skip out on a lot of the other cool songs from The World Ends With You. But that’s the beauty of it: there are just so many things to go through here that the only way to experience them all is to play it. I would say to grab your DS but Nintendo released a Switch remix so I’d say that’s a much better alternative.
