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Alternate Soundtrack: Sonic The Hedgehog vs. Ratatat

Posted by John Constantine



Words and video by Derrick Sanskrit

Anybody who was a gamer during the 16-bit era remembers the intense rivalry between Nintendo and Sega. Much like Burger King today, Sega marketed itself as the hipper, more extreme company full of attitude compared to family-friendly Nintendo. Their mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, was the embodiment of the Sega image. He was fast. He was pointy. He was naked except for his sneakers. Most importantly, he had attitude. Just a few seconds of inactivity in his games and the blue hedgehog would stare at you through the screen. Sonic glared, tapping his foot, his furrowed brow exclaiming, "I'M WAITING, DUDE! COME ON, LET'S GO BREAK THINGS!"

Ratatat are college radio's Sonic the Hedgehog. Mashing up the lap-pop electronics of the Postal Service with the arena-ready electric guitars of Van Halen, they've got the edge and the attitude to destroy all the robot animals in Green Hill Zone without breaking a sweat. Instrumental anthems built on distorted electronic guitar loops are practically custom built for gaming.

As an added bonus, I've broken down today's video so that each Genesis-era Sonic game matches up with each Ratatat album: Sonic 1 with 2004's Ratatat, Sonic 2 with 2006's Classics, and Sonic 3 with 2008's LP3 (coming this July. I used my sweet connections to get my hands on this advanced copy. 61FPS does not support or condone piracy). There's even a Chaos Emerald bonus stage from Sonic 1 mixed with a b-side from one of Ratatat's singles.



Enjoy the video, try it at home, and let us know your alternate soundtracks in the comments!


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Comments

Rob said:

Awesome.  That works really well, especially the first and last track.

I've been playing through Battletoads lately (i'm going to beat it this time, i swear)...and trying to come up with something to no avail.  The levels are so different that I don't know if one band will work for the game.  Any ideas?

June 3, 2008 1:13 PM

Derrick Sanskrit said:

My only idea is that YOU WILL FAIL! BATTLETOADS IS IMPOSSIBLE!

Seriously, though, I would think that with the content and gameplay of Battletoads you would want some aggressive, synth-tinged experimental pop. Something along the lines of Think About Life, Dan Deacon, or recent Of Montreal.

Or maybe something more straight-forward rock, in order to get that adrenaline pumping. Art Brut can provide the power guitar for kicking ass along with the sense of humor for...well...everything else. Some of the more rhythmic The Blood Brothers tracks would also be good for that blood-boiling aggression with enough dissonance for the creepiness of the environments without all falling apart. I'd probably recommend "Young Machetes." Not their best album, but probably most consistent for what we'd need in the game.

June 3, 2008 1:38 PM

Rob said:

I just made level 12 for the first time last night.  It will be mine, oh yes.

Ugh, Dan Deacon.  Even though that's the only scene going on in my city right now, I can't get into it.  I saw him live last weekend, was just noise to me.  Or maybe I'm just getting old and don't understand the kids anymore.

I'll try out the blood brothers.

June 3, 2008 2:10 PM

dukerayburn said:

Man, I really enjoyed this, especially a peek at a new Ratatat song. I've been in love with them for the last year and they're the constant bedrock of any playlist I use when focusing, so word of a new album is very encouraging.

On the remix front I find that most games that stick with me already have memorable music. But Persona 3 could use at least some improved variety in *ahem* certain areas. That fucking trip-hop dorm song is excruciating.

If you like the synth vibes of Ratatat I'd recommend Tettix/Cicada. While under the name Cicada he made two albums called Technology Crisis and Technology Crisis II, which are essentially beautiful and inspired video game soundtracks to video games that don't exist. Definitely worth a listen.

June 15, 2008 6:10 AM

Demaar said:

Why does no one love Young Machetes as much as I do? Anyways, yeah... I could see that possibly working for Battletoads. Hell, I just may try that myself.

Thanks for the introduction to Ratatat.

July 1, 2008 3:31 AM

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John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Hooksexup, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia prizes the certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

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