Beats From Earlier Days: Metroid II: Return of Samus

The under-appreciated and generally unknown sequel (sixth chronologically in the series) to the original Metroid for the NES was a fantastic entry in the franchise that continued its tradition of a lonely, bleak atmosphere, exploration and of course, great music.

Well, saying Metroid II had a great soundtrack is a bit of an overstatement. Most of the “music” is atmospheric bleeps and bloops, which manage to get the point across of being in a dangerous, alien world, but it is hardly listenable outside of the game.

However, the track “SR388″ is phenomenal, and stands out not only as a great song, but also as the only real music track in the game other than the credits song. It’s catchy as can be, and really demonstrates the Game Boy’s excellent ability to produce great chiptune music. Compositional credits go to Ryoji Yoshitomi.

About Tyler Cameron

Tyler is a longtime gamer and video game music fanatic who grew up in the suburbs of Detroit. Now living in sunny southern California, he has taken to showing the world just why video game music is so awesomely awesome. A diehard Red Wings fan, cat lover and cereal connoisseur, his passion for his hobbies knows no bounds.